Crafting Pulled Wool Saddle Pads with Bridgit Carone
reserve your spotMP Ranch
November 13 - 17, 2024
Join us at the MP Ranch for a workshop in pulled wool saddle pad making with Bridgit Carone. She will cover the basics of the saddle pad construction, how to process your own wool in small batches, different ways to add designs, information on mill-dyed versus hand-dyed wool for saddle pads, and how to take care of the pulled wool saddle pads.
The Program
The retreat will take place on the Monte Prieto ranch, an isolated working cattle ranch in south central New Mexico. For planning purposes, it is a two-hour drive south of the Albuquerque airport. The ranch is a remote refuge, and a perfect place to learn how to make a beautiful, useful, lasting saddle pad, for your own horse or as a gift for a horsey friend.
Wool Pads
Pulled wool saddle pads are the best option for a saddle pad. Made with 100% wool, these pads keep your horse comfortable by allowing air to flow through the loops that can only be constructed by hand. The pads offer substantial thickness and compression keeping your horse’s back comfortable under even the toughest working conditions. Wool is a naturally long lasting fiber, it is renewable, sustainable, compostable, mold and mildew resistant and resilient to odors. Learning to make your own pulled wool saddle pads gives you the option to determine the thickness that works best for your horse and saddle, and it allows you to choose your own colors and designs, giving you a functional work of art to be proud of for many years.
Accommodations
You will sleep in a comfortable room, eat delicious meals three times a day prepared by a professional chef focused on organic, locally-sourced ingredients. During the day, take guided daily hikes around the ranch, practice yoga with the mats and equipment provided, or take cold plunges in our storage tank swimming pool.
About Bridgit Carone
Bridgit has always had a love for wool products and quality horse gear, and in learning to make pulled wool saddle pads she found my niche. She has had the opportunity to know many intelligent and experienced horse people, from old cowboys and buckaroos, veterinarians, saddle makers, horse trainers, farriers, massage therapists, chiropractors and other gear makers. She believes it is important to discuss and learn from each other, to work together to ensure the soundness and comfort of the horses we all love. It’s important to understand how horses move, how saddles fit and the external things we can do to help horses be comfortable while being used under saddle. One of the things we can do is provide them with a comfortable and efficient saddle pad. For Bridgit, that means pulled wool saddle pads.
Rates
$1550 per person includes all activities, instruction, amenities, meals, and a kit to create your own saddle pad.
