5 GENIUS HORSE BRAIDING HACKS

I’m cruising along braiding the mane of the seventh horse on my braiding list. As I finish braiding down the mane, I reach for my latch hook tool to pull the braids ups, only to find that it’s missing!

With several horses left to braid what could I do? What else can be used to pull braids up in a pinch?

In this post, I’m covering five genius horse braiding hacks you can use to pull your braids up.

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Mane Braiding Hacks, Pull Up Braids

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A latch hook tool is normally essential for mane braiding because it allows you to pull all the braids up in minutes.

With the braids pulled up and the bottom braid knots positioned just inside the crest, you get a snapshot of how the finished braids will look.

This gives you the opportunity to make adjustments to the bottom line of your braids before tying any down. Which helps you achieve eye appealing, flawless braiding results.

If your latch hook tool breaks or goes missing which always seems to happen at the worst time, there are a few options for pulling braids up in a pinch. Here’s a list of genius horse braiding hacks for pulling up your braids that you can use if you’re braiding with yarn.

1. Forelock Tool

A forelock tool can be used to pull up any braid, not just a French-braided forelock.  If the loop at the bottom of your forelock tool isn’t too small, it will be easier to push the yarn pieces through it. Don’t have a forelock tool in your braiding kit? You can create one in a few minutes with things you probably already have at home. Click here to watch my Forelock Tool Tutorial video.

2. Needle with Yarn Loop

You should have an embroidery needle in your braiding kit for sewing in button braids or hunter tails.  Take a ten-inch piece of yarn and put one end of the yarn through the eye of the needle.  Bring the ends of the yarn piece together and tie it off with a slip knot. 

Put your yarn pieces from a braid through the yarn loop you just created. Put the needle through the base of the braid and pull the yarn pieces through the crest. FYI…this method is faster that just using an embroidery needle alone which I discuss next.

3. Embroidery Needle

If you’re creating button braids, you can use your embroidery needle to pull the yarn pieces up through the braid at the crest and then sew the braid in place. Just be aware that the downside to completing one braid at at time is that you miss the opportunity to pull all the braids up and even up the braid bottoms across the neck so your finished braids appear identical.

4. Safety Pin

You can even use a safety pin to pull up your braids. Just run the pin through each piece of yarn and then close it. Push the safety pin up through the crest at the base of the braid and pull the yarn pieces out the top.  This method isn’t as fast as a latch hook, but it works. And you probably have a safety pin or can borrow one from a fellow rider, if needed.

5. Paper Clip – Two Options

There are two ways you can use standard paper clip to pull up your braids:

Option A: Simple Pull Through

Use a paper clip as is to pull the yarn pieces from each braid up through the crest.  It works best if the ends of the paper clip are pointing downward as shown, so they don’t catch on the mane when you push it up through the crest.

Option B: Opened Paper Clip Pull Through

If you have a piece of tape, you can fashion the paper clip into a loop at one end. Apply tape where the loop meets the clip again. Then straighten the remainder of it so you can grasp it easier.

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Takeaways: Genius Horse Braiding Hacks

A latch hook tool speeds up the mane braiding process when creating hunter or dressage braids on a short mane.  Using it to pull all the braids up makes quick work of this braiding step.

But what if you find yourself without a latch hook tool at the last minute?  

Don’t despair if this happens to you at a show. Simply employ one of these hacks to pull up your braids and complete the mane in plenty of time for your first class. To recap, here are five genius horse braiding hacks you can use to pull up your braids:

• Forelock tool
• Needle with a yarn loop
• Embroidery needle
• Paper clip – closed or opened with a taped loop
• Safety pin

Do you have a braiding hack that has saved the day? Or have you tried one of these braiding hacks? How did it go? Please leave a comment and let me know. I’d love to hear about it. If you found this post helpful, share it with fellow riders.

Warmly,

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