The adventures of Gilly the rescue horse and his side kick and partner in crime, Pokey the donkey.

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Being with a horse is a journey that never ends. What they have to teach us is amazing; but we must quiet our mind to hear them. ~ jca

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Monday, November 30, 2009

Gilly's got rhythm (beads)

When I ordered Gilly's new bitless noseband from Cynthia at Natural Horse World I was looking through her links and found a site for rhythm beads. I'd never heard of them before but thought they looked pretty neat! So I had a lot of bits and pieces of earrings, necklaces and such laying around and thought....hey I can do this! So I did some research on the Internet and found lots of places that sold them and read about them and the semi precious stones and their meanings.

Above Gil is modeling his new bling, after he got used to the bells! That was pretty funny! I walked from the house jingling them and he came running from behind the house. Blowing loud, tail flagged way up and prancing like he was running on air!!! I mean he was really strutting his stuff; came running to the gate with neck arched and still blowing. Pokey was scared to death of them, go figure? Just the jingling of the bells made him afraid. Gilly finally calmed down and smelled them and was really checking them out.

I went into the barn and rubbed them all over him and then slipped the necklace over his head, awww beautiful. I got him to walk around in the barn to make them jingle; Pokey still wouldn't come in the barn.....I'm tooooo scared, he said!!!!

Gilly is pretty hairy so the necklace kind of gets lost in all the winter hair!

Below is the necklace, it's 50 inches long but I should have made it 60 for Gilly's big neck. It has 7 bells three large ones and four smaller. The stones are:
Red Jasper - helps with conflict and aggression, promotes grace and perseverance.
Picture Jasper - stabilizing, balancing stone.
Hematite - great stone for grounding, calms and soothes, reducing stress.
Turquoise - healing stone, luck, happiness.
Unakite - promotes balance and emotional stability. Transforms negative emotions into positive ones. A grounding stone. (the medallion)
Also has silver beads and a silver bear and feather with turquoise dots.
The symbol of the bear means, strength, health and stability.

The colors mean:
Black - strong protection from negative energies. Reduces fears, obsessions, neurosis, and panic with a calm rootedness.
Red - (warm) attracting recognition and respect, red is the color of good fortune. Encouraging joy, luck and money it promotes confidence and courage...and is very grounding. I has been known to escalate the body's metabolism with vibrancy and passion.
Green - (cool) is peaceful and calming, refreshing, nurturing, balancing and normalizing..it is a good color for healing and health (physical, emotional and spiritual) Green cleanses and balances our energy, to give a feeling of renewal, peace and harmony. Green connects us to unconditional love and is used for balancing our whole being. It connects us to nature and to empathy to others.

I'm sure there are more color descriptions but that is all I found in my search so far. I placed an alligator clip on the end so the necklace will stay in place if Gilly lowers his head to get a drink when we are out. These are not to be left on the horse when you aren't with him.

I also added some pretty silver spacer beads just for looks and to break up the rows of beads.

A close up of the medallion with the bear and feather which hangs at Gilly's chest. There are also two long silver beads by the turquoise but they are tarnished, I need to polish them but then Gilly will sweat on them and tarnish them again!
(copied from the internet)
also known as speed beads, bear bells, horse necklace, cadence beads or horse beads; not only enhance he natural beauty of your horse, they create an auditory learning experience and are a valuable training aid used to improve performance and are quickly gaining recognition and wholehearted support from jumpers, gated horse riders, endurance riders, dressage riders, trail riders, barrel racers and horse trainers of all breeds and disciplines around the world.

Rhythm beads encourage your horse to follow a rhythm or cadence, much like a musician to a metronome through timed beats. The soft jingle of the bells accentuates the rhythm of horse's gaits, which is useful for adjusting the tempo/rhythm of the horse's movements. the bells help the rider pick up the correct diagonal and detect whether they are cantering/loping on the correct lead.

Rhythm beads are an excellent resource for all riding disciplines, including training and desensitizing young horses. On the trail, the bells are useful for alerting both wildlife and other riders that you are approaching.

20 comments:

Jennifer MacNeill said...

OMG, I love it! A horse necklace!
I want one (and a horse to put it on:)

Desert Rose said...

I ran across a website for these awhile back. Gilly's is very pretty...too bad Pokey won't wear one! Hee Hee

Thistlebrooms said...

