In the weeks leading up to the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover, I was busy putting the final, polishing training touches on my green horse. But I also planning our show outfits. This was a big show, the biggest I’d done in years. I wanted us to look our best and planning our turnout for the event was a lot of fun. My horse’s Jockey Club name is War Feather, so I started schemeing of ways to pay homage to that in subtle, classy ways.
This is where Glittermarx Ponies comes in.
Maybe you saw their booth in the vendor village at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event this year, or perhaps you’ve seen one of their colorful, glittery quarter mark stamps in the wild, like at a horse show. This women-owned small business makes glitter stencils for horses that are safe and just so very fun. With literally hundreds of stencils to choose from (for my horse, naturally, I picked a feather), it’s easy to customize something for yourself. There are tons of holiday themes too, say, for an in-barn event and the stencils come in different sizes.
Glittermarx makes the experience of applying pretty darn easy with a simple instruction sheet and accompanying videos on their website. The company is quite liberal in their supplies, I had enough glue and glitter leftover to reapply the stencil for days, if I wanted to. The first time I tried it was on a chilly dark morning at the Kentucky Horse Park. I don’t recommend that – there was a good chance I’d mess things up and have to ride down centerline anyway. But thank goodness for just how easy the process was. I followed the directions of how to apply the sticky side of the stencil onto my horse’s rump, spotted on the glue, and then the glitter. It’s recommended that you don’t Showsheen (or other type of finishing spray) your horse’s coat before application. And you can apply human hair spray to the area just before application to enhance the stickability.
But I found the Glittermarx to be quite durable. I showed my horse at the Makeover over the course of three days, and it stayed in place all that time, just requiring a few minor touch ups each morning.
I got a ton compliments everywhere I went around the horse park on the glittering rose gold feather on War Feather’s bum. It helped us stand out in just the right way, I feel, in the show ring. And it made me feel like a truly well-turned out pair. It helped me feel confident every time I stepped into the arena to compete that week. It was a fun, non-expensive way to add a unique and personal touch to our overall show look.
So I already bought another one – a handsome crown for my other horse, Magic Mike.
This product review originally appeared in the Heels Down Spark, the only daily equestrian newsletter. Sign up now and spark your mind and soul.