DIY Equestrian Holiday Gift Ideas
December 15, 2022| | in category Uncategorized No comments yet

The holiday season can be an expensive time of year, especially when shopping for equestrians. Instead of buying lots of pricey, store-bought items, consider making personalized gifts for your horsey friends. Read on for some DIY equestrian holiday gift ideas from BarnManager.

Homemade Horse Treats

If baking is your specialty, then gifting your friends, trainers, managers, or grooms with homemade horse treats is a wonderful option. For an extra-special touch, put the horse treats in a decorative box or mason jar and add a bow. This is a great gift to pair with a card and maybe a few chocolate treats for your human friends to enjoy.

Ornament

Deciding to make horse-themed ornaments gives you the flexibility to try lots of creative approaches. One option is to cut a horse figure or head out of felt and decorate it. If you are good at sewing, you could add stuffing between two pieces of horse-shaped felt to create a stitched ornament. Constructing a horse figure out of corks and decorating it with materials such as yarn and craft pipe cleaners is also another way to make this present. If you would like to make it more personal, buy a tiny picture frame, insert your friend’s favorite photo of their horse, and glue it on a string to make it an ornament.

Horseshoe Wall Hanger

Try out your woodworking skills by making a homemade horseshoe wall hanger. Start by collecting a few old horseshoes and nail them to painted wooden boards. This gift can be as simple or creative as you choose depending on how crafty you feel and how decorative you want it to be.

Wooden Grooming Box

This DIY present is also best for those who enjoy woodworking. If you have some time and enjoy making things, this is a great gift for your favorite groom. If you are not skilled enough to make your own, consider buying a premade one and painting or decorating it for a personal touch.

Decorative Picture Frame

If you are not the best at arts and crafts, consider buying a plain picture frame to decorate. You could paint the frame and even add your friend’s horse’s name at the top or bottom. Paint little horseshoes or ribbons on the frame, or glue on a few tiny equestrian-themed items from the craft store. If you purchase a larger frame to hang on a wall, consider adding a string to the bottom where ribbons can be hung.

Photography Session

If photography is your art of choice, a personal photography session can be a very special gift for your friends, trainers, managers, or grooms. After the session, choose a few special photos to print out and frame for them. If you photograph several people at the barn, you could even make a scrapbook for everyone.

Instead of buying run-of-the-mill presents this year, go the extra mile and gift your friends, trainers, managers, and grooms with homemade and personalized goodies.

Have questions about utilizing BarnManager or want to give it a try for yourself? Request a live demo here!

BarnManager is designed to be a part of your team, with the compatibility and credentials necessary to improve communication, simplify the management of horses, and get you out of the office, off the phone calls, and into the barn with the horses you care about! Click here to get a free demo and find out more!

Get Demo

Learn More

Eight Holiday Gift Ideas for Your Equestrian Friends
December 2, 2021| | in category Uncategorized No comments yet

Eight Holiday Gift Ideas for Your Equestrian Friends

Wondering what types of gifts your equestrian friends will enjoy the most this holiday season? Read below for our list of this year’s most wanted presents.

1. Belts

Equestrians can never have too many belts. There are so many styles, colors, and materials to choose from when seeking the perfect fit for your friend. You can opt for classic leather for the show ring or a colorful, stretchy-material style for schooling days at home. Both traditional and online tack shops carry lots of options, and some offer personalization with their horse’s name. You could even get a matching one for yourself!

2. Horse Treats

Every horse owner enjoys receiving a bag of treats give to their favorite mount. This is an easy gift to pair with a card and maybe a chocolate treat for your friend. Go a step further and make homemade horse cookies yourself and put them in a decorative container with a bow.

3. Socks

Socks are a great stocking-stuffer gift, especially for your friends who stay north during the winter. Having frozen feet while riding is never fun, so a few good pairs of warm socks for cold days at the barn are always appreciated. You can also add a set of toe warmers for those extra cold days. For friends who do not have deal with freezing temperatures, there are boot socks that come in lots of fun colors and patterns.

4. Gloves

Multiple pairs of gloves are a necessity during the busy show season and cold winter months. They often get lost or worn out, so it’s always handy to have extra pairs around. If your friend is staying up north this winter, considering buying them a pair of winter riding gloves. Nothing is worse than not being able to feel your hands while you’re tacking up your horse or riding. You can throw in a set of hand warmers with this gift as well.

