# Show carts, have you ever gone with colors against the norm?



## Carolyn R (Jan 26, 2011)

I personally love a nice classy black show cart, I am not a huge fan of the stained carts, they are lovely turnouts, just not my thing.

I know the cart should compliment the horse. I was wondering if any of you have mixed it up a bit to add your own style or flare?

I am sorry, I can't recall which forum member it is that has the silver cart, it looks lovely with the horse you have in the photos you have posted in the past.

Have any of you gone with something that is really different, have you been happy with it, have you regretted it? Even if it was something as simple as the pinstripes.

If I can't find a reasonable used cart that is suitable for an A size mini, I am going to have to go with ordering one. I am really considering a black cart with a unique colored pinstriping.

Please share your "love it" and "well I thought it was a good idea at the time" cart experiences.


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## Sue_C. (Jan 26, 2011)

I am like you, but in driving, going above the norm has to be done with a bit of subtlety if you want to do well.




I think that is why I love the marathon phase of CDEs, as you can let you inner self go a bit...add colour and pizazz. (My barn colours are black and orange...my driving mare a brilliantly coloured black blanketed appy.)





Just remember though, in looking for that "different" pin-striping, that the colour you choose, will have to be somewhat complemented by your outfit, so if you intend to go with a colour...that is the colour you will be "stuck" with. I suggest you stick with a double pin-stripe of gold and silver, then you can up your look with any colour of clothing/apron/hat you want. I do love a solid black cart too, although I love Myrna's blue cart very much, I don't always drive the same coloured horse, so black it "has" to be.


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## mydaddysjag (Jan 27, 2011)

Brilliant minds must think alike, I just posted this topic a couple weeks ago.

Heres the link

Colorful carts


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## Carolyn R (Jan 27, 2011)

mydaddysjag said:


> Brilliant minds must think alike, I just posted this topic a couple weeks ago.
> 
> Heres the link
> 
> Colorful carts


I was following that thread. I was wondering if anyone had input on regrets as far as cart colors.

I am sure that there are those that will cringe, and I have had past carts, honestly, the black with gold and silver was a practicle way to go but......

My husband's harley is a wonderful burnt metalic orange, and while I would NEVER go with an orange cart, I was thinking that a black cart with that color pinstripes may not be half bad. It is a dark autumn orange shade, I don't think it would look right with certain colored horses, but it wouldn't look half bad on others.Hmmmmm.


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## RhineStone (Jan 27, 2011)

A dark orange might look OK with the palomino in your avatar or the buckskin. WIth a black horse, it might make the horse look like a black cat!



It also might look good with a sorrel, but personally I don't think that sorrels should be put to black carts anyway, but that is my traditional carriage-self talking. Sorrels are too "informal" for black.

My mom once bought a sorrel pinto mare and her cart. The cart was black with a red stripe. Although the cart fit the mare, I thought the two together looked terrible. That pinto was too informal for that cart. The cart looked good with my mom's gray gelding, though. The mare would have looked better with a stained vehicle or at least a forest green or beige stripe. IMO, sorrels don't look good with anything except green or neutral/natural.

Myrna


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## Reignmaker Miniatures (Jan 29, 2011)

RhineStone said:


> Sorrels are too "informal" for black.
> 
> IMO, sorrels don't look good with anything except green or neutral/natural.
> 
> Myrna


Hmmm, interesting that you should point this out. I have a coming 4 yr old stallion who is sorrel with a bald face and 4 white legs. I have just recently been trying to imagine how he would best be presented. This info has given me a whole new perspective, I never thought of sorrel as 'informal' being such a common color (even more so than bay or grey) but did think with his white face, blue eyes and white legs he might be considered as such. Interesting to hear that sorrel _is_ considered an informal color even with out the 'chrome'


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## hobbyhorse23 (Jan 30, 2011)

RhineStone said:


> Sorrels are too "informal" for black.


Poor Kody. He gets stuck with black anyway because his mom is too chicken to buy him a green cart!



