This has been one of those weeks where I couldn’t seem to get anything done. I finished this girth last Saturday, and it’s taken me seven days to get pictures and post here. 🙄 Some weeks are like that, I guess!
So! I really don’t like making girths. Usually they’re the last thing I complete, but this time around I decided to tackle it first. This one is based off of a Total Saddle Fit Shoulder Relief Girth. I wanted something contoured, but not overly complicated.
I’m using pre-dyed black kangaroo leather here. I’m really loving this stuff for tack making… it’s thinner than my tooling leather and skives well. Not having to wait for dye to dry is a plus too!
There are eleven slots cut into the leather piece. I do this by punching a hole (with a mechanical pencil) at each end, then carefully cutting the slot with a blade. Jennifer Buxton explains this process nicely here.
These will hold the buckles, keepers and center D ring.
After gluing all the straps in place, I added a thin piece of skiver leather to the back, sealed it, then finished the edges with black Edge Kote.
Here is the completed girth!
My sad Dressage saddle never got a girth, so I tried fitting this one to it:
I am planning on creating a new Dressage saddle to go with it. This one bothers me, and I’d like to think I’ve learned a couple more things since I made it.
At least the girth is out of the way! 😄
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