Custom Bonnet from DIY Horse Ownership!

A couple weeks ago, Olivia from DIY Horse Ownership migrated her blog and hosted a contest to entice everyone to follow over to the new platform. Obviously that was a no-brainer bc I can't get enough of Nilla haha, but we were also lucky enough to win a prize in said contest!!

classy navy with white trim and WHALES

I chose a custom bonnet from the menu of prize options and told Olivia that we like blues, especially navy.

fits the mare's petite face!!

I also noted that Isabel's head is slightly tricky to fit. Her ears are more or less standard horse size, but her skull is quite narrow, and her refined face is not very long from from poll to nose. Unfortunately tho, I was out of town when Olivia was working on it and couldn't provide very specific measurements.

thrilled mare is thrilled haha

Didn't matter, tho. She guestimated how much to shorten the bonnet and how to size the ears, and it turned out perfectly!

and obviously i get a sick kick out of covering her pretty little face with loads of random colors and textures

The bonnet fits exactly where I like it to sit (which I'm learning is maybe a bit of personal preference). It comes down below the browband and the swoopy bit is nicely between her eyes - but her eyes still have plenty of clearance.

Plus there's plenty of material to sit securely under the crownpiece, and I can thread the throatlatch through a hole in the knit just in case Isabel were to try shaking it off a la Taylor Swift.

whales are on the move!

She hasn't tried taking if off tho - and has actually seemed quite happy and comfortable wearing the bonnet. Which is useful bc we have some very persistent and violent bugs in our woods - especially by the streams. And while I try to stay vigilant with the fly whisk, the bonnet just adds that extra degree of protection!

in heaven among the high grass - bug free!

And since we basically exclusively trail ride these days, it's nice to know we've got all the necessary gear haha!

alllllllmost matchy matchy. almost.

Now I just need interchangeable hackamore pieces so we can match our look to whatever bonnet the mare might be wearing lol. Olivia, any thoughts on taking a stab at making a blue hackamore noseband?!? :D