What will they think of next???
Can't believe you had that much just laying around...I mean that's one mighty LONG necklace...
It's so Pretty and bet he feels very Kingly in it too...
Great Job Jane...
My Best~Marilyn

cowgirljlynn said...

I think your necklace is awsome.Love the idea! Will have to look and see if I have any old jewels laying around!!

Paint Girl said...

That is so cool!! What a great idea!

Dusty Devoe said...

WOW! It is beautiful. I have seen them too. I think it is a really interesting concept. I would like to try one.

Anonymous said...

Very cool, and beautiful, too!

Leah Fry said...

Those are great. LMK if all the charms work :-)

Elizabeth McCrindle said...

Looks really lovely and very interesting to read the meaning behind the stones :)

jane augenstein said...

Jennifer-thanks! I too wish you had a horse to put them on! You would love it.

Desert Rose-thanks, I will work on Pokey wearing some. Will have to make him a much smaller one.

Marilyn-I read that decorating horses has been around for a long time. Look at the fancy costumes the Arabian horses wear and the American Indians had shells, feathers and beads on their horses. LOL No all the beads didn't come from my jewel box, I made a trip to JoAnn Fabric and bought a lot. I had the beads on Gilly last night and he trotted in the field and danced around before I took them back off. I think he really likes them now. Can't wait to go for a ride with them on.

Cowgirljlynn-they are a fun thing to make for the horse. You have a "King" so he should definitely have jewels!

Paint Girl-yes, it's an awesome idea! I am glad I found it online.

Dusty Devoe-I think the idea of using them trail riding is great. Alert the wildlife so they can run the other way!

Kate-thanks! :-)

Leah-I will!

Elizabeth-I have always been fascinated by the meaning of stones and colors. We will see how it goes when I ride.

allhorsestuff said...

Oh my too too funny about them freaking out! Some horses do freak with new close sounds like that... I was riding Danny alone in the woods and did not have my bear bell yet..I only had a whistle..I tooted it and he WIDE EYED ME and almost ran for the hills!HAHA! I now start to toot in small bouts and rub his shoulder..that helps alot!

LOVE your Beads!!! I realy do!
Okay...now youv;e inspired me..need to make a set for Washashe for Chrsitmas! Of course...hers will have Feathers and Turquoise and whatever March birthstone is and Mine too....
Good job!
KK

jane augenstein said...

Kacy-I guess it's a good idea to warn the horse before making new noises around them! LOL I will really have to work with Pokey, he is more skiddish then Gilly. I can't wait to ride Gil with them on, he seems to like them now cause when I jingle them the will nicker to me! I think he likes his new jewels! Pretty sparklies!

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

WOW! You made THAT? Wow! I'm impressed!
I bought a smaller one, basically a string of beads and bells that clips onto the main with an alligator clip, for Baby Doll a couple years ago. It's mostly purple and Baby Doll doesn't seem to care one way or the other that it's there. lol!

I love the necklace, though. You are very talented! And Gilley looks awesome wearing it.


~Lisa

Blackfeatherfarm said...

I have a friend in the UK who sells these, and keep saying I'm going to make Indi one, after all jewelry is what I do, but Indi is still Bling-less !
Love what you put together for Gilly!

jane augenstein said...

Lisa, thanks, I had fun making it for Gil and thought he would like it. Now I can't wait to ride with them on him. Maybe tomorrow, deer season (gun) is over for now so maybe I can go for a road ride. I also got his new bitless noseband to try.

Blackfeather Farm, yes, you should make one for Indi, she will love it!

Julia said...

I have never seen horse jewelery before. I am sure my beasts would destroy it. Your guy is a really good boy!!

jane augenstein said...

Julia, you only put them on the horse when you are going to ride, then take it off. I don't think they could get a hold of it to rip it apart. You might be surprised, they might love the sound of the bells!

Grey Horse Matters said...

You've made a beautiful necklace for Gilly. I've heard of these but never really looked into them. I find this all very interesting and am wondering how my horses would take to wearing them on the trails. I might just give it a try. Thanks for the info and the idea.

Alice ~ Folk Art Primitives said...

Jane!! I love Gilly's new necklace ~ he should be so proud to wear that!!!

Fantastyk Voyager said...

You did a great job with those beads! My horses wear a silver charm on their bridle. Maybe I'll make them one of these rhythm beads next. I have plans on making my Arabian filly an "Arabian" halter. I've bought the beads and ribbons already.

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