Your Turn: Skinny breeches

Bernadette Kilcer has been fighting the battle of the bulge, and she’s winning–big time. The only problem? It’s time to go shopping for new riding clothes, and Bernadette is feeling overwhelmed. And broke.

From Bernadette:

It’s September, which means it’s my birthday month!!!  I set off last month with a goal: that this time next year I want to be an even more fabulous version of myself.  I’ve got several goals in mind to help provide me with incentives along the way; however, I’ve come up with my first roadblock.  I’m “under growing” my clothes.  This is a term that a dear friend of mine and I came up with to describe when an adult loses weight to the point where the clothes they wear no longer fit.  While this would normally be reason to celebrate, when you ride it becomes, well, expensive.

Luckily, most of my bottoms are Kerrits riding tights which means I will be able to get a bit more time out of them.  They have Lycra in them, which should buy me another couple months. However, my brand new Ice-Fil show shirt that I bought is already two sizes too big.  I know I’m not suppose to throw it in the dryer, but I did in hopes that it would shrink down a bit.  Where my biggest problem comes in, right now, is my beautiful tall boots.

Back when they fit (+15 pounds ago)

This past winter I bought a beautiful pair of Fuller Fillies boots.  They were the first pair of tall boots I’d ever owned.  I was so excited.  Well, Houston, we have a problem.  Now my beautiful tall boots are now two-plus inches too big around my calf.  I quite literally can stick my hand and arm all the way down to itch my foot in them.  I think that even if I were to put on my winter breeches, long underwear AND two pairs of socks I’d still have room in them.  Sigh.  What’s a girl to do?

I’ve debated whether I want to get a pair of paddock boots and get Outback Leather to shrink down my half chaps.  Or do I want to just suck it up and buy another pair of tall boots?  I knew that this day was going to come, I just didn’t think that this milestone would come as quickly as it did.

I started looking in the SmartPak catalog and online website considering both options when suddenly it hit me: I have options!  No really!!  I have options in what make, model and type of tall boot I want to get.  Suddenly I felt completely overwhelmed.  How do people choose boots?  Do I go with a particular brand name?  Is there something that I should be looking for?  How do you pick tall boots?  Are there any name brands I should avoid because they fall apart quickly?  I honestly and truly can say I have never felt so anxious.  I finally just had to close the lid on my laptop and stop thinking about it for a while.

While I am incredibly proud of the work I have accomplished and continue to push down the path that I am on, I’m feeling incredibly overwhelmed.  I’ve never had choices before.  I don’t want to be the high maintenance friend (or client) that needs advice on everything, but honestly, this is completely NEW territory for me.  HELP!

Oh, and if anyone has any clothes they have outgrown you can always send them my way.  I’m under growing my clothes a little bit every single day.

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