I was recently asked to complete a bitless bridle in under two weeks. Sounds like a lot of time but when you have other projects and commitments lined up, it’s not much. Especially when you’re a perfectionist and it’s going to be on display to tens of thousands of people. So here is the messy speed version and the shortcuts.
The bridle is for a beautiful Clydesdale-cross jousting horse. The jouster’s colours are green and gold, with red and white accents and his heraldic motif is the oak leaf.
The longest part of the process is getting approval on a design as there are many different variations and horse-owners are understandably careful about what they put on the sensitive face of their horse. A quick trip to the paddock for measurements and to the store for supplies and the cutting and shaping begins.
Usually each strap would be cut, smoothed, decorated and dyed before being stitched together. This time we wanted something functional ready even if it had not been finished. So all the straps were glued together, checked on the horse one last time and then finished.
Short of time I had to make two concessions. First, I couldn’t do intricate hand carved and painted decorations. Instead I used commercial stamps to create a simple leaf and acorn motif, dyed with a plain tan antique. Second, I didn’t have time to hand-stitch every piece. I turned to my trusty sewing machine to make short work of the seams.
This bridle was thrown in the deep end, literally. The heavens opened and it rained the entire event, leaving us all drenched. However, it held up pretty well and with a few slight design changes, will hopefully be used and loved for many years. Next Project is a set of horse barding to match it!
