Possible DIY

I am thinking of doing a little diy project... My usual pad really isn't quite thick enough, so I figure one of those cheap little thin covers would bulk it up just enough. But I wanted to take it a step further, so I have decided to buy a cheap pad, and embroider some designs onto it.
Cheap pads can be found HERE. I absolutely love horse.com they have everything, and usually for a good price. And I get the added excitement of getting a package in the mail!
Right now I need to pick out a color and order the saddle pad though. My mom requested blue for Dolly, but I was thinking of purple for Roxy. These are just at home/gymkhana pads. Probably not for showing, as I prefer boring colors to match my pants.
http://www.horse.com/item/mayatex-ranger-hogan-solid-saddle-blanket/E001423/

What color do you think Roxy would look good in? To keep it cleaner, I'm going to stick to a darker color since it'll be used every ride.

Madness!

My life has been absolute chaos lately. Thus, the lack of updating. Blogging has become quite theraputic, and a nice little reflection for me. I promise once summer comes to get some new photos of my girls- I just can not stand thick bushy winter coats, yuck! Once they slick out I'll feel more like photographing them.
I finally found myself a job, but I'm still a little iffy. I'm working at my mother's preschool as an infant/toddler teacher. I'm still just a little iffy about it. My mother micromanages, and nothing is ever quite good enough. So I'm a bit worried about the job. The hours are absolute perfection, the pay is ok. I'm working 7:15-1pm, so I have the whole day to go ride, teach lessons, and what not.
Remember the black paint mare that I introduced earlier,Tahiti?

Tahiti is now my trainer (and myself's) newest lesson horse! We decide to keep her, despite the fact that she's a giant. Tahiti is around 20, and dead broke. She is now an intermediate lesson horse in our program! I am so excited that she is off the market, and we're keeping her! Our lesson horse gang is quite fantastic if I might say so myself. We now have 2 beginners (Fred, General); and 2 intermediate horses (Charlie,and Tahiti). and 3 cross over horses (Damascus, Dolly, and Sparkles)! That gives us 7 horses to match with our riders, and we usually find a great fit- plus our pony Boo-Boo whom is currently on all alfalfa and too hot for lessons. Once she calms down she'll make a great beginner horse.
Speaking of lessons, they have really picked up! My little girls lesson is going quite well. My show prospect, 10 year old V just started trotting! And we found V's horse- Sparkles, they make a fantastic pair. I have thought briefly about starting some roping again. They also have team penning down the road, I might see about starting Roxy on that. I heard that she loves cows- so we'll see! I'll try to get some experience, and perhaps some photos too.

The Five Horses We Meet in Life

The Five Horses We Meet in Life (photos coming soon!)

I found this on Fugly Horse, unfortunately they didn't know the source. I thought that it was an interesting piece, and decided to answer it. 

1. The Intro Horse.
We each came into horses in our own way, but it was always with a horse leading us. This might have been a friend’s first pony, or perhaps it was a draft horse on a farm you once visited It might have been a real-life meeting, or an imaginary one. I was escorted to the party by The Black, Walter Farley’s star horse in The Black Stallion series…

My Answer: My first horse related memory is a little fuzzy. I imagine I was riding my grand mother's horse, a Missouri Fox trotter palomino paint gelding- his name was Bob. My mother was instructing me, because my grandmother is a very old fashioned woman. She does things very by the book, and I'm sure she was quite unhappy to have me riding her most prized possession. 

2. The Experimental Horse
Once you had crossed the line between “Darn, they’re big!” and “Wow! Can I try that?” you found yourself face-to-face with the horse that would suffer through your early attempts at figuring out the whole horse experience … wherever this horse came from, he probably didn’t benefit from the encounter as much as you did…

My Answer: Peaches Deck without a doubt. My first lesson horse that I really fit with. She was fantastic, I learned gymkhana, and galloped for the first time. She was the fastest horse in the lesson group, and unfortunately that was all that we cared about in that lesson group. I didn't learn much about riding, but I learned how to comfortable in the saddle at any speed. 

