She was in charge of recreating an authentic blacksmith shop of old - and needed historically accurate photographs of the shops, equipment/tools, and especially the clothing worn by the blacksmiths. Well, she came to the right place. I sat down with our inventory of blacksmith calendar back issues, paging through them to find the the ones with best exemplary photos of the things she was asking for. I popped them into a UPS Next Day Air envelope and they were in her hands less than 24 hours later! She promised to keep me informed about her project - as I told her my farrier and blacksmith customers would LOVE to see the result of her efforts when they show up on tv. Watch this newsletter for updates about it. Hint: It's a commercial. Another hint: Totally NOT something you'd associate with blacksmithing.

These calendars are a remarkable collection of photos, postcards, cartoons, advertising memorabilia and more. Shown at left are some examples from back issues:

Check out the HOCKS on that horse in the top picture! I bet he doesn't get the luxury of corrective shoes and joint injections.

The second picture is a political cartoon - "Jar the kicker off the anvil and get an election cigar" (not sure what that means) but Satan pounding the anvil and that creepy demon in the background with his tally sheet make an interesting image.

Third is a candid shot of a working blacksmith shop - this is just a small portion of the whole image - which is packed with all sorts of interesting details. Sign behind the guy: IN GOD WE TRUST - OTHERS PAY CASH.

We are selling back issue calendars (2003-2010) for just $2.99 each! And a whopping set of 25 blacksmith image postcards for just $8.75 (which is HALF OFF the regular price of $17.50)! Single blacksmith postcards sell for more than this on ebay - this is a great deal for anyone crafty to frame these up, make collages, do scrapbooks, etc. All the cool stuff I was planning to do with them when I got time. I've finally decided to move on and let them go. You can get inexpensive black frames at the dollar store or a rummage sale, frame these up and hang them as a group on the wall in your den. Stick a couple worn-out tools up there, and an empty Hooflex can or two... you'll be as quaint as Cracker Barrel!

Each calendar has a picture for every month, and some have bonus images, so there is plenty to work with for multiple projects if you're so inclined.

Order your 2011 Blacksmith calendar - and back issues to complete your collection + postcards here 

If you've seen the DVD, (or the live show) and wondered how in the world they get those horses to perform so brilliantly, show after show, then this is the book for you.

When Cavalia first took North America by storm in 2003, few people knew who Frederic Pignon and Magali Delgado were. But the whole world was soon abuzz with talk of the magical display these two remarkable individuals provided their audience; none could walk away unaffected by the powerful connection they demonstrated with their unparalleled cast of beautiful horses.

In this profusely illustrated, hardcover book, Frederic (a specialist in liberty and ground work) and Magali (a talented dressage rider at the Grand Prix level) combine efforts and share the secrets of the relationships they have cultivated over the course of their lives with horses. They tell the story of Templado - the difficult and rebellious stallion who demanded they question all they had learned as horsemen and look at, in a whole new light, what it means to train horses. It was this tempestuous character that taught them that the process of building a relationship with a horse can be on more equal footing than most would dream possible.

It is with this life-altering lesson in mind that Frederic and Magali now explain their Six Golden Principles. These include how you can become a "safe haven" (the most important being in your horse's life) while ensuring he gets the leadership he craves and deserves. And, how to establish acceptable limits of behavior, as well as respect, without ever succumbing to anger or using force. They describe how to read horse behavior so you can better understand and communicate with your equine partner as an individual. Plus, you'll see what it means to be patient and give your horse a say in his own training - and just how rewarding the results can be.

Gina's note - the three Cavalia products we sell all compliment each other:

The Cavalia DVD

shows you what the show is all about - highlights of the actual performance, interviews with the cast, backstage and behind the scenes candid stuff.

The Cavalia Book

has beautiful still shots from the show, and explains in detail how it came to be, and tells about the horses and the human actors.

Gallop to Freedom

goes into detail about how Frederic and Magali came to be the talented horsemen that they are - and how the Cavalia horses learn to perform on stage. It's full of wonderful and surprising facts - like the fact that Templado learned on his own to swirl his incredibly long mane, because it pleased the audience and caused them to applaud.

To see all the Cavalia items, click here

Journey through this celebration of the courage, faith, grit, and grace cowgirls brought with them as they claimed the promises of the new frontier. The heart of adventure is captured in the rugged and beautiful western landscape and in tales of women like Annie Oakley, Molly Goodnight, and the first official "cowgirl", Lucille Mulhall. Profusely illustrated hardcover 48 pages. To order, click here  

"It is not because things are difficult

that we do not dare;

It is because we do not dare

that they are difficult."

