Top Tack Trunk Organization Tips

With show season upon us it is very easy to find yourself throwing things around and losing the Amazon organization system you put in place earlier in the year. Don’t worry we are right there with you!

Keeping your tack trunk organized will be the centerpiece of keeping your sanity. I have found that tack trunks can easily become a black hole of all of your belongings, and you always seem to need what is right at the bottom of the abyss. So without further ado, here are a couple of my favorite tack trunk organization tips and tricks that keep my head on straight no matter what is going on! 

• Add a Whiteboard: Adding a little whiteboard with a mirror is super handy to stick to the inside of your trunk to write down reminders and to check your helmet hair. 
• Packing Cubes: Get a small case of packing cubes. These are great to throw in and keep everything organized and together in their spot. Neat and tidy is the best feeling. 
• Categorize your trunk: Here are some easy categories to follow that we love. Items used daily, Cleaning supplies, Medications, Rider supplies, and Back up items. 
• Medicine Organization: Keep meds in a ziplock bag, pre-portion in reusable containers when possible. 
• Bandage Bags: If you set your horse up in bandages at night and don't have a trunk with a bandage keeper built into the lid, bandage bags are a lifesaver! They quickly and easily attach to the front of your stall and help keep your quilts and wraps under control when not being used. Plus they can double as a horse boot storage bag so your dirty splint boots don't get dirt all over your trunk. 
• Avoid Spills: Having recently dealt with Farrier Barrier leaking all over my grooming box inside my trunk, I have now started keeping it in an empty plastic coffee can. The con is the lid to my trunk doesn't close if I keep it in my grooming box, however, I've moved it to the floor of the trunk and all's right with the world.  
  
• Add A Portable Tote Bag. These take up next no room and make toting dirty clothes, wraps, boots, polo wraps, etc home for washing without taking up room in your trunk. 
  
• Add a saddle pad storage. This can easily be done with a bungee cord on the outside of your trunk, or with some bailing twine on the front of your stall. I hate putting sweaty pads away in my trunk, so this makes it easy for them to dry over night without leaving them laying around. 
• Utilize small containers. I keep a small plastic container in my trunk for the essentials I'm constantly losing track of. Safety pins, hair nets, extra number strings, braiding bands, hair ties, lip balm. All those little things store perfectly in small containers. When I used to event, I had a separate container for my studs, stud plugs and stud accessories. It makes life so much easier when you are operating out of a small space to start with. 

Packing all your belongings back into the trunk is the easy part! Keep the categories in a place that make sense. During this process, place the rarely used items near the bottom. Commonly used items should sit as close to the top as possible. If you have an item that you use every day, use a container that doesn’t have a top for even easier access! This might be one of the more annoying jobs during your day, but you will thank yourself later!