Hi RockemSockem -
Can you give more info on your halters? Are they made from paracord? If not, what did you make them from? If you used paracord, did you pre-shrink it? Have you thought of doing the wrapped nosebands or the other extra knots, such as higher on the side of the nose? Have you decided on pricing yet? YES, I'm interested in knowing... Have you figured out "standard" sizing for different sizes/types of mini horses and ponies?
To get some other pics, tie her up and then take pics directly from the side. Your iPhone should take better pics than my decent camera! If you don't have a photo editing program, you can crop and re-size pics at picmonkey (dot) com. The basic editing is free.
Several years ago, I braided the thinner hay string that I saved from our round bales into a 4 strand "rope", then turned that into a tied halter. I've made 2 so far - have several ropes made up, but haven't had the time to sit and make the knots to make a halter lately. I also made a "rope" from 6 strands of hay string and it's been in heavy use for 3 years now. I love that one. It is starting to wear out and will probably break at some point when I least expect it. I no longer use it on my one mare that I know will set back because of that. I really do need to make some more... The 6 strand halter 3 years after making it on the silver mare to the far right in the pic (on the left side of the 4 abreast hitch). I love it under the draft style driving bridles - it's light weight, small and really works nice.
In the pic of the 4 abreast hitch - I also braided the bit that the bay/white mare is wearing and the 3 ties between their 4 halters to keep them all together and "pointing" the correct direction w/o always pulling on the lines.
My farrier made 2 smaller paracord halters for me for my foals. I provided small halters the size I wanted, however, the halters don't fit my foals for more than a few days (I think if I measure I will find that the knot is too close to the top of the noseband - that's where they outgrow them so quickly). But the one hangs in my truck as I just like it! She even made a short lead - maybe 6 - 8" long with a snap that attaches to it to use for?? maybe to catch a foal? I don't leave rope halters and rarely leave any other type of halter on my ponies/horses, so I don't know what that short "thing" is really for. It matches the halter though. The knots in her halters that form the lead line ring aren't a fiador knot but is just an overhand knot. The haystring halters I made above are made with a fiador knot.
Here's another pic of the halter above but on a smaller colt (probably stay mini sized and with a teeny/tiny head - just full of bushy winter hair in this pic). The blue halter his dam is wearing is a Clinton Anderson halter - weanling (biggie) size. This colt was 2 months old when this pic was taken.
I'm waiting for a set of 4 halters she is making for me for parading in Christmas parades. They will be matching - in that they are red and green. Supposed to have short lead ropes to match that will be black with paracord wrapping to match the halters at the snap end and the other end. I will be keeping them only for holiday parades at Christmas time. Don't know exactly how they will look...
I have made lots of braided items for our ponies - mostly the collars that stay on them in the pastures that I use to catch and tie them at their feed buckets. I find it hard to find time to braid much now that we have 37 head and I'm doing all the care by myself (2 of our 3 daughters have moved out - 1 has just moved back in but her work schedule means she's not home much)... Also, I finally got a "new" truck in January 2012 and since then haven't ridden too much with a friend to events and places. Hard to braid when you are actually doing all the driving, LOL.
I would love to see pics of your other items - the polos, the ear bonnets (I may be interested in purchasing some of those!! - need them in purple).
I am especially excited about the rope halters.
