A while back, I noticed a very cool jacket on Pinterest. The photo was taken at Quarter Horse Congress in one of the western classes, of a girl wearing a white lambskin jacket splattered with paint and decked out with crystals. I immediately loved it because it was unique and the pattern wasn’t built into the fabric. It also stood out against standard appliques and the somewhat gaudy “as much lace, fringe, appliques, and stones” look we see at some of the big shows now. One of the greatest appeals, however, was the fact this jacket could inspire anybody, on any budget. I immediately went to my show closet and found a white show shirt that I had bought, never wore, and quickly…um…”grew out of.”  I selected two tones of turquoise and got to work. The process was somewhat long due to waiting for areas to dry before moving on, and very messy! Paint was everywhere! I didn’t over do it on the splattering either as it was somewhat of an experiment. Once dried, I pulled out some lovely turquoise opal and clear crystals and started dotting the shirt with them.

The shirt came out much better than I expected making me immediately regret that I can no longer fit into it! This set into motion another idea for a splatter shirt. I have been planning a new showmanship jacket for a while. I cannot afford anything custom but would like to stand out a little more than with Hobby Horse (plus their clothes never fit me right). So, I’ve planned to buy a black based, plain jacket and spruce it up. I’ve gone through idea after idea about adding my own appliques, adding lace, adding this and that. Finally, I settled on just crystals in sort of fading pattern. That presents its own difficulties. So, I thought the splatter idea would work for my new jacket as well.

I like that it is somewhat organic and not overly frilly. Is it trendy? That I really don’t know, I haven’t seen any jackets other than the one out there. Will I look out of style? Maybe, but the jacket base is a modern cut which should help. So, I’ve chosen the colors and stones I will use. I also know the base jacket. I even made a computer model of it! I think first, I will test the colors on a basic black t-shirt first. What do you think!?