Plaiting the night before...

naza

naza

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Hi all,
Wondering who here plaits up the night before, am eventing this Sunday and have an earlyish time and it's a fair distance away so to save a bit of time in the morning am thinking of plaiting up the night before.
Who does this? Plait and roll up? Do they stay neat-ish/ how do I keep them tidy?
Many thanks
 
Yes! I tend to stitch if plaiting the night before. I use a stretchy hood if they are on shavings because the dust gets in them.

If your horse is inclined to trash them I just plait but don't roll them up and put a hood on. then quickly roll them up with rubber bands in the morning.

Best of luck at your event. :)
 
I'm afraid I never would, because I am a perfectionist and they would never look as tidy! If I had to get up in the middle of the night to do it then so be it :)
 
LJR said:
I'm afraid I never would, because I am a perfectionist and they would never look as tidy! If I had to get up in the middle of the night to do it then so be it :)
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I'm a bit like that too, plus my mare would rub them out.c I may get away with my gelding having them in all night.

Lots of people do though. My friend used tout bits of tights over the plaits.
 
Sometimes. Depends where I'm going and how many I've got to plait and what time my first class is. When I'm up at stupid o clock with multiple to get ready I usually wish I had done, or had something that doesn't need plaiting :p

I've made the mistake of thinking I will plait such and such a horse for an afternoon class later on after my morning classes and then it's annoyingly busy and distracting. I'd have been better plaiting the night before than that tbh.
 
Nope I hate plaiting the night before - only takes 10mins in morning to plait up :)

You could plait down though and then in the morning roll up and use gel to tame any flyaways?
 
My boy is quite clean etc so hoping he won't mess them up too much. But unfortunately can't out a hood on him though. Someone else mentioned putting tights over, any idea how? As surely when I take them off that'll mess up the plaits ?
 
My friend does my horse's plaits the night before and they always stay in. They are sewn in and hairsprayed. Luckily, as a grey, he is more concerned in covering himself in his poo than rubbing plaits out!
 
Do a test run?

Put a bot of stocking over (not too tightly) then put a band over the top, quite loose, so it can be snipped off without disturbing the plait?
 
Naza, you lie the leg of the tights down the top of the neck over the plaits and put plaiting bands over each plait to secure it. It doesn't go round the neck so won't mess anything up as you remove them.
 
My horse is field kept and due to my early times recently i will plait his mane the night before and leave them as long plaits. I then show spray and hair spray before putting the lyric hood on him.
I then roll them up when i get to the venue or whilst hes eating breakfast.

At the regionals the other week the monkey decided to roll and he only had a neck cover on. The plaits were plastered but wet sponge and noone knew
 
I plait but don't roll up. That way if my horse has destroyed any then it's easy to redo them. I do seem to have stable monsters and whatever I did, plaits never stayed in. I do use the tights trick to keep shavings out of the mane which does work. I did invest in an equine body stocking in a vain frustrated attempt to keep my grey horse looking presentable but that never worked either!
 
Have plaited fully other than forelock if really early start. Sewn in and then Lycra neck or body cover. Stay in fine and that is for showing where the ride judge gets a really good view!
 
We gave up doing this . . . wretched boy always ended up pulling or rubbing the plaits out and they never looked as nice . . . we even tried lycra hoods - two of them - and both times he did this:

Git.jpg


Note the bit of fabric in his mouth like a bit . . .

P
 
milo'n'molly said:
Must just be me that is soft and don't do the night before because it can't be comfy for the horse to be plaited up so long
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Nope, I'm the same.

if they're tight enough to stay in overnight then imo they are too tightfto be comfortable.
I'd rather just get up 20 minutes early to do in the morning.
 
I don't like plaiting overnight, but I have done. I plait, then spray with hair gel, let it set then roll up and spray again with hair gel. Hoodie goes on and they turned out nice in the morning! but a bit misshapen
 
I plait the night before then roll and band in the morning. I always redo any that look rubbish, but it's so much quicker (I'm a slow plaiter) if the mane is already in plaited sections.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I did plait him up the night before but didnt cover them in anything and... they were fine the next morning, the stable stains however were one of his personal best.
 
millitiger said:
Nope, I'm the same.

if they're tight enough to stay in overnight then imo they are too tightfto be comfortable.
I'd rather just get up 20 minutes early to do in the morning.
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I totally agree, i did it once and when i got there in the morning my horse was trying really hard to rub them out and i felt wicked for making her so obviously agitated and uncomfortable overnight! Wouldnt ever do it again after that x
 
I quite regularly plait the night before - I use hair gel and always sew them in - done this way, generally my plaits won't shift until they are cut out! Pretty much everyone staying overnight and riding in early classes at my HOYS search for a star qualifiers were plaiting the night before.
 
pootleperkin said:
I quite regularly plait the night before - I use hair gel and always sew them in - done this way, generally my plaits won't shift until they are cut out! Pretty much everyone staying overnight and riding in early classes at my HOYS search for a star qualifiers were plaiting the night before.
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I practically find bands offensive so always sew plaits in lol, but because her mane thins out in summer I won't do the them until the morning as the thread will pull more mane out if left too long.
 
millitiger said:
Nope, I'm the same.

if they're tight enough to stay in overnight then imo they are too tightfto be comfortable.
I'd rather just get up 20 minutes early to do in the morning.
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Snap! Just doesn't seem fair to make them stay plaited longer than necessary :( I always unplait before the journey home as well.
 
Have to say I always un-plait before I take him home, one of the main reasons I use bands. I find a snuggy hoods Lycra hood helps keep off stable stains and stops him rubbing his mane.
 
I always unplait straight after my last class before coming home too; buying a stitch picker last year was revelationary and means it takes five mins to cut the thread out :)
 
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