-Seneca - from Good Ol' Cowgirl Stories 

This book is all western/cowboy, and spiritual, making for a very powerful combination. At 48 pages it's not very thick, but each page really packs a punch, featuring relevant quotes from famous folks, cowboys, unknowns and the Bible. It's beautifully illustrated, printed on heavy, glossy paper - makes a great gift - the inside front has a space to write the recipient's name, the presenter's name, and the occasion - for an added special touch.

"Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll enjoy it a second time."

-Cowboy Proverb from A Look at Life From The Saddle  

 To order click here 

It's perfect for a vet's office, farrier, or trainer to send to clients, but NOT for personal use unless you want to mark out or cover up that wording on the inside. There are a few other cards that only have one inside wording option available, so please keep this in mind when making your selections - and read the descriptions carefully.

Like I said before, all year I take calls from budget-minded farriers - trying to decide if it's worth the cost to send Christmas cards to their clients. If you're one of those - now might be the time to reconsider.

Anyone who has been getting this newsletter for very long probably has noticed that we aren't doing big sale promotions every time you turn around. We pretty much need to sell everything at regular price in order to stay in business. We are not Wal-Mart, and we hope that low prices are not the reason folks shop with us. However, when we DO have sales, I try to make them memorable. And this one falls into that category, I hope. A special reward for those out there who are clever enough to anticipate how many cards they might need at Christmas time, AND organized enough to REMEMBER that they've already purchased them and WHERE they put them. That's not me. But I know you folks exist - I've heard stories...

This glorious sale ends June 30, some of the card designs are low inventory and will NOT be reprinted, so make your selections early. To get started click here

 ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
It's written by Gina Keesling, and emailed to subscribers a few times a month, depending on how often I have something to share. Watch for special sales, interesting stories, uplifting quotes and maybe some personal stuff. Let me know if you like it, and if you don't. We aim to please.

This week's quote is by Frederic Pignon - from Gallop To Freedom:

"This was an unexpected and strange situation for me. I rather thought I knew how to train any horse. I'd had a lot of experience with horses and had learned to communicate well with them - or so I thought - and reckoned I was able to tell them what I wanted. ... I had done trick riding in lots of shows and successfully performed potentially dangerous acts, but here I was presented with a horse that did not respond to anything I asked of him.

It was as if all my considerable experience was for nothing."

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

with Normand Latourelle, artistic director of Cavalia

Voice of America TV on Cavalia 

Cavalia Western Stunt Riding 

Cavalia Carousel Act 

 HoofPrints Cavalia Books and DVDs are here 

Grab one (or several) and drop it in an envelope to:

HoofPrints Business Card Rant

13849 N 200 E

Alexandria, IN 46001

I will send you a little gift* for your trouble. And don't worry, I'm not planning an attack on the infringers to get my $100,000. (Huh? - details here) I'd just like to send these folks a copy of our catalog and let them know that next time they need cards they can leave the design work to me. 

*Note about the gift: I am not sure what it will be yet - rest assured it will be a fun surprise of some sort. Probably a bigger/better gift for multiple cards. You'll have to trust me on this one.

We receive a lot of them. Some are pretty good, and others are dumb. Dumb in a myriad of ways...  Alarmist email rumors that have been around forever - that folks keep sending "just in case it's true" Pictures of someone's butt (or worse) - don't even get me started about the firecracker butt - but at least that one was timely when it showed up around July 4. Christian messages that are uplifting - until you get to the end and you're threatened "if you're not ashamed that you love Jesus, forward this - if you are, then delete." Pictures of cute puppies and kittens (awww)

I enjoy writing these newsletters - and sharing all this stuff with you all. But the fact is, it's also a way to help us stay connected with customers and sell products during the time between catalog mailings (which is only once a year) So I really, really like it when someone new stumbles upon the newsletter and is excited to "discover" our company and the products we offer.

In all my efforts to make the newsletter interesting and forward-worthy - it never occurred to me to JUST ASK you all to send it! Duh. Sometimes the obvious is elusive, I guess. So here goes - my request to ask you to forward our email newsletter to your horsey friends.  All we ask is that you please be judicious and only send to folks who might be interested. Otherwise we are no better than the "firecracker butt". Click the Forward email link below to get started.

(please note - using this form does NOT subscribe anyone to our list - it is a one-time only forward)