It’s been a while since I’ve done a review, especially one of a bridle. But man… I love bridles. A statement proven by the fact that I have *mumbles an incoherent number* of them hanging in the tack room. The correct number of bