Beautiful sights

Beautiful sights
Horses at blue water Lake state park

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Collars

I find that martingale collars are wonderful in their function, but I am trying to find martingale collars that wear better and longer. In the past I used the premier 1 inch wide martingale, and they were great, but in reading articles, many writers recommend a 2 in wide collar for these strong dogs.  They say that the wide collar distributes the stress on the neck over a larger area and therefore is safer for these dogs.

I ordered two custom martingale collars, and have been somewhat disappointed in both of them. One is a solid fabric sort of like suede, and it shows dirt all the time, even just after being washed. However it is soft to the touch so I do like that.


Fleur in her 2 in faux suede and 1 in faux suede tag collar


The second is cotton patterned fabric, and I think the fabric is not soft enough, and the color has faded dramatically in the 1 month I have used it.  I don't leave it on the dog unless we are going for a walk, so it seems like it should not be so faded.


Power in his 2 inch cotton fabric collar and 1 in premier collar
The colors on the inside of the collar are still bright and unfaded, but the outside of the collar has faded dramatically.  It is still pretty, but less so than when new.  He only wears the 2 in collar when we go somewhere, so I would think that the material would be faded much less since it is exposed to sunlight for only an hour a day.

Below the 2 in collar is a 1 inch premier collar that I tried to decorate with a beaded band that I made.  I like the beading, but found that the nylon webbing for the collar is too tough for me to sew the beading in place, so I glued it on.  It's not spectacular but is somewhat attractive.

So, my question is:  Do you have any suggestions for hard wearing collars that are also beautiful?

9 comments:

  1. Maybe a leather martingale? I haven't used one, but I know others like them. I have made most of my dogs' collars. It is not hard to do. I ordered the instructions from this site: http://www.cdwplus.com/kitMpage.html She sells the supplies, too. My sewing skills are not the best, so I only make them for my dogs and I don't try to sell them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven't thought of leather martingales.. I'll have to check it out. Thanks!

      Thanks for the web site about making my own collars.

      Delete
  2. Polly wears a blue nylon house collar with her tags on. When I walk her she has the Greyhound collar, which is leather. Sometimes I will put a different house collar on which is prettier. I think the most heard wearing collars are leather and the ones I have soon lost their stiffness. I have found some collars are a bit rough on the edge and Polly has lost some of her fur from where they touch her under her muzzle.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Were you able to smooth those rough edges? Power has lost fur on his throat from his collars, both 1 inch wide and 2 inch wide. I am interested in something very soft on the inside surface to protect his neck.

      Where did you buy the leather collars?

      Delete
  3. try lupine collars. They make martingales. I have some 7 year old snap collars that my dogs wear almost every day. They are a tiny bit faded, but still look great - after 7 years!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for that suggestion. I will check it out~

      Delete
  4. I find the hardest wearing collars are made of grosgrain. Beryl is good with collars but Frankie isn't! The only slight problem with the grosgrain is that the collars do loosen a little, Beryl flung hers off while galloping at the beach today! I found it again :) There are heaps of people selling martingale collars on Etsy. I'd like to get Beryl a leather collar one day.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I find the hardest wearing collars are made of grosgrain. Beryl is good with collars but Frankie isn't! The only slight problem with the grosgrain is that the collars do loosen a little, Beryl flung hers off while galloping at the beach today! I found it again :) There are heaps of people selling martingale collars on Etsy. I'd like to get Beryl a leather collar one day.

    ReplyDelete
  6. You might get this twice! I've found the best material for hard wearing collars that look smart is grosgrain. There are heaps of people selling martingale collars on Etsy but most are made of cotton. Beryl is OK wearing cotton but Frankie's cotton collars start looking shabby in a matter of days. He's very hard on collars. The only slight problem with the grosgrain fabric is the collars do loosen a little. Beryl flung her's off while galloping at the beach today. I found it though:)

    ReplyDelete

Due to strange comments from anonymous persons, I will be moderating comments for now.