Dusted off my dressage gear.....YUK!

I am horrified to have to admit the condition I found my $300 gorgeous Stubben bridle in.....well the parts I have not been using for 8ys.  I bought this bridle for Rose and Tigerlily way back in the day and used it in it's whole....ONCE.  From there I was using a different bridle for Tigerlily's MOOSE head as this one was just too small, I sold Rose shortly after buying it, and with it's burgandy padding, while it looks smashingly FABULOUS on a near black horse...it looked lame on Snookie.  So for her and Lily I used horsemans rope reins with slobber straps, or rope reins with snaps (finesse reins).  Since I bought Rose back a few years later....by then I was only riding her in a halter and was mainly focusing on freestyle riding.  When I decided to start her in the bridle again a few months ago, I dug it out, but left the caveson and reins in the tack shed.....and apparently years ago let it get covered in dust and then tossed in a box with a myriad of other unused tack. 

I noticed quite immediately that when it comes to riding with contact, I do NOT like riding with rope reins.  I have very independant hands and do not like the weight in my hands.  To me it feels like it lies to me, like making me feel as though there is a couple ounces of contact, when in fact there is NONE.  I much prefer to get the glaringly obvious weightless feeling when we have lost the contact, and also prefer to have the wight of the contact only in my hands....not the weight of the reins.  It just muddles up everything for my brain.  When I want 2 ounces of contact.....4 ounces of rein kinda gets in the way.  So....I decided after a few rides now that I needed to go dig my coveted black web dressage reins out of the spider infested no mans land.....the dreaded shed.  And there I found with it....the caveson.....treated like some piece of insignificant crap leather.....covered in dust.  I did all this amidst cooking Cristmas dinner....as only a true horse crazy person can do.....my husband staring at me as took more care in the kitchen with my bridle than I did the whole meal.  LOL.....

THEN.....as if cleaning it wasn't good enough....the leather felt too stiff and it needed my special care....conditioning in the way only *I* can do.....by hand.  I have a wonderful beeswax conditioning salve that is quite expensive and I see no reason to waste any on a towel or sponge...so I massage it in with my bare hands....and yes....I did say 'massage'....like a shiatsu queen I carefully and thouroughly buttered up every nook n cranny.....and it is now so beautiful again.  It is hanging under my saddle like a prized trophy.  and in the open for viewing like the Mona Lisa.  I can't wait to try it on Rose again and see just how pretty she is in it, and just how light those reins are gonna be.