Catlips?

I think its bullyish of you all but everyone's opinions are different, As it would be no good if we where all the same. As fore putting some one down on there spelling and grammar doesn't help them . It didn't help me as I struggled all through primary and secondary school with no help at all and not until I went to collage and in my 3rd year did I get help and diagnosed with dyslexia. It really doesn't help with confidence either people constantly pointing it out !
NOW LEFT EDUCATION AND USING WORDS IN LIFE IM IMPROVING WITH THEM.

as for second hand stuff you can pick some good stuff up but is personal preference as we would be terrible if we all like and did the same stuff! so consider people feelings befor saying stuff.
 
I love catlips! :)

I happen to think that sheila runs a fab biz.
You need something new; you can usally get it from catlips new and good quailty for much cheaper than other tack shops who hike up prices for extra profit.
Need something but a bit skint; sheila usally has it in 2nd hand.
Got something you dont use anymore; sheila will usally exchange it!

If you want to and have the money for something new then fab go get it. If not it's really nice to have somewhere like catlips around.

I got a fantastic in hand bridle there with brasses and in great condition for £6. :D
 
dad_io said:
What a horrible comment about a farm of very lovely people who have helped hundreds if not thousands of people get started in riding as well as competitors at ALL levels :mad: Did you know her daughter wins at BE and BD elementary? my OH competed at HOYS with her entire wardrobe plus tack from Catlips. Her new stuff is fabulous quality and even more fabulous prices.

tad snobby:eek: very snobby more like :mad:

Sheila deserves to be treated with more respect :mad:
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she wasn't being disrespectful or horrible, she just asked a question. She wasn't looking down on anyone either. Just because she doen't normally buy second hand. well, neither do I, I don't think i have anything second hand. I'm not stuck up or rich, but i prefer to buy new. I don't pay attention either to what others have whether it be new or 2, 3 or 5 owners before.

you know, when i saw who the op was i knew she would just get a reaction like this. What a horrible way to treat a young girl, muppet, stuck up, giving her a hard time about her spelling etc. This is bullying in anyones book.

I see girls jumping regularly in red jackets, this is just another excuse to have a go at Bsja.
 
Ah, catlips... It's a magical mystical place that moves nightly like that place off of Harry Potter. I know where it is but if I try to go there a different way it disappears. Inside it's like a cross between aladdins cave and a warzone, dog help you if you go into the infamous "rug room" without a safety line, a collie and several people that know your whereabouts....

There are some fantastic bargains to be had in the second hand section but you need to go in with an open mind (it's kind of a holistic experience) and plenty of spare time. Again, if you want something new the nice lady will have it but it's best of you ask for everything alltogether so she can get them all ad not have to traipse upstairs for everything seperately, she may get angry and you wouldn't like her when she's angry!

Ps. I also agree about red jackets, I so wanted one as a kid but now have given up my dream as I have seen virtual beginners in them and they aren't special anymore (well, in a different way). :(
 
Rickmansworth, near(ish) London and Middlesex- I think someone said it was Hertfordshire but not exactly sure. I would tell you but then I'd have to kill you.
 
i did say in an earlier post - junction 17 M25 ead towards rickmansworth on A412, take a left when you see the BP garage and follow road thru a housing estate for around a mile - go up a hill and under motorway and its on the right ;)
 
also dont see how giving people directions is advertising?

also once you get there, park in caravan graveyard, house is opposite on the right.
 
thank you :D sorry couldnt be bothered to read all the posts, i was in my safe place :) but my lord does this place sound amazing.
 
I really want to go now! :eek: Really really really want to go :D.

OP; don't knock second-hand stuff. I got the most beautiful Whitaker day/travel rug the other week. Midnight blue velvet with midnight blue and gold rope trim. It had only been tried on the horse it was bought for, never actually worn (you could tell by it's condition and 'look') and came complete in it's plastic bag.

On the Whitaker website it was around £100. I got mine for £9.00 :D :cool: :D.
 
somethingorother said:
It sounds like they should open a branch up north. I'm thinking manchester way ;)

Curse all the good stuff being down south! Sounds like my idea of heaven, this place.
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C'mon all you non travelling lightweights- my friend came over from Botswana to stock up at Catlips for his safari horses :D

Another chap used to come in with long shopping lists from the PC in Cyprus!!

Do you remeber the last time they changed all the hat regulations? Sheila collected up loads of the old standard hats and sent them to a horse charity in Ghana :)
 
Catlips is the most amazing place. I have been using it for coming up 30 years. Good grief - is that possible?

Yes, the second hand room can be a litle interesting, and a Saturday morning a little frustrating, but a fabulous range and some staggering bargains to be had. And what other shop can you go to and end up with a whole load of kit and not having paid a penny for it because you have swapped other stuff in?