5. Personalized Gifts

There are several websites that allow you to personalize products with pictures, which is perfect for any horse-obsessed owner. Gather a couple photos of your friend with their horse and customize coffee mugs, phone cases, pillows, water bottles, and more. Choose a different picture for each item and maybe even include a photo of you and your friend.

6. Photography Session

Equestrians love photo shoots with their favorite equine partner. Although photography sessions can be expensive, photographers often offer lower-priced options. You could even go behind the camera yourself and capture those special moments for your friend if you have the equipment – these days, even iPhones can take amazing photos with proper editing.

7. Magazine Subscription

Allow your friends to stay up to date on their favorite equestrian interests and disciplines with a magazine subscription. Find out if they are interested in lifestyle or sport and treat them to a print or online subscription that they can enjoy throughout the year.

8. Gift Card

Some friends are very difficult to shop for, which is why a gift card to their favorite tack shop is a perfect present. You can give this present in a festive way by putting it in a holiday-themed card or coffee mug.

Have questions about utilizing BarnManager or want to give it a try for yourself? Request a live demo here!

BarnManager is designed to be a part of your team, with the compatibility and credentials necessary to improve communication, simplify the management of horses, and get you out of the office, off the phone calls, and into the barn with the horses you care about! Click here to get a free demo and find out more!

Get Demo

Learn More

Holiday Gift Guide for Equestrian Tech Lovers
December 13, 2019| | in category Equine Tech Collab No comments yet

Finding the perfect gift for the equestrians in your life can be hard – especially as the holidays are rapidly approaching! Fortunately, if any of the equestrians on your list (alright, or you!) love technology even remotely as much as they love horses, we may have just the solution. An added bonus? Many of them can be delivered digitally – no need to worry about shipping in time for Christmas!

For the Rider Who Loves His or Her FitBit – Try a Hylofit! Hylofit is a wireless heart rate monitor for horse and rider that uses zone training to set fitness goals, track performance, and prevent injury. Shop here.

For Your Favorite Show Jumper, Show Barn Manager, or Show Jumping Super Fan – Give the gift of a Jumpfax subscription! The Jumpfax app allows riders to plan their season, access practical show information and key contacts, find start lists and results, and much more.  Shop subscription options starting at only $5/month here.

For the Friend That Loves Online Shopping for the Best Products – Sometimes allowing someone to shop for whatever they want is the best gift, and with a Corro gift card, they can shop for all the best, thoughtfully curated riding and horse care products in one spot online! Visit www.corroshop.com to purchase a gift card (and maybe a few things for yourself while you’re there).

For Your Barn Manager (or You!) – We may be a bit biased, but of course we can’t make this list without including BarnManager. BarnManager is the official barn management software of U.S. Equestrian, and gifting your barn manager a subscription may just make you their new best friend! Subscriptions start at less than $10/month and include:

-unlimited horse information, health, and wellness recording
-the ability to upload attachments directly to records to easily access files when you need them
-searchable barn-wide conversations and messaging, as well as private conversations and messaging
-a virtual “white-board,” that takes the conventional barn white-board and makes it accessible anywhere
-customizable tables and free form lists
-contact management and more.

Click here to explore the options!

For any Horse Owner (Especially That One Friend that Misplaces Her Paperwork!) – Know anyone who has ever shown up at a horse show without a horse’s health certificate or who just wants to stay on top of her horse’s care (a.k.a. all of us)? Then consider a subscription to Electronic Vet – currently available for only $50 a year.

Electronic Vet provides an innovative, user-friendly, digital health certificate designed to meet the ever-growing needs of horse show venues. By providing accurate, efficient, and secure information, “eVet” is the authority in online equine health certificates and immunization records – and a great gift. Visit www.electronicvet.com to find out more.

For the Eventing Rider – The CrossCountry app may be just what your eventing friends didn’t know they needed. The app allows riders to record their cross-country course walk with GPS; add photos, comments, and striding; share courses and download virtual guided course walks; and much more. Learn more at www.crosscountryapp.com.

For the Friend Who Always Wants to Know What Her Horse is Up To – Give the gift of Nightwatch! Nightwatch is a smart halter that monitor’s the horse’s safety when no one is around, including tracking the horse’s heart rate, respiratory rate, activity, motion, and posture. Shop online at www.SmartHalter.com.

BarnManager is designed to be a part of your team, with the compatibility and credentials necessary to improve communication, simplify the management of horses, and get you out of the office, off the phone calls, and into the barn with the horses you care about! Click here to get a free demo and find out more!

Get Demo

 

Learn More