3. The Connected Horse
The first horses we meet don’t really connect with us, nor do we with them. Those are experiences in survival and tests of endurance. The Connected Horse is the first horse you truly bond with. This is the horse that sounds a chord that lives so deep in you that you might never have heard it otherwise…

4. The Challenger
Into each horseperson’s life, a little challenge must fall. You’ll have read that one final training book, bought yourself a clicker and heading rope, and there you’ll stand, arms crossed, assessing the situation as if you actually knew what the situation was. It might be difficult to believe, as you are flying down the aisleway on the losing end of a braided cotton line, but you actually need this horse in your life…

5. Your Deepest Heart
There will come a time when you will look at yourself with a cold, appraising eye, and you’ll have to be honest about your continued ability to deal with The Challenger and other difficult horses. At that point, you’ll seek out the horse that will be your soul mate forever… You’ll have bought him the most comfortable, best fitting equipment… Maybe you’ll still go to shows and ride – brilliantly or barely – in the Alzheimer’s class. Maybe you’ll just stay home. Whatever you do, one day you’ll realize that after all the money you spent on animal communicators and trainers, you only had to stop and listen and you would have clearly heard your horse’s thoughts and desires…


My Answer: I have yet to meet enough horses, truly meet them, so I feel that all of these would be my Roxy love. She was my first horse. Unlike most, I didn't lease a horse before purchasing. I had been riding for a few years, and my mother saw that it was time for me to get my own horse. So we began to search, and search, and search. We looked for over a year before finding Roxy. Instantly we knew she was the one. I know green on green makes black on blue. But Roxy taught me more lessons then any school horse could. Roxy fought (and still fights), she keeps me on my toes, and she is so extremely talented. I know that this versatile mare will take me wherever I decide to go. She always was a fantastic horse, and now she has finally started to mature to a point where others see it to. She stops on a dime, slide stops, runs a fantastic barrel pattern, goes long and low for western pleasure, jumps with fantastic form, and now she's even starting to get on cows. Roxy is my connected horse.

I'm going to revisit this list years down the road, and see if a little more time changes my answers. Who are the five horses in your life?

Forever Home

I was recently speaking with my boyfriend about hos much I truly love my mares. He is not so much a horse person, he willingly rides a few times a week when he's in town. In fact, sometimes it's his idea to come out. He is supportive of (and understands) my calling, but he doesn't share this strange obsession with me.
Anyway! Back to my point. So I love my girls. Roxy and Dolly will be with me until the day that they munch on their last bit of hay, receive their last pet, and get that final kiss on their noses. This does not mean that I will extend their life longer then they are comfortable. I recently read a quote that really resonated with me.

"Horses are not afraid of death, they are afraid of suffering."

How perfectly honest is that? I often see owners keeping their beloved horses alive well past their prime. So far past their prime that they are suffering. Their quality of life isn't good, and they are depressed and in pain.

So I made a promise to my girls. Dolly is already 19, and she has been such an excellent horse her entire life. Even though the mare despises me, I appreciate her, and respect the old girl. Dolly has more then earned her keep. Dolly will never have another owner. She is worth her weight in gold, and will be myself and my mother's care for the rest of her comfortable life.

Roxy is young, she is almost 10. Much older then I remember, considering a first met her when she was 4 1/2. I've had the sweet mare almost 5 years, and in those five years she has taught me such an incredible amount. I love my little dun mare more then anything in the world. If I found out tomorrow that she would never be ride able again (but would be pain free) she would be the most doted on and loved mare in the whole world.

How many of you have been able to truly make this promise? To give your horses a forever home for the entire remainder of their life? That means not sending them off to pasture when they are too lame to ride, and it also includes prolonging in their life when they are uncomfortable. How many of you love your horses that much?

Wordless Wednesday

Ending with a Bang

Sorry that I have been a little MIA this weekend. I was out adventuring Cal Poly SLO with my boyfriend. One of the more adventures weekend adventures, was a hike to the architecture graveyard. It was really cool!

Some of the projects were super cool! If anyone has seen LOST, it was very darma-esque. The buildings are all weird and obscure- I really wish they had some posted description of the project. 

The whole weekend I was asking my boyfriend "Don't you know how beautiful this city is?" He always blew me off. But SLO is seriously GORGEOUS! Just driving through it was fun (well as fun as a 6 hour drive can be).

I also won some girlfriend points, I showed the guys an easy yummy dinner, chicken alfredo pasta. I also made them some muffins which were delicious. Those little muffin mixes from trader joes are quick, easy, and most importantly yummy- I highly recommend them. I missed my horse dearly, but we did go to see the Cal Poly breeding stock. The stud is an absolute tank. I tried to find him on their website, but I think I only found his sire, 'Smart as the Fox'. 