I wore some second hand kit in the Supreme Horse at HOYS last year on the Sunday night in the main ring. Is the OP real? The more I read the more I am convinced someone is having a laugh.

It seems odd that the OP can (every time) word things in a way guaranteed to irritate.

My advice to anyone who has not visited before - you won't find it easily, when you get there, do NOT expect a shop. It is a house. With rooms. The new stuff (unless it has changed) is kept upstairs so you can't browse, just ask Sheila for whatever you want. The second hand rooms you can browse through but be prepared for a bit of a scrum if you go at a busy time.

To the person who suggested opening a branch elsewhere, it is not a shop, it is a house that has lots of horsey stuff in it. Unless you go there you will not really understand!!!

Long may it continue!!!
 
Surely OP can exercise her right of free choice and buy new if she wants?

What on earth does it have to do with anyone else?

FWIW I tend to buy new myself. Not really much choice down here. But I would rather have exactly what I want and pay the new price than compromise with 2nd hand.
 
I have also been using Catlips for more years than I care to admit to, it really has to be seen to be believed. I also believe Shelia celebrated her 80th birthday last year!!
 
If you go, make sure you have plenty of time to rummage! I went a couple of weekends ago and had a climb on the mountain of rugs, but could not be bothered to bury that deep to see if any treasures lurked below. I remember my first time there, I was dumbstruck by the piles of 2nd hand stuff, and it is funny going in there now and seeing the first timers faces!! It is great for 2nd hand saddles, rubber boots, muckers, tweed/show jackets - enough to get you started and she has good quality new stuff too. She will also do saddle fitting if you take your horse along (phone first). She can be a bit grumpy sometimes, but is very helpful.
 
Has anyone got the number and opening hours? Thanks! Deff will do a visit this week or so as have shed load to part ex!
 
wow this place sounds amazing shame i live in cheshire :'(
nothing wrong with second hand things though
i found a lovely GFS inhand bridle should be £90 .. i got it for £12 not even been used
also got a lovely set of tri zone tendon boots mum went to one in wales and got me two leather headcollers for £10 all they needed was a oil and clean up and they look perfect
only thing i dont buy is rugs and chlothes nothing personal i just dont sadley can never find these type of places in cheshire :(

also via the red jacket, people who wear them at rc level look silly .. i think it would look much better in a navy or black jacket with a red velvet collar :) plus red to me always shouts proffesional rider and reading other posts your struggling abit with the clears and its best not to bring such attention to your self untill your sorted :)

[[pleasee dont shoot me down personall opinons not trying to be nasty]]
 
If it wasnt for catlips my first pony would of been cold, grubby, tackless and eating his dinner off the floor.... I would of been riding in jeans and trainers, hatless........ AMAZING place- if you have money to waste by new, if not grab some serious bargains- esp saddles I mean already worn in so nice and comfy, whats not to like!!
 
It does sound amazing and the lady sounds like a real character. I wonder where she gets all the second hand stuff from then, does she buy it from e-bay and sell it on or do people go in to sell her stuff too? Just curious really.
 
Wow this place sounds amazing! Now I just need an excuse to travel down south!
I love second hand horsey stuff. I got a fabulous breastplace at the last one I went to for just a few pounds. And a nice set of woof boots. All they need is a clean & oil & they look great.
OP - I can assure you once you hit the real world, second hand will become so much more appealing!
 
Catlips is heaven on earth! I kitted out myself and my horse and anything that wasnt needed or was outgrown, went back in exchange for something else. Now I'm talking about 20 odd years ago so Catlips has obviously survived the snobbery of the OP and her likes. Long may Shiela creak up and down the stairs!! When I was a CL client I kept my boy at Bury Farm, Edgeware-anyone else been there?
 
Catlips is the most amazing place I have ever been to. It's like being transported back into the 1950s. I even make a point of taking my friends there when they come to visit me, as they don't believe how bizzare and amazing it is.

They stock a lot of brand new stuff too. In fact ask for anything and they'll go and find it, second hand or brand new.


If you can go in the week, or if you have go at the weekend be prepared to allow a whole morning or afternoon for the visit. If you go at the weekend you will be waiting in the entrance hall in the queue for ...well sometimes hours.

It is a hidden gem, and perhaps the last place of its kind. When it finishes it will be a sad day.

I've been in the queue and well known dressage riders and local showjumpers have been in there with bags of tack they're getting rid of. The queue at Catlips is a good place for socialising!!!
 
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So what do you do when you buy a new pony, surely they are second hand?

I so wish this place was nearer me in desperate need of a new jump saddle!!
 
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