A Word on the Words...
Somewhere around 2012, I was attending a dressage clinic, featuring a very well-known and respected trainer/instructor from Germany, where Dressage is home to many legends of the sport, both human & equine, perennial Olympic team winners, and where many of the world’s top bloodlines originate.
It was a gorgeous spring day. I sat with my notebook, ready to start auditing. As I waited for the first rider to come out of the barn for their lesson, I reflected on a new business idea of mine. I couldn’t find a nice, well-fitting tee-shirt made for riders. I wanted something I could dress up or down. Something that fit a woman. No boxy shape. And I was waiting for some inspiration to kick in – hopefully spotlighting this sport that I loved. I already knew I’d put my logo on the back, a circular blend of lucky horseshoes mimicking my small ankle tattoo I’d gotten in my twenties.
The rest of the inspiration would follow, that gorgeous day and later that night.
As I watched each horse and rider combination perform at all levels from training – Grand Prix, the pinnacle of the sport – I began highlighting certain words in my notebook.
The same ones would appear, then a new one. Words like balance, harmony, connection. Clarity, power, energy. This was the mantra of the instructor helping the student train their horse, get the most out of their horse.
But, with the exception of some very dressage-specific terms, these words could have come from anywhere, really. A dance class. A motivational speaker. Yoga. Gymnastics. Many sports and other expressions and activities.
They seemed like words that could connect the whole world.
So I made a list of these words.
What if I put them on the shirts? In really interesting fonts and colors. Combinations you don’t see every day. I’d find the best-fitting shirts out there. The potential for hats and bags and other products was there, and was introduced later.
I left the clinic that day, my head full of thoughts, so inspired!
I had a plan, albeit rough.
The show I relaxed to that evening was the finale of Project Runway where several designers present their full collections.
The winner? She had each model pause at the end of the runway, open their jacket or sweater to the most chic, fitted tee-shirt with screenprinted symbols of New York, her inspiration.
It felt like fate to me.
Black Horse Expressions was born.
