During this time we’re taking extra precautions and self quarantining to keep others in our community healthy. We want to offer daily tips that’ll help you pass the time during your self quarantine and even give you a jump start to your spring cleaning.
Today’s tip is all about going through your old tack. If you’re like me, you probably have tons of old tack and gear sitting in storage (or in my case, the garage) that you’re ready to part ways with. Now is the perfect time to sort through everything!
Organize.
I recommend creating three piles to sort things into as you go through and clean out your storage and tack rooms.
The keep pile. Obviously there are certain pieces of equipment that you love and use daily, or there are items that you might need in the future.
The toss pile. These are things that can no longer be used. For example, I found a few broken reins and destroyed bell boots and fly masks sitting in a tub.
The sell/donate pile. Why keep items in storage that you’re not going to use when you can sell them to give you some extra spending cash for your horse?
Clean.
Once you’ve organized everything into piles, I recommend cleaning the items you’re going to sell first. (Stay tuned, we’ll have another daily tip on tack cleaning—in barns there’s always something that needs cleaned!) If you have some show tack you’re wanting to sell, spiff up the silver and make sure the leather is wiped down. Have some old show clothes? Make sure they’re cleaned (for custom outfits reach out to the designer to see how they recommend cleaning) and free of wrinkles so they look their best.
Sell.
The internet is a powerful tool and you can sell a lot of you equipment online. Use Facebook to your advantage. Join different Facebook groups to list the different products you have for sale. You might even find a good deal on something you’ve been looking for in the process.
Of course, selling online comes with its own challenges. Last year I went through and got rid of a ton of equipment I no longer use and shared my 10 tips for buying and selling gear online.