Always wanted to but never quite worked up the nerve. (Obviously stained wood isn't really an optional color on a metal cart like the Bellcrown.)

Leia


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## jleonard (Jan 30, 2011)

hobbyhorse23 said:


> Poor Kody. He gets stuck with black anyway because his mom is too chicken to buy him a green cart!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Locita is right there with him



That is very interesting that sorrel/ chestnut is considered informal.


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## RhineStone (Jan 30, 2011)

jleonard said:


> That is very interesting that sorrel/ chestnut is considered informal.


I know that some breeds use sorrel and chestnut interchangably or don't use "sorrel" at all (Saddlebreds, Arabs, etc.), but I think of a chestnut being darker than a sorrel, and a chestnut (not quite bay) has a better chance of being turned out formally than a sorrel (bright red/orange) does. I have seen some palominos turned out well formally, but if you think of something like a Haflinger, they have a harder time being turned out formally. Just the style of the breed indicates that it is an informal horse. A darker, but not quite liver chestnut Morgan could be put to a formal vehicle. And liver chestnuts could be formal. That is probably why you see a lot of bay/dark Morgans and other typical driving breeds. Back in the day, people did not want a lot of "flash" (color) in their horses. That was considered tacky.

I'm sure there are exceptions to everything, but this is just generally what I have seen. If you had enough $$ to purchase a formal vehicle, you had enough money to buy a dark horse to go in front of it.

In a metal vehicle, I really don't think it matters as much. It matters more for the pleasure ring than the CDE or open ring, IMO.

Did you know that traditionally women never drove gray horses because they would be full of white hair when they got to their destination?

Myrna


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## jleonard (Jan 30, 2011)

RhineStone said:


> I know that some breeds use sorrel and chestnut interchangably or don't use "sorrel" at all (Saddlebreds, Arabs, etc.), but I think of a chestnut being darker than a sorrel, and a chestnut (not quite bay) has a better chance of being turned out formally than a sorrel (bright red/orange) does.
> 
> Did you know that traditionally women never drove gray horses because they would be full of white hair when they got to their destination?


That is a bit more how I think of them as well, but I know a lot of people who do use the terms interchangably.

Another very interesting tidbit about the grays! It is amazing how many little historical rules/ guidelines there are in driving!


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## Shari (Jan 31, 2011)

I believe that about the greys.



Is like being around a hairy snow storm, specially in the spring.

Back in the day, Chestnut and Sorrel ..were a West Coast and East Coast terms for the same color horse.



Having lived on both coasts off and on as a kid, I had to deal with that a lot. Drove me silly, I can tell ya.

I better not tell Maggie her color is an informal, scruffy pony, she won't like that very much.





At least she gets to pull a Natural wooden cart.

So to ask that silly question.... what color cart and harness would look good with a Medium Liver chestnut?

At some point I dream of at least doing Dressage...

Here she is in her scruffy winter coated mini look....with her scruffy looking driver.





Because this cart has black points, which requires a black harness...


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## RhineStone (Jan 31, 2011)

Shari said:


> what color cart and harness would look good with a Medium Liver chestnut?
> 
> At some point I dream of at least doing Dressage...


I assume you are refering to Maggie. Yes, unless you are going to change out all the shaft trim, etc. on the cart, you would want to stick with a black harness. Maggie would look good in russet, though. And as far as your clothes, I would go with natural tones with a little bit of forest green maybe in a scarf and hat trim. The cart you have is perfect for her.

Myrna


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## Shari (Jan 31, 2011)

Yup, Miss Maggie.

So with this Cart, because it has patent shaft trim, she would look best in a black patent harness? Or would that be too much?

I love my hat in this photo but I am sure it isn't quite up to snuff for Dressage. Like the idea of natural colors for me.

Would have to do either a Portuguese roll or Diamond plate on her mane.

