Believe it or not, dressage and the fashion world do have some things in common–elegance, distinction, balance and harmony. Except that trends in high fashion change every season. In dressage it takes years, if at all.

Dressage fashion has really been pretty conservative and formal for decades (centuries?): dark jacket, light breeches, tall black boots, gloves, and black velvet hunt cap. Of course, it changes just a bit at the FEI levels: Substitute a top hat and tails for the dark jacket and hunt cap.

What could be more austere than riding a horse in top hat and tails?

Lately, though, color coordination has become cool, even if only in the schooling ring: matching polo wraps, saddle pads, polo shirts and baseball caps are available in every pastel shade under the rainbow.

It’s just so last year to wear primary colors, unless you’re into the patriotic red, white and blue–and then don’t forget the glittery stars and stripes for your horse’s hindquarters.

You might be able to get a little more artistic for a musical freestyle. Sparkly browbands, brightly colored saddle pads, and colorful leg wraps in demo rides (because leg wraps aren’t allowed in recognized competition) are a few ways to become more eye-catching.

But remember, dressage riders, if there’s a real preponderance of pink, with Swarovski crystals–oh, those aren’t rhinestones, honey–then you’re probably at a hunter show.

Don’t worry, though, because signature clothing lines from famous riders are the latest thing in dressage must-haves. Kyra Kyrklund, Anky van Grunsven and Isabel Werth have all capitalized on stardom by creating their own lines of fashion for the barn. They (or their designers) have merged athletic materials and styling with traditional pieces to update the usual penguin look, somewhat.

Now you can try breeches with a little pinstripe of color down the side to break out of the usual mold. Or you can just settle for casual wear that will make you look appropriately horsy when you head to the supermarket for a 25-pound bag of carrots.

U.S. dressage star Lisa Wilcox, who has the star quality of an Olympian as well as the mystique of having spent the past decade living and training in Europe, recently worked as a fashion model for A’Dashi, a fashion boutique in Wellington, Fla., that caters to the dressage crowd. Fashion photographer Michael Mckee clicked away while Wilcox’ coach Ernst Hoyos supervised.

A’Dashi owner Shirley Johnson has capitalized on the fashion-conscious Wellington dressage scene by creating a collection of European fashions, riding apparel, custom equestrian products, fashion accessories and casual apparel. If you hang out around the trot-up at any Florida CDI, you’ll surely see some well-heeled riders who’ve just come from the A’Dashi tack trailer on the show grounds.

It’s All About Accessories

Almost every rider worries about getting into their boots, even if they’re custom-made and even if they’re using the wide variety of silicone sprays, powders and medieval-looking hooks on the market. But dressage riders face the even more daunting task of getting foot and ankle down a long shaft stiffened with whalebone–something like shoving a boomerang down a stovepipe.

While it was once considered a certain rite of passage to have to wrestle with a pair of boots, zippers have now become socially acceptable. So you just don’t hear as many painful sounds coming from horse show tack rooms as you used to.

Attached to the heel of those boots, you’ll usually find a pair of spurs. In medieval times, “to win his spurs” meant to gain knighthood. Now, anyone can wear spurs.

But novices should think twice about strapping on those two-inch-long sabers that are popular in the dressage arena. Dressage spurs are meant to enhance the aids, rather than encourage speed or cause pain, but some of them are long enough that you really should remove them before walking around the show grounds to prevent crossing them, like skis, and doing a header as you ogle that flashy warmblood walking by.

At a recent show, one judge told another to keep an eye out for “spur charms.” Riders–especially young riders and juniors–have taken to attaching small jewelry charms, like the ones you’d find on bracelets, to their spurs. Will they tattoo their horses next?

Most dressage riders generally keep jewelry to a minimum since big hoop earrings tangled in a hairnet can distract them from remembering their tests, but there’s no rule against blinding the judge with a strategically placed diamond that perfectly catches the sunlight, just when your horse bucks in a flying change.

A Little Something Spicy

Like a businessman sporting silk boxers under his pinstriped suit, dressage riders often like to have a little something spicy under their conservative getup, and socks are the perfect place to hide your wild side. (White breeches with underwear that have sexy slogans printed on them aren’t a good combination, unless you want the judge to read, “I’m too sexy for my horse,” every time you trot by.)

But since they’re inside the boots, socks can have all sorts of bright colors and busy patterns. The young riders seem to particularly like this method of artistic expression. Maybe that’s because some of them like to go from the barn to the mall as quickly as possible.

Discretion is certainly key in under-garments for riders. Moisture-wicking material is a good idea for long days spent in the saddle, and seam location is important to keep in mind, or you could end up with nasty chafing in places you don’t even want to think about.