I believe the stud that we saw was 'Cinderellas Fox'. He's a stalky quarter horse by Smart Little Lena out of Foxy Freckles. Cute horse. The mares were all obviously well bred too- no fugly horses there. 

So my weekend was fantastic, and I really needed a break from everyday stress. So I began my 6 hour journey home. I stopped in my old college town to fill up (I visited friends on the way up too). Then I headed down, back towards home. I was literally 5 min from home when I was rear ended turning right no red. I just discovered that the car will be $6,000 to fix. My car is a month old today, and I just made my first payment on it last week. Thankfully it was not totaled though, and both myself and the other driver are ok. I'm trying to look on the bright side (easier said then done). Unfortunately statistics are against me, and I was bound to get into an accident eventually. Right now, I have the support of my parents to help me out when I don't know what to do. 

I'm just a little stiff, but heading out to the ranch regardless. I have two lessons to teach, and I was just hired to put some rides on two new horses. So wish me luck on this awful car adventure, and lets hope that I am not at fault, but also not count our chickens before they hatch. 

Wordless (and washed out) Wednesday

Mareish

What is with all this discrimination against mares? I love my girls. Some people seem to have this intense hatred of mares though! Why is it?  I have met tons of geldings that I dislike, but oddly enough, I have never met a mare that I didn't instant love.
Of course there is an exception to every rule, but I think mare's make better mounts. They are feisty, they don't just give in to what you say. And they teach us about respect. Just like hormonal teenagers, some mares get extra feisty once a month. No matter how much you whip, spur, or beat an in season mare they just like to fight.
I worked with a kinky mare once, who actually got turned on by the (not abusive) whipping, and spurring. She would get so excited that she would stop everything, and squirt. With regular work she got over this huge issue though.
But back to my point! Mare's humble us as riders. They teach us that you have to be aware of your horse, and how she is feeling. Who can blame an in season mare for not wanting to run barrels? I sure as hell would put up a fit if you pulled me out of bed when I had cramps.
A gelding, poor boy, never has any excuse for being moody. So you don't have to care about his feelings, or how he feels that day. This is what makes them fantastic beginner horses, but once you step it up mares teach about ownership. I have never owned, or regularly cared for a gelding. And that is just fine. I will take my girls any day.

Like these girls are even thinking of coming when called

What's your opinion? Are you a mare kinda rider? Or are you purely a gelding fan? Any stories about kinky in season mares? Have you ever thought to have sympathy for you in season mare, or have you been told that they should 'work through it'?

Roxy's Rant #1: Valentine Day

My girl and her boyfriend! This photo was taken on a weekend that she was home from college, her smile is how you know that she missed me. 

My girl came out to ride me today! She had me 'put on a show' for another girl who she is going to train. I like to act up, just ever so slightly when I am at home being watched. Like pushing through the bit at the canter, or breaking gait. Basic silly things that the girl could not reeeally yell at me for. I was pretty good today though, if I do say so myself. 


Then the girl left me tied for about an hour. Thanks mom. I love to stand with all my tack on, and the bit in my mouth. That is my absolute favorite. I know I stand real pretty, I do not pace, dig, or whinny, but I still hate it. And you know it. What was even worse is when you and he girl came back with that other mare. Then you rode her. Each time you walked past I tried giving you the 'Sweet little Mare' face. You just told me "Oh pretty mare, what a good girl!" and walked right past. Thanks again. I guess you made up for it by not making me do too much. All we did was pony that bratty mare around the arena a few laps. I think I can whip her into shape in no time at all. I am the queen of the property after all. 


Today was Valentines day! I suppose that's why you cleaned my tail (not that it was dirty, I am a clean mare unlike miss-dolly-pees-in-her-tail). I must have a hot date with the mini gelding tonight (Roxy's neighbor- pictures sure to come he's adorable)! Bath day is always a fantastic time to munch on the grass, and find the loose hay from when it was delivered. I sure wish summer would come so I wouldn't look so ragged with this gnarly poco bueno winter coat I get. Then maybe I would be more presentable for a photoshoot. Oh and I am glad that the girl also noticed how much I have grown. I am now officially 15.2hands high! No longer the 15.1 filly you bought almost 5 years ago! Gentlemen, step right up for this smokin' hot lady, I'm taking numbers this week only. 

