TSII #427, Mint Chocolate Chip, was built in 2002 for Val Sydor. At the time I had just started exploring with fabric seats on saddles. This set is unique in its braiding and its design. I never made another with this color and, indeed, never used fleece again this way.
The auction for this saddle closes on Thursday July 11, at 8 pm Eastern (Note new closing time!). See the current bid and all the details and rules here.
The bit is a one-of-a-kind, handcut stamped sterling silver with a Rio Rondo concho soldered on. When Kathy Moody first saw this saddle, she laughed out loud: She said it was like a dream, something she never would've thought possible. She said it represented the wild fancy of model tack artists -- it couldn't happen in real life -- and that it was a miracle it had been brought into the world.
Above: I did indeed polish the bit, but the camera didn't quite pick up on it. Also, since I hate wax, I'm using fishline to hold up the bit, just didn't bother to PhotoShop it out,... While #427 was in my hands this June [2024], I cleaned it up and polished what I could. It didn't take much work.
The true color is somewhere between these two photos, taken 22 years apart.
I just love this shot so I'm publishing it here again. There are only a few angled-border silver-strip TSII saddles in existence, and this is one of them.
From my Grey Braidwork Scrapbook: "First ever use of fabric for the seat. First ever tri-color braiding on saddle. First ever embroidery floss face piece-- removable. First (and last) use of this kind of dental floss!! (Hi-Tech)." I have since used dental floss quite a bit in model tack, but never again any called Hi-Tech.
From the TSII Saddle Number registry: "V Sydor's "Mint Saddle" sometimes called the Mint Chocolate Chip Saddle. :) Lightest Natural Varnished, Rose Rayonnant carved. Double Angled skirts with silver border strip. Light Mint Green seat ("blanket sleepwear") a first [for the seat]: fabric instead of leather, suede or chamois. Six angled silver plates, all of silver tape, tied down with Mylar tinsel ties, themselves awled so as to blend in with the plates, or else form decorative interstices... I'm pleased to report that the trick of using Mylar tinsel to tie down the silver tape strips, worked.
"TRI COLOR 4-STRAND BRAIDED EDGE on cantle, pommel and horn -- white, mint green and dark brown. A prototype! EIGHT TASSELS: white tassels with mint green Pineapple [braided button] (minus core) and dark brown interweave. Domed soldered (stick pin) conchos -- the third ever to this now-standard tech. Maid-O-Metal pommel caps [thin gauge aluminum sheet]. Twisted stainless steel back cinch rings. Silver tape strip on cantle and pommel rim front.
Remember, every inch of green thread used had to be hand-spun from multiple strands of embroidery floss, in order to make it strong enough to withstand the stresses of creation. Ordinary DMC floss is not tough enough, a point emphasized in my next book.
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