UPDATE: subscribe to my blog as I will be posting a "tried and tested" update in 2 weeks time!
My husband gives me an exasperated look as I walk through the door.
"Another parcel for you."
He knows, of course, that it contains something either overpriced and/or unnecessary for the main man in my life, Sid.
And (most unusually) he is 100% correct.
I have always been a fan of Premier Equine rugs. They fit Sid better than most others and, though not perfect, they are rather better than others at not rubbing out most of his mane/coat/tail/soul.
Plus who could dislike a rug that comes in bright orange.
So when I heard that they had expanded their range, I had to find out more.
I ordered the PE Sport Favoloso Anatomic Bridle in Dark Brown. I went for the Extra Full size as Sid's lovely great donkey ears just don't fit in most "Full" bridles.
The first thing I noticed when I unpacked the bridle was that the packaging stated "Made in India". I have to admit, I was slightly disappointed by this given that the marketing all centres around the Italian leather/craftsmanship. However, I suppose for the price of the bridle, it was never going to compete with PS of Sweden, Bliss of London and the like.
The leather itself felt OK though, and the shaped headpiece was nicely padded. The browband was beautifully curved too.
I think you can see from the picture, though, that the noseband is absolutely HUGE!!!
I mean what kind of a horse has that wide a noggin?!?!
I know I often affectionately refer to Sid as a donkey, but I am sure I have never asked "why the tree-trunk face".
The flash strap was not particularly supple either and there's no option (which always annoys me) for the bridle to come without a flash.
Overall, I like the top half of the bridle but not the bottom half. I can also see how it might be difficult to get it to fit properly to a horse that doesn't fit their proportions (and as with most PE products, sizing does seem to run large).
I also ordered a martingale, which I have to say is rather lovely.
I am a huge fan of anything that makes my life easier, and a 3 point breastplate that clips onto the saddle and girth does just that.
The elastic did not feel like it would stretch too much and the quality of the stitching was good.
It will be interesting to see how the leather fares though, given again it wasn't as supple as I would have liked (maybe I have been spoilt with leather quality?)
In addition, this does not come in Extra Full size, but luckily fits Sid as it is. An extremely large shouldered horse may not be quite so lucky!
At least I now have something to hold onto given the new rules on falling off at British Eventing competitions!!!
On the plus side, my Bengal kitten, Olympia, enjoyed the packaging it all came in (and I got myself a lovely pair of new breeches!).