Max

Thank god that the biggest horses were bred to be the most gentle! Imagine if a draft horse 17hand high wanted to eat you. It would NOT be good. I have had my first experience with a big boy. His name is Max, he is half saddle bred (or national show horse, or standard bred, one of those very upright awkward looking horses), and half Friesian. Lots of people around the barn think he's awful looking, but I love Max.

He is about 5 years old, and I broke him. Well I started to break him. I was riding him in a bull pen, getting him used to the bit. He was never fearful of the saddle. I started him very slowly, he has the attention span of a knat. In 10min bursts I lunged him, tacked him up, and offer him the bit. He is the most willing horse, and has never once refused anything. He has a heart of gold, and I hope that his owner knows that. This heart of gold I know he has gotten from his mom, because I ride her as well. Her name is Wendy, and I absolutely love that ugly mare!

She is blind in one eye, has a long face, and is just overall awkward in my opinion. But Wendy is brave, loving, and smooth. My trainer had me starting her on barrels, but she was never finished. Wendy and Max's owner also owns the most hideous arab resuce. The poor guy is called 'Pony' his real name is Cowboy though. He is not only ugly, but mean too- I'll snap a picture of him sometime just to show how awful he is.

Back to Max! So I wanted to post a few photos of him, and see how you guys think I should finish him. I started him last summer, then an awful rider just beat him to death. She did not take the time to read him, and see Max trying. The only other horse she rode was a feisty arab that needed a firm hand, Max is too gentle for that. I got on him yesterday, and he responds ok to the bit. I was thinking of putting him into a hackamore and trying that. So here are some photos of this big boy! What do you think he'd be good at? I was thinking dressage, but I don't have much experience there and I wouldn't want to mess him up at all. Oh and please ignore the tennis shoes. My hips were killing me that day and I couldn't even think about putting on shoes with less support then those. I generally ride him in my boots with spurs.

Partners

Yesterday I taught a lesson, or should I say I organised a lesson. My trainer secretly loves to teach me group lessons. Now don't get me wrong- I absolutely love having her help. But I know that she loves teaches the group lessons. The lesson yesterday went well, I had 3 little girls. They did pretty good. The practiced ground poles, a figure 8 across the arena, and then the advanced kids practiced trotting, and my bravest little girl got to lope! She did so good! When she told her horse to stop though she's so tiny, she popped off the front of the saddle, and ended up on her horse's neck! Which is funny because I am constantly telling her to keep her legs forward, now she saw exactly what happens when you don't!

One horse, Fred, was being bad, and I had reprimanded him a few times (with a jerk on the bit from the ground). He didn't want to walk for the little girl, so I walked over to him. Fred knew I was going to disciplined him, and he took off bucking and bolting. He was not trying to get her off though, he was just bucking at me and she happened to be on top. My trainer and mother both thought that she was coming off, but I just did not. I told her to keep her legs forward and pull back on the reins. She of course did not, but he stopped about a 1/4 down the arena from me, with the little girl still on top!

Now I had to go rescue her, but Fred still didn't want me near him. I told him hoe, and stand, had her pull back on the reins, and quietly approached him. We pulled her off, poor little girl was crying. I got on the old man and loped him aggressively for about 20min. Fred is pleasure broke, and has a big goofy lope, so my hips are still killing me.

The little girl was calmed down, do we wanted to get her back up. We pulled the biggest girl (who was on the most gentle horse), off of General, and we put her onto Fred. Then the little girl who almost came off was put on General, and I walked around with her for a bit so she'd feel comfortable. She ended up able to walk alone by the time free time came around!

An unrelated Photo of Dolly

Later that day I went to buy some Super 14 (a coat enhancement supplement), some 4 way for my trainer, and my mom got senior feed for Dolly (I guess the photo was related!). We also brought pizzas and had a little party before putting up a corral. We all visited, then everyone but my mother, trainer, and myself left. We were reminiscing the good old days, I used to be rather sassy ;) and my trainer hated dealing with me. But she liked how I rode, so she stuck with me.

