Jurassic Manor

I'm having a sick day so why not play with some models and tack?

Well, I never said horse models.

The Best $4 I Ever Spent

I'm one of those weird people that goes into pet stores when I don't have pets. Or house improvement stores when I don't have a house (I have an apartment and it's against the rules to improve it). I am always looking for things that can be repurposed for miniatures.

I found something at Petco. Pet stores often have little cage ornaments and things that can be used for dollhouse embellishments, but often they are pretty expensive. I feel pretty lucky and happy to have found this for $4 and change!

It's just a bunch of sticks stuck together with wires. But it's amazingly versatile, and just the right size...

The wires not only keep the sticks together, they allow them to be curved...

It can take the weight of a Breyer horse! (or in this case, a Peter Stone)

It's a great bridge, and it could be a ramp, a raft, even a jump or a fence!

So many possibilities...my imagination is just going crazy imagining scenarios.

I don't live show, but if I did, this seems like it would be a great performance prop!

English Saddle

I've had a "bee in my bonnet" for a while now to try making another English saddle again. It's been several (years?) since I last tried, and I've gotten a lot more comfortable working with leather and looking at reference pictures. I found an old pattern that a friend of mine had sent me (no instructions though) and sat down with some old leather jacket scraps and skiver, and went to town.

Two days of puzzle assembly later, this is what I had made.

I made a ton of mistakes and it's far from perfect, but I learned a lot! I think I'm finally on the right track. That old scrap leather actually doesn't look too bad!