You have oodles of styles to choose from, and you can spend hours in the tack shop debating the pros and cons of full-coverage underwear versus the thong, excellent for preventing visible panty lines and available for both men and women. Unfortunately, white breeches are usually transparent to some degree, so it’s not so much about avoiding panty lines as deciding where you want them to appear. Men–well, they have a rather different set of concerns.

Now let’s talk bras, an essential bit of apparel, especially for the bustier broads and babes who need a little bounce control. For those women who have sought artificial enhancement upstairs, extra support is of utmost importance, as silicone has just a bit more spring.

There is nothing more distracting from even the loveliest sitting trot than a set of knockers boinging up and down because the bra isn’t doing its job. Some don’t like sports bras because they can create a “uni-boob” appearance, but there are a few on the market now that “lift and separate” while providing bounce control. Some even have a little padding to fill out the front of the jacket for the less amply endowed.

High Waist, Low-Rise?

White, canary, buff and beige are the usual, staid show ring colors for breeches.

But some of the new designer breeches combine black and white in bold, graphic combinations, such as white breeches with a full black seat. Some of the dressage-style breeches have a high, wide waistband to create a sleeker line, although you can’t wear a belt on most of them because they don’t have belt loops.

That can be a problem since belts can come in handy in a variety of circumstances, from making a neckstrap to hang on to as your horse bucks or as an impromptu leash for the Corgi that won’t stay out of the warm-up area–and has caused the bucking.

Much to the chagrin of the middle-aged ladies who flock to the dressage arena, low-rise breeches are the latest trend, and the Twiggy-esque adolescents love them. Some have zippers in front, some on the side, and some pull on without a zipper.

You can even find shirts that aren’t just white. Some have a white front but bright colors on the sides or back.

The idea is that, with your coat on, it looks like a proper white show shirt, but after you show it wears like a casual top. Keep the teddy bear prints under wraps, please.

Some of these new shirts have a sporty zipper instead of buttons. Either way, once you’re out of the ring you can show the preferred amount of cleavage or chest hair.

Some of these cool shirts even come complete with a stock tie. And even those are now available in a pleated style, sometimes embellished with lace, which is rapidly gaining in popularity as a more formal look than the traditional plain hunting stock tie.

Neckties are also an acceptable alternative at the lower levels, and the occasional dapper gentleman might even sport a bowtie. Age has nothing to do with choice of tie, as bowties outside the arena are now appearing as frequently on the college scene as on the shuffleboard crowd.

But no one seems able to change dressage coats much. They’re still black or navy. You might see some of the higher-end jackets with a velvet collar or silver or gold piping on the collar and pocket flap. That gives a more formal look, and it gives riders credibility should they decide to dabble in the rap scene.

The shadbelly coats mandatory for the FEI levels should flatter the figure, but not be so tight that you bust a button when your horse spooks at the flowers around the ring.

There is a little breathing room for fashion here, though, in the vest points that dangle from the bottom of the shadbelly. They’re usually a demure, traditional canary yellow, but some riders like to opt for brighter colors–perhaps a red vest to coordinate with a red flower in the lapel. Be careful, though–such daring moves should only be made when you’re certain that the performance will live up to the fashion.

Who knows, maybe in another 40 or 50 years an article like this will have the riders wearing outfits we can’t even imagine now. Maybe all it will take is a rider as bold as Andre Agassi, the man who wore neon orange tennis shorts on the venerable grass courts of Wimbledon, and lived to tell about it.

“Just Because You Sneeze Money. . .”

The very word dressage, meaning “training” in French, conjures images of perfection. And here are two pricey gifts that could be fashionably perfect for the dressage rider looking for just that “perfect” gift or accessory.

An advertisement for a $15,100 men’s Hermes “Dressage” watch reads: “Just because you sneeze money, doesn’t mean everyone has to hear about it.

For the discreet show-off, Hermes has reissued its Dressage model, complete with gold dial, silver face, crocodile band, and pretty much nothing else–other than several truckloads of understated elegance. Celebrated at a lavish Chateau de Versailles event in 2003, the Dressage has been helping the chosen few stomp their divots ever since.”

Never mind that if you stepped into the dressage arena to stomp divots, the judge would promptly whistle you right out of the ring, no matter how well dressed you were or what you were sneezing.

For the ladies, here’s something that’s no less gaudy: An 18-karat gold English saddle, set with VS1 natural diamonds. Called “The Ultimate Trophy” by creators Dankners Ro Dan Creations, it’s a pin that measures 1″ by 1″.

Designer Robert Dankner envisions it as a competition trophy, hoping jewelry stores will buy one of the 36 limited-edition pieces and donate it to shows “to give these ladies something different than just a cup or ribbon.”
The price? $7,500.