My trainer at one point told me "And now we're partners!" Oh my goodness. My trainer doesn't give praise very often, so when she does it means that much more. She also told me that her husband was putting on the pressure for the family to move closer to where he works. And she told me that she would leave me as the manager when she left. A dream come true. I think the ranch is 10 acres, it has a fantastic $5000 arena that has been well kept. It is just fantastic in my eyes. I know that it is a little janky right now, but I feel like I could really make it great. My heart is in it, this is what I want to do. I know that my trainer saying that might mean it'll happen in a couple of years, but just knowing that she knows that I can do it is extremely powerful.

I am heading out there again today to ride the 'Black Bitch'. A horse that was not 'abused' as in beaten, but she was severely neglected. She is an absolutely lovely paint mare, a big thick blaze, 4 white legs, and a big white spot hidden under her belly. She is also the second meanest horse I have ever met. She pins her ears when you come up to her with a bucket of grain. What horse does that? I'll report on 'the black bitch' later today or tomorrow.

Yesterday is history, Tomorrow a mystery, and Today is a gift- that's why they call it the present

That quote is written on I book that I have taken to writing in. As honest, and truthful as I try to make these blog posts, some stuff is personal. And I collect those thoughts in my blue journal.
I've been living in the future. Who will I become? Where am I going? What do I want to do? I also feel really stuck. I absolutely love riding, but I am aware that is near impossible to support myself with riding alone. I've been thinking about some certifications, or trade school. Just thinking though, no action has been taken, no one has heard a word of it yet. I feel like as soon as I tell someone I need to make it happen, and I am not sure if that is what I want.
I've been thinking about becoming a certified fitness, or yoga, instructor. I am passionate about fitness and health, and why shouldn't everyone be? This is the only body you get- treat it with respect and love. Just like our horses, we don't push them too far, we pride our self in keeping our horses in top shape, so in their old age they will still be a fantastic partner. Why not treat our own bodies the same? Unfortunately I have no savings, and I am certain that these certifications are pricey. Oh I also have no credit, so I will not be accepted for loans, and my parent's can't cosign. Again, I feel stuck. I know that I can make it work out though, I just need a little motivation to do so.

On a better note, I realized that I have yet to do a post about Dolly. Dolly dislikes me, so naturally I ride Roxy more. Dolly is almost 19, and she has gotten to a point where she isn't really learning anything new. Another reason I don't ride her. I'm not one for exercising, I like to train when I ride. Dolly is the way that she is, she is not going to be learning any new tricks. Roxy is young, and wants to learn. I enjoy training, exercising isn't something fun for me. With my bad hips, I try to make the most out of each ride, so naturally I train really hard for a short period of time. Roxy gets ridden 4 days a week for about 15-30min a ride. I also plot around during lessons on her- but I am trying to reduce that too. Back to the point, I'm going to get Dolly out this weekend and I'll take some photos of my yucky mares with their thick awful winter coats. If it made sense to blanket horses in California mine would wear 5.

Little Appy Mare

At one point in time, me and my mother owned 3 horses. It was when we were both highly active in 4h, I was the club president, and my mother ran it. We had a friend that wanted to lease a horse, and my mother was giving her lessons. At that point I didn't need the money, so it wasn't worth my time to teach beginners. We thought that we could buy a third horse, lease it to two different people that would ride twice a week, and show. We even decided that one would have to show walk trot, the other would show gymkhana so they wouldn't have to share the horse at shows. Then we would use the horse for lessons.

 Coincidentally a friend of ours was selling the cutest little leopard appy mare. She was in her young teens, mellow, and so darn flashy. The price was right, so we went to check her out, and we noticed a little limp in her hind left. It was more stiff then anything. Her confirmation was great and she was just so cute, we figured she would be ok and took her home. After all, our friend wouldn't sell us a lame mare right? The little mare jumped right into our trailer, and we took her to our ranch. My mother and I picked out a nice stall near our other mares, Roxy and Dolly. We went out the next day to check on her, and to ride our other mares. 

 And there she was in her stall, waiting for us to come get her. She was just too sweet, and so darn cute. We pulled her out of her stall, tied her to the post, and started to groom her. I have never in my life seen a horse in such obvious pain. The pain was all the way in her hip. What we thought was just a stiff leg, was actually a severely damaged hip. When we test rode her, it was very light, but I think she was lounged incredibly hard before we saw her. It was almost inhumane how much pain this horse was in. The little mare was so sweet, she shivered in pain, but didn't try to kick or bite, just put her ears back, and flinched from even the lightest amount of pressure. It was so awful to see such a tender hearted mare so uncomfortable.

