Posts Tagged ‘misty of chincoteague
Sponsor Welcome: Saddle Up
We’re very excited to welcome our new sponsor, Saddle Up! You might remember that we were first introduced to Saddle Up when my mom and I purchased treeless saddles from them over the summer.
The owner of Saddle Up, Paulita Neff, was amazing to work with. She answered my MANY e-mails with questions about the saddles and what would work best for Boomerang and I. In the end I came away with the Freeform Classic BTF Treeless Saddle, which fits Boomerang amazingly well.
Having been someone who really didn’t know anything about treeless saddles before this experience I am now convinced this is the only type of saddle that I will ever own again. Not only can I use it on any horse I have from here on out, but I have never had a more comfortable ride. They aren’t just for endurance riders either! I’ve been using mine in mounted games, cross country, versatility competitions, and even jumping in it.
We are thrilled to have Saddle Up as one of our sponsors, and we hope you’ll check out their website and facebook page to learn more about treeless saddles.
Misty Memorabilia
Misty of Chincoteague was a book I read as a child, but my love of Misty and the wild Chincoteague Ponies really emerged when I was gifted my first Chincoteague Pony, Minnow.
Minnow started my obsession with the book and the history behind his amazing breed. So when I came across a tattered book page from a 1947 First Edition of Misty of Chincoteague, I knew I had to have this little ode to Misty hanging on my wall.
Wesley Dennis’ beautiful illustration of Misty running free was the perfect little addition to my office wall once I had it all framed up.
Which Color?
One of the number one questions I always get is – do you let the pony pick the colors?
Most of the time, no, because lets be honest – we’d have millions of paintings that were apple green and carrot orange. 
In actuality, Minnow has no problem choosing paint colors, but really there is no rhyme or reason to what he chooses – and honestly he’d much rather be wielding the brush anyway. So the task of paint color selection usually falls upon my shoulders.
Choosing paint colors is not an easy task. Sometimes I mull for hours over the right shade of blue to paint a canvas. A lot of times I doubt my color selection all together – which ironically these sometimes turn out the best in the end. Sometimes where we are painting influences my choice of colors.
When painting on Chincoteague during the summers we gravitate towards bright island colors and ocean hues. When painting at home on the farm in the fall we sometimes have deep reds and rich brown tones.
In the beginning of our painting adventure I gravitated a lot towards browns and earthy tones, now I much prefer the bright and vibrant colors. Ultimately color preference is in the eye of the beholder and there really is no right or wrong answer. However, sometimes I just can’t help but feel “stuck” when it comes time to fill the boy’s brushes with paint.
But while browsing through Pinterest the other day (which by the way this is by far my new favorite website – you can follow us here), I came across the mecca of color selection websites, Design Seed.
With millions of color pallets I’m suddenly inspired to provide the boys with a whole new arsenal of paint colors this year. It’s also a wonderful selection tool if you just can’t decide what colors for your custom pony painting.
Now if the 20 degree weather would just disappear so we could get back to painting!
A Piece of the Island
These two tomato sauce jars filled with sand might not look like much to you, but to me they hold much significance. See back when I visited Assateague Island at the end of October (2011) with all three of my Chincoteague Ponies – I took a little piece of the island with me. I collected these jars of sand from the beach – as a way to always keep a little part of the island with me.
My little jars of sand weren’t much to look at these past few months, but a little visit to the antique shop, and $5 later they had a pretty (beach worthy) glass jar to call home.
Now my Assateague sand sits happily on my shelf at home with my jars of sand from Belize and Nicaragua and everytime I look at it I’m reminded of the special trip I took with all three of my boys!
Painting in the Winter
Typically during the cold winters here in PA we don’t get to paint much. The temperatures drop to record lows making the paint freeze and it nearly impossible for the ponies to put their brushes to canvas. But, sometimes we luck out and get a day that isn’t too unbearable and that’s just what happened yesterday. With temperatures in the mid 40′s on Sunday, Minnow was so ecstatic when he saw me lugging his easel out of storage.
We dusted off the brushes and Minnow set to work creating a bunch of mini paintings to bring with us to the Horse World Expo this February.
Minnow has no problem letting the creative brush strokes flow in the winter, in fact he’d paint everyday and all day if I let him.
No, instead what sets the schedule for our winter painting sessions are my hands. We paint as long as I can bare it before my fingers feel like I might be getting frostbite.
In the end I’m happy to let my wonderful little pony wield his magical brush so that I get to see his finest creations.
And sometimes the “aftermath” is just as beautiful too.
And as if my approval of Minnow’s beautiful work weren’t enough – he always seems to draw his own little fan club when he paints…
You can check out Minnow’s new mini paintings in the shop!