I have thought about Russet in the past. If I bought a new Gig Cart from the same maker, I think they offered Russet trim in the past. Would be a good excuse to get a new cart and harness.





Stratford Hall in VA, has carriage shows during the summer, would be a blast to take Maggie there some day.


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## RhineStone (Jan 31, 2011)

Shari said:


> So with this Cart, because it has patent shaft trim, she would look best in a black patent harness? Or would that be too much?
> 
> I love my hat in this photo but I am sure it isn't quite up to snuff for Dressage. Like the idea of natural colors for me.


Carriage harnesses typically have patent on the blinders, saddle, and mine has it on the breeching and breastcollar, too. The rest is plain leather, so no, that would not be too much. Harnesses totally made out of "shiny leather" are typically biothane.





I think the hat looks great!



Shari said:


> If I bought a new Gig Cart from the same maker, I think they offered Russet trim in the past. Would be a good excuse to get a new cart and harness.


 Carriages are like potato chips (and minis)....you can't have just one!







Shari said:


> Stratford Hall in VA, has carriage shows during the summer, would be a blast to take Maggie there some day.


That is a long ways from Oregon!





Myrna


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## Shari (Jan 31, 2011)

Only until I can get moved over in that area in VA.





OK... that sounds wonderful for the harness. Get her cleaned up, she would look right smart. VBG

I saw a harness that I have been drooling about for awhile. Custom... but oh my.. (yes a massive pipe dream.)

http://www.freedmanharness.com/freedmanharness/presentation-dressage.htm

Thank you about the hat,, love the thing. LOL


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## RhineStone (Feb 1, 2011)

That would be a massive pipe dream for us, too, at this point, but I spent a bit of time talking with David Freedman about mini harnesses. He doesn't live too far away from Eve Dexter, and so they measured and remeasured for her mini Freedman harness. Just as I suspected, it was a very hard one to get "right". There is only so much room to work on a mini. That is the reason I'm not fond of "off-the-shelf" mini harnesses. Most just don't fit. Yes, they can "work", but ultimately they are not "right".

Myrna


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## ruffian (Feb 4, 2011)

I know of a few folks who used colored carts. One is a world renowned driving trainer. His carts are dark green with gold stripes. Looked classy with just about every horse.

I also know of people who had a bright purple cart. IMO it looked ridiculous. They only used it a season or so and then put it up for sale.

I personally prefer black harnesses, but did see a beautiful turnout at Nationals with a russet harness in Western Driving. Silly me, I remember the harness, but not sure what color the horse was! So apparently the harness took my eye more than the horse, which is NOT what I want the judges to be looking at.

Most of my carts are black, I do have one natural one. I use it with my silver bay, and nobody has ever said anything for or against the color. I think I would have preferred to have a black with him, but it's the only B size cart I have.

Hi - my name is Ruffian and I am a cart junkie!!


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## RhineStone (Feb 4, 2011)

ruffian said:


> Hi - my name is Ruffian and I am a cart junkie!!


Hi Ruffian. I resemble that remark!


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## jegray21 (Feb 16, 2011)

hobbyhorse23 said:


> Poor Kody. He gets stuck with black anyway because his mom is too chicken to buy him a green cart!
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Ace is kinda the same color as Kody...can I get a dark green and have it match my mostly white horses too? or just go with black?


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## RhineStone (Feb 17, 2011)

jegray21 said:


> Ace is kinda the same color as Kody...can I get a dark green and have it match my mostly white horses too? or just go with black?


If you are getting a metal cart, it doesn't matter as much, but a wooden one really shouldn't be black with a sorrel horse. Black is too formal of a color with sorrels. Dark green would look great with both your sorrel and your white/grays.

Myrna


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## RhineStone (Feb 17, 2011)

In my thumbing around, I found this Turnout article as well:

http://www.coachmansdelight.com/CGuidePage.asp?pg=GUI48&k=51

Also, check out Part 1 of the same series on the sidebar.

Myrna (who is working on a Turnout PowerPoint for ADS)


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