April 2 Hackamore mid-rig

After 3 days of long and hard effort, the bosal to April's Hackamore is done!  Historically, it always has taken me at least 3 days to do a bosal,... and often much longer!  This bosal is the last part of April's to be made, and her hackamore is the 5th of the 8 pieces for my next book.  April's making has been documented, drawn, photographed and written up, which of course took a lot longer than 3 days.  I finished the bosal today, Saturday, in what feels like an all day marathon.  But the natural next step, rigging the hackamore, has, once again, revealed my rustiness.  I managed to overlook the fiador knot.

Rigging a hackamore is normally great fun.  It's all about untangling string, really, and adjusting everything through elaborate turns so that the headgear fits the horse.  We have the horse, Rapadura -- Celeste to the rest of you, -- Eberl's Lippizaner Mare in silver bay.  (She was named after piloncillo, the crystalized sugar cane juice.)  Yeah, my book needs more up-to-date model horses,... the horses in the Guide are antiques, sigh,...   

But tonight, after the long creative drive, I swung into rigging the moment the bosal was finished,... and, possibly predictably, ran out of steam.  I struggled a great deal and re-adjusted my hand-braided white fiador at least 3 times.  And somehow forgot the fiador knot, even with the original April's Hackamore hanging from my lamp right there in front of me.

 All the time I was thinking 'this fiador is too long, I've got to say it's shorter!,' I had missed out that some length would be needed for the fiador knot.  This knot brings together the loop on the near side and the ties on the off side and rests pretty much right under the horse's throat.  The tiny bit of black thread on the loop tip is a temporary marker.

I'll tackle the rigging again sometime later, when I've got more time and oomph.   

Meanwhile, my plan is to auction this little gem of a hackamore during BreyerFest, along with the Peach Rose 2 bridle, my Peruvian Paso resincast and his braided Jaquima halter (he will be fixed price), and any other pieces I happen to finish between now and then.  Oh yes and a fistful of Minkiewicz pins, extras all!  Room 612.  See you then -!