A Sneak Peek At The Future Of Equestrian Gear

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to attend the major equestrian trade show to see all the newest and latest things coming for the new seasons, I’m here to give you a little sneak peek into what it’s like and show you all the new things I got to see at this winters trade show.

We’ve all seen A Christmas Story, with Ralphie & his friends crowded around the department store window.  That’s what it’s like heading in the door on the first day. All the vendors have their booths set up like shop windows with the latest greatest newest things right in arms reach. The amount of work the vendors do to set up their area is pretty incredible, fancy lighting, beautiful displays. But that’s not what you want to hear about, you want to hear about THE STUFF.

Our first appointment of the day was with EGO 7, we all love their boots and their apparel is quickly catching fire. They have a few new colors in their breeches coming this season for both. Full seat and knee patch styles but the bombshell pieces were the new Ego7 riding gloves, both in classic leather & a beautiful mesh tan through style, both are incredibly soft & the mesh on the tan through was very substantial and sturdy. Unlike previous styles that tend to snag and run on anything within reach. 

The other jaw-dropping piece was their new show coat, the Pierre, I might have fangirl’d just a little bit over this one. This coat looks AMAZING on, the straight-line seams down the back will have my big Eq riders itching to get their hands on one of these. It has this incredible stretch fabric that has subtle perforated panels for insane breathability. The panels are hidden along the inside sleeve & side panels of the coat with the button over zip front closure, double seamed back arch to a small pleated rear vent. This coat will be making an appearance sometime in April, be sure to follow our social media pages to be the first one to know they have arrived! making this our new favorite imported show jacket! 

Next, we were introduced to the latest for Spring / Summer 20 from the Hannah Childs collection. At her request, no pictures were taken, but it's safe to say her collection is SWOON worthy! We fell in love with her unique spin on sun shirts, combining fun colors with prints paired with our favorite breathable mesh sleeves.  We can’t wait to school in this summer! Her collection was filled with polo shirts, skorts & a variety of leisurewear that can go anywhere all season long. 

Our third appointment of the day landed me in some hot water briefly for the first, but not the last time of the weekend! Being the social media maven, I like to tell our IG & FB story followers EVERYTHING that’s going on, or super cool. Apparently, when a manufacturer is offering a ‘retailer sneak peek’ on a new product launching later this spring, that means I should NOT be sharing the big reveal on social - Woops!! You may have seen it, but I was asked to delete it 10 seconds after posting. So probably not. ;) Keep an eye on Bates saddlery over the coming weeks, they have an amazing new piece coming that I can’t say much about. But the news should be released soon! 

After our third appointment, the squad & I had a quick visit with Fleeceworks, can I just say, I know Fleeceworks is expensive but it is worth every penny! You have no idea what goes into her products so let me give you some background details. Did you know, one of her associates literally handpicks EVERY single pelt used in her collection. No lie, she went on to tell us that of all the pelts they are shipped they probably use one out of every 6 presented from the containers. No worries, the pelts not selected are still used, just not by Fleeceworks. So if you own a Fleeceworks wool pad, know that it was handpicked and made the cut. Another detail - she does not use glue on her pieces. Many other fleece companies that make saddle & correction pads will use lesser-quality fleece and or sew together small pieces to make a product. Not so with Fleeceworks, this is why when cared for properly Fleeceworks outlasts other comparable products by lifespan. ( Lego managed to score a new grey schooling half pad while we were in there)

We had some free time after our third appointment so the squad went to explore the venue and some of the manufacturers breaking into the equestrian scene. Dylan and I took a look at Tucker Tweed - amazing as always and the owner suggested we check out her friend with a home goods company called 25 Mackenzie Lane. JACKPOT! Turns out I know the owner from when she ran ads in an equestrian magazine I ran in Georgia. Small world, I am so excited to reconnect with her! She makes adorable bags throw pillows, blankets, furniture and other home goods that are just lovely! It’s kind of like Integrity Linens / Triple Crown Custom but for your home. Her fabric selection is incredible, beautiful tweeds & plaids, plus vintage styles that are unique to equestrians.

After lunch, we had a quick appointment with Nunn Finer and our friend Jon Nunn. It should be noted that Jon’s wife is an amazing baker and left us some yummy homemade shortbread cookies for our visit. His pieces are always innovative and his line of bits was nothing short of amazing and he also has some new reins coming out later this season that we can’t wait to get our hands on! I ended up ducking out of this appointment a little early to be on time for our next visit with Shires.

Shires - we all know I am a HUGE fan of their bell boots. If you follow us on IG, you may already know my warmblood Lego has his own page spun off from our FHT page. It’s called FINDINGLEGOSBOOTSNSHOES - hoof accessory loss recovery squad. Enough said. So far in my quest, the Shires Arma bell boots are the only bell boots the boy will leave on his feet. He chews off the expensive pull-on styles, manages to rip off the Gator style bell boots from Thinline & other velcro boots he has managed to play with the velcro until the stitching finally comes apart. The one giant leather reinforced velcro tab makes it hard for him to open and they are very soft, so far it’s a winner for us. Shires also had some interesting new bits we put on the order and a new grooming blade to help with springtime shedding. A must-have around the barn this time of year! 

 

Then we were off to see the new shirts from Essex Classics <3. We all know they put out an ‘adult beverage’ contrast shirt every year. This year it’s margaritas & tacos! - Seriously have you ever been to an away horse show and NOT gone out with your horse show friends for Mexican at least ONE night? Is it really a horse show if Margaritas aren’t easily accessible? Lots of other cute new contrasts coming as well to the ever-popular Talent Yarn collection, but my social followers fell in LOVE with the taco & tequila shirt. Keep an eye out for the new ones coming in any day! 

We rounded out the day with a visit to KL Select where we met up with our friends Brian & Erica to see the latest offerings from the KL family of goods. I’m easily distracted by things - if you can’t already tell. I would not have gotten much further than the boot socks if Erica had not dragged me away. I’m perpetually a junior at heart, what can I say? None the less, KL showed us some amazing new bridle work come this spring that we can’t wait to share with you. You already know their lines of leather goods such as Red Barn & Black Oak. 

Day 2 kicks off with our favorite appointment of the show - Tailored Sportsman!

This season brings a rainbow of colors to the new member of the Tailored Sportsman collection - The sock bottom breeches with vintage knee patches. Along with some black knee patch styles in the vintage collection & new kids sock bottom breeches in tan and schooling colors. 

The season’s sun shirts are filled with bright fun colors and tropical hues that embrace summertime riding. Our favorite was the new ORANGE CRUSH! These amazing new colors and styles are arriving weekly!

 

We then moved on to Samshield to see their competition collection & what’s coming for fall 2020. They are bringing the rose gold craze up a notch! Check out the trim on the jackets, vests & gloves! LOVE!!! 

We wrapped up our visit with an appointment with RJ Classics. If you haven’t already stepped into a pair of RJ Gulf breeches, do it! You won’t be disappointed. RJ’s collection of mesh show coats is growing with new colors this season. Show shirts with fun contrasts are also on the agenda. We also got a sneak peek at a major upgrade coming to RJ show shirts. This was where I may have been asked to delete some pictures of the prototype we got to take a look at. This super cool new shirt is still in the design stages, but I should be able to give you guys a peek in August. Until then, let us know your favorites from our visit!