Shopping Spree Splurges

Aka - spending accountability *blush*
I set off Saturday morning with €155 cash, a debit card, a visa card & a hastily tossed together shopping list which was saved in the memos on my phone and I will copy to here in keeping with my quest for accountability.

First purchase/splurge
gorgeous JFF black leather belt
for €19.95

"Bit for Kika

Query stable rug for Nancy with old closure if possible
(see earlier Equitana Epilogue post)

Equikozy socks

Gentle spurs

Boot bag

Schooling whip

Mane & tail spray

Stands to look at/chat to reps (if there)

PS of Sweden (contacted via facebook before going & knew they wouldn't be there :-( #sadtimes)

Ogilvy &ADE (would have been very pleasantly surprised if they had been there)

CWD/Devoucoux/Prestige"

Modeling with my ADE breeches, I know it wasn't
on my "list" but i have needed a belt for the longest time

Sadly the only stand I saw from my 'to visit' list was CWD. I would have loved to get my chat on at the others if they had been there...perhaps if any readers have ears to whisper sweet nothings into we could get he ball rolling for a presence in 24 months time. Yep this indoor equine extravaganza only rolls around every 2 years!
There is a  "Open Air" option in the intervening years, but having been there last May I was rather underwhelmed in comparison to the event in Essen. Although maybe I am judging too harshly as I wasn't really looking for anything that day and only bought hoof balm *blush*

Kika's shiny new bit, tackhos please help me naming what kind of bit this is.
I'm afraid I'm clueless aside from its being an eggbutt.
I have been told it's gentler than a snaffle due to extra joint equaling less nutcracker action for tongue.
I prefer eggbutts to loose rings to avoid risk of pinching & increase stability 

Nabbed myself a 1m10 navy schooling whip for a fiver ftw

I scored a sweet deal on this Spooks.de jacket for €65, it may be a little long & seems to have been the end of a line - but knowing these jackets usually retail at €150 minimum i couldn't not nab a size Small.

Even though I am not a fan of wearing the Union Jack (and cannot understand why non-UK brands like Spooks & Eskadron amongst others plastering this flag on their merchandise) and would have preferred to buy a black jacket as I already have a navy winter coat...Sadly they did not have any size Small left in black. :-(
In saying all that I cannot complain though as I love the green check pattern on the collar & am super cozy when I wear it ♡♡♡♡

Tenner spurs - bargain ☺☺☺
I will wait for lessons next week with trainer
 to try them out under supervision

I also scored 3 Magic Brushes for €12 when every other stand I saw them on were €13 ;-)
I added these to my "list" after someone at the yard picked my green one up on Friday thinking it had been left lying around.
I told the girl that if I saw them on Saturday I'd buy her one. Now to see her again before it gets creepy long between sightings *blush*

My final purchase was also not on my official list, but I was keeping an eye out for a bargain & at €35 these qualify.
They are light aluminium type stirrup irons, not as light as Jin Stirrups but much lighter than the flexi stirrups I had been using and they have the awesome cheese grater step. Which has made a great difference to the stability of my feet in the irons on my two test spins with Nancy where she has been fussy in canter transitions including some flailing, bucking & dolphining.
These are Homer stirrup irons which I hadn't heard of before but am super happy with so far ☺

Whip & stirrups ready for road testing with Nancy on Sunday.
Although the whip had it's first outing with Kika before Nancy's spin.

Ok so many of my purchases weren't on my "list" but all were things I had in the back of my mind to snap up if I found a bargain & I feel great about each splurge.
For the sake of accountability - price breakdown: belt (€20) + bit (€30) + whip (€5) + jacket (€65) + spurs (€10) + brushes (€12) + stirrups (€35)
The stirrups were charged to the Visa ;-)

Total equipment spending = €177

Not bad going if I do say so myself, very reserved splurges compared to what I could have spent had I not haemorrhaged money over the last few months on apartment expenses & furnishing *sob*

Like the previous time I went my biggest gripe was with the price of food & drink! Especially considering your ticket is valid for one entrance only, so you can't even nip out to a super-market for some grub on the cheapo.
 €4 for a drink as Germany charges an extra 50c for plastic bottles which you can get back when recycled, great for the environment but not ideal if we don't live in Germany! Grrrr!

Was still the super tasty-times so i am not bitter about these bad boys!

Being there for almost 7 hrs I bought two drinks and a slice of Pizza which cost me €11.50 & the tasty potato chips I posted about were bought by my friend and she refused to take anything from me for them as she said she'd have gotten them whether I ate some or not lolz.
Hopefully if I am lucky enough to go again in 2 years time I will remember to bring my own food & drink!