We all have our vices. Some women collect purses. Some collect shoes. I have a closet full of western show outfits in various colors. For some reason, I have a weakness for them. Maybe because of the Swarovski crystals, the multi-hued material, or because they are related to horses. Either way, I love to spend my money on show clothes. Since there are no local shops that I can buy show clothes from (see About Me), I have bookmarked online websites that I like (and can afford) that sell western show clothes.
It took me along time to determine what show clothes looked good on my horse and were appropriate for Arab class A shows. In this post I will share what I have learned with you and what sites I feel have good clothes that are reasonably priced.
Note: This article is for mostly Western Pleasure outfits and possibly reining and trail class. There are no Showmanship or Horsemanship classes in the Arab show world so I don’t buy clothes for those classes.
Four Questions
Before you rush out and start shopping, there are a few questions you should ask yourself:
1. What type of shows will you be attending?
2. What is the color of your horse?
3. What is your age and figure?
4. What is your budget?
Type of Show
When I first started shopping for show clothes, I looked at outfit styles online and read about the current trend in western show clothing–less black and white and lots of color in shirts and chaps. I saw many show clothing sites that featured shirts paired with matching chaps in almost all colors of the rainbow. So I found a blue outfit I liked and bought it without checking to see what exhibitors were actually wearing in the shows I attended. When I attended my first regional Arab show, I saw that most of the adults wore black or sand chaps and a colorful shirt. No brightly colored chaps. Whoops. I didn’t consider that most of these outfits online were for the Quarter Horse or Paint circuit, not regional Arab Class A shows. I assumed the outfits would be the same, which was a wrong assumption to make. The lesson I learned was before you buy, go watch a show and study exhibitor outfits–the styles, colors, and if they are custom-made or off the rack.
The Color of Your Horse
When you buy a show outfit, the outfit should compliment your horse. In a Western Pleasure class, you may be one of twenty people in the ring so you need to have any outfit that makes you and your horse stand out.
Hobby Horse clothing company has a chart on their website that shows what colors flatter the coat and tail color of your horse. Basically the chart shows these coat colors:
- Black
- Redhead (Chestnut, Sorrel, Liver Chestnut, Red Roan, Dun)
- Brunette ( Bay, Black, White, Silver Gray, Blue Roan)
Think of it from a fashion point of view. Most women’s magazines say, cool or jewel-tone colors look good on brunettes or dark haired women (red, blue, green, etc.) and warm colors (yellow, orange, etc.) look good on blonde’s. Valerie is a dark bay so I choose outfits with strong jewel tones, like blue or red. I also find that outfits highlighted with a small amount of black look really good because of her black mane and tail. However, because she is a very dark bay, I can’t wear too much black because it does not offer enough contrast.
I also believe because Valerie is small that I need to choose patterns that are not overwhelming for her small frame. I stay away from fabrics with a small pattern.
Age and Shape
As older women, unfortunately we must dress more conservatively. What does that mean? Well, if you look online it shows kids show outfits in bright colors like red, blue, pink, purple, etc. with cute little flower or stars. We can wear bright colors but the pattern and style cannot be over the top loud or wild.
You must also consider what shape you have. If you are on the larger side darker colors look more slimming and so are certain patterns and styles. Some designer special in plus size show clothing.
Cost
Once you get to the last question, you should have a good idea if you will be needing custom or off-the-rack show clothing. Off-the-rack show clothes tend to be less expensive then custom-made. I say “tend to” because I have found some designers whose clothing prices are comparable.
If you are only going to local or schooling shows you can probably wear non-custom show clothes. The down side with non-custom is that it is not one of a kind so someone else may be wearing it in your class. Hobby Horse and 1849 Authentic Ranchwear offer inexpensive but nice off-the-rack clothes.
If you have decided to buy custom, there are many designers to choose from and each prices their clothing differently. Prices climb if you choose expensive fabric, loads of Swarvorski crystals or leather, or ask for an intricate design. One warning I would give is this: you get what you pay for. I have seen some cheap show shirts on EBay but they don’t look well made (patterns don’t match) or are made with inferior material (thin bathing suit type fabric that looses shape or snags).
My Wardrobe
My wardrobe is a mix of custom and off-the-rack and new and used items. I have a pair of black slick leather custom chaps made by Deb Moyer, which I love. They fit well, are easy to clean and are very durable. However, my shirts are a mix of Hobby Horse and custom-made and range in cost from $300 to $125.00. There are certain high-end designer shirts I drool over but can’t afford new so I look and wait until I see them online used.
The List
Here is a list of some of my favorite shopping sites:
*The Wire Horse - offers Hobby Horse, 1849 Authentic Ranchwear and custom shirts
*Final Cut – I bought several shirts from her. Nice lady and love her clothes.
*Deb Moyer – bought my chaps from here
*Karen’s Kustoms (U)
*Painted J Western Show Apparel – made a very pretty shirt for me very quickly
Show Me Again (U)
*Tack Trader (U)
*EBay (U)
Beautiful but Out of My Price Range
*Purchased clothes from these stores.
(U)=offers used clothing
Note: If you want to look at a more comprehensive list of show clothing sites, go to the Boot Lady’s website http://www.thebootlady.com/links.html.
Have fun shopping!
First photo Pink Sherbet Photography, second photo cj berry 2009
Tell me about other online stores that you like.
