Christmas Gift Guide for the Clueless: Discipline-Specific Ideas
For the horse owner who has everything.
As if buying gifts for horse lovers wasn’t hard enough, you then have to factor in the discipline that your recipient enjoys: a barrel racer isn’t going to benefit from a personalized saddle cover for an English saddle; a draft lover might appreciate a nice leather halter, but a horse size halter just isn’t going to cut it! Thankfully, we understand your frustrations and this edition of our Christmas Gift Guide for the Clueless features a product for many popular disciplines!
If the person you are shopping for rides English, then I highly recommend this awesome tall boot bag by Art of Liv’n — keep an eye out for a product review later this month on all of their Art of Riding collection! At an affordable $69.97, this boot bag offers a wide open front zip for easy use. Made of a sporty neoprene with an anti-scratch soft inner lining, your boots are protected from all of life’s great messes. There are little pockets inside and out for your boot socks, boot pulls, and plenty of space to store a travel sized boot cleaning kit in the bag as well. Offered in two cute prints, these boot bags get my seal of approval for a great Christmas gift. And for now, they are on sale for $54.97!
Shopping for a western rider shouldn’t be scary! Especially not when there are tons of cute products out there that will definitely impress anyone in a western saddle. The Latest Buzz on Etsy has TONS of awesome phone, laptop, and home decor decals that range from $7-$65 that would be a perfect gift. I have featured here two different products, a MAC Laptop Decal that runs about $18.00 and a really simple yet sharp phone decal that is a steal at $7.00. And if you are wanting to spend a little more, this shop even has some nice large wall decals that are specific to the western discipline that range around $25-$55. The shop was quick to respond to me and should definitely be a go-to for Christmas Shopping!
Eventers can be a little trickier: what you get for their horse can all vary depending on the colors their horse competes in and their personal taste in equipment. One thing that ALL Eventers need (and I personally think anyone on a horse needs) is a Ride Safe Bracelet. SmartPak offers these essential bracelets for just $39.95 and are they come in a variety of colors. If you don’t know the details that need to be engraved on the Ride Safe Bracelet, you can always give your loved one a gift card for the amount and specify that you want them to order themselves the gift of peace of mind in case of an emergency. I firmly stand behind the idea of these bracelets, as you just never know what could happen when working with horses. This fantastic idea can definitely be a positive in a negative situation.
And then there is dressage! Thanks to its classical roots, dressage is a beautiful sport that any equestrian can appreciate. Keeping in mind its heritage, I found these gorgeous hand crafted mugs on Etsy via Crystallinehorse that I adore. This shop has a ton of different options as far as colors, design, and styles of pottery that you can choose from. Almost every Equestrian needs a quick cup of coffee to get them going in the morning. Give the gift of a nice relaxing drink from this mug to start the day and treat the Dressage rider in your life.
This mug is priced at $32.00 so it’s extremely affordable for a beautiful one of a kind piece, but if you want to spend a little more there are tons of options on the shop for you to pick from! And as a gift for our readers, Lindsey Epstein (owner of Crystallinehorse) has offered one of these mugs FREE to one special viewer — so be on the lookout for a giveaway link in the near future!
Another discipline that is wildly popular and very possible you will have to shop for is for those who ride and show gaited horses. I know nothing about gaited horses, so I looked to my gaited horse extraordinaire Suzanne for help (shout-out to one of the few college friends I could talk about horses with in class!). Suzanne had a few suggestions for those clueless about gaited horses *raises hand* that I wanted to highlight.
Her first suggestion, if your budget is a little on the larger side, was to check out Bling Tie Affiar online and look into investing in a custom bedazzled browband for competition use. One look at BTA’s website and I was almost converted — these browbands are gorgeous! Price will vary depending on each order, so get in touch with owner Patti and see what you can dream up.
Suzanne also said she LOVES to carry Yeti tumblers around the barn and that a great decal on the tumbler made it more personal and a little more budget friendly. Relatively Stable on Etsy has just about every decal you could ask for, including a handsome Walking Horse decal that would be perfect for personalizing just about anything. The best part is, Relatively Stable is offering 20% off of $10 or more just for our viewers when you use the code: HORSENATION at checkout! The walking horse decal I referenced earlier ranges anywhere from $4-$8 depending on the size and there are a conglomeration of colors you can choose from to make sure you can tailor it to that special persons taste. Add in the cost of a tumbler of your choice, and you’ve got a nice priced Christmas present that any equestrian would be sure to cherish.
If you have a draft lover in your life, then this section is for you! These gentle giants are huge in stature and huge in heart and often their owners mirror the same charming, calm personalities of their horses. Some ride, some drive, and some just have these big boys for pleasure, so finding a gift that is suitable for a draft lover can sometimes be a bit of a challenge. Remember, when buying for a draft horse itself, you won’t be able to order the standard size and the tack is usually going to be a bit pricier since it’s quite a bit larger. Another thing to factor in is that if the person you are shopping for drives, they may have a team, which means if you buy one item for one horse you very well likely are going to need to order the same item for the rest of the horses on the team.
I think a fantastic gift idea is a subscription to the Draft Horse Journal. A quarterly publication, Draft Horse Journal features the newest information on all things draft and includes premier sale ads for the discerning shopper. You can purchase these subscriptions as a gift at checkout and at an affordable $35 for 1 year or $62 for 2 years, this subscription is bound to bring joy each time it appears in the mailbox.
And some people don’t compete, some just ride for pleasure. For the recreational trail rider, your gift ideas are endless! A personal favorite of mine is the Personalized Fleece Nylon Jacket from Smartpak. Water and wind resistant, these jackets are great to have on the trail especially during the cooler months and they come in three stylish colors (hunter, navy, and black). The jacket runs around $59.95 for a graphic (SmartPak has tons of graphics options — western/English, horse heads of all colors, and numerous silhouettes too!) and a name embroidered on the front breast pocket. Sharp and warm, what more can a horse lover ask for?
No matter who you are shopping for, the resources are endless to help you find the perfect gift for the equestrian in your life! Keeping in mind the discipline your horse lover enjoys ensures that you will purchase a gift that they will cherish for a lifetime. When gift giving, it truly is the thought that counts but given the variety of options in the equestrian industry having a little help to guide you to the right product at the checkout counter never hurts. Happy shopping and go riding!
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