Myself and my mother didn't have the funds to support a potentially chronically lame horse, knowing that so it would have been unwise for us to try and keep her. So we called our friend up, and told her that the mare was not going to work out for us. She came down and picked the mare up and took her home. Where she continued to try to sell her, and her brother.

Last I heard, the mare's brother (also a leopard appy) was given to our friend's sister and used as a trick horse. The mare had some chiropractic work done to her, and found a home. I only hope that this sweet, sweet mare found a owner that will love, cherish, and care for her as she deserved.

Any memorable horses that almost made their way into your life?

Wordless Wednesday

Neck Sweat V2.0

As promised, here is the DIY project. It was really simple, but should make a huge difference. I added a belly strap, and halter latch to the top of my neck sweat. Roxy needs to wear a neck sweat because she founders in her neck very easily, and carries all of her fat in her neck. Making her crest get huge, and she looks like a draft horse. It's gross. I have pictures of fat Roxy, I'll have to upload them sometime... Anyway! So here is the basic guide to adding these simple adjustments.

Here is the neck sweat. It is a nice neoprene, and those velcro straps go under her neck. I bought the cheapest, most basic one, knowing that I could change it when it didn't fit quite right. It was like $7 on amazon. 

First things first! Find yourself some lycra, or spandex. I chose this boring navy blue. Dark colors are best because it will get filthy. I used a rotary cutter, scissors will work ok too though. Measure your horse at the girth, all the way around with a tape measure. My horse was about 2yards around. Now take off two inches. Purchase that much elastic. I bought 2yards of 1.5 inches thick no roll elastic- note that I bought too much elastic and the strap is too long, so seriously buy 2inches less then your horse is around. Make sure it is the no roll kind, also I think 2inches thick would work better.

 The next step is to cut our your lycra. If your elastic is 1.5inches thick, cut our your lycra to about 4 1/8inches thick. It needs to be as long as your elastic (in my case 2 yards). My lycra wasn't long enough, so I had to cut out two pieces and sew them together, so feel free to do this. Now flip it right sides together, and pin that baby up! Sew a single stitch down the sides, leaving both ends open. Since it is lycra, and moves around, use lots of pins.

 Sew your lycra with a straight stich, pulling it gently as you sew it on a .5inch seam allowance.

After pulling out your pins, and flipping it, so that the seam is on the outside you have your tubing! 

 

Put a saftey pin on the end of your elastic, and shove that sucker in there! Sew the casing down to both sides of the elastic. Make sure that it is all smooth!

Next cut out a piece of hardier fabric with less stretch, such as cotton. Cut out a piece that is roughly 3inches by 6inches. Pin it in half, and sew down both sides, leaving the thin side open so that you can flip it.

 Flip it, and iron in flat!

 Next you want to take it at the top of the neck sweat. Find the middle and place it in the middle of the next sweat (the closest point to the poll). Lay the strip so that it is on the bottom of the neck sweat, and going backwards towards your horse's rump.

 Next flip your fabric up, so that the open part it underneath. I know that is a little bit confusing, but you just want to make sure you get a clean edge.

 Find some crazy thick stitch to use. I used number 6.

 Go forwards and backwards a few times, letting your stitch hang off the edge of your fabric.

Next pin down the top. Since this seam is already smooth, we don't need to do that fancy folding. Sew it down using the same crazy stitch as before.
Repeat this process on the bottom, making sure that the band is thick enough for the elastic to slide through.

 

Use the attachment method of your preference. I used this tool that keeps bed sheets from slipping off. I just cut the elastic, sewed it onto my big piece, and viola an easy attachment. Also you could take a strap from an old blanket, or a buckle from the hardware store. I do highly recommend the bed sheet attachment though, it's very easily to attach, and seems to have good staying power, not mention it's totally adjustable.

Please excuse the mess- I told Roxy to clean her stall before I got the camera out! ;)

And here she is! You can't see either of the black straps in this photo, but I assure you that they are there, one attached to her halter, the other attached to the belly strap. Now her neck sweat will stay in place, and keep her looking wonderful. The lyrca for the belly strap is smooth on her, however I do recommend going up to 2 or even 3inch thick elastic. Now lets see how well it stays!

Any DIY projects that you are proud of? The first thing that comes to mind is the blanket I made for Roxy years ago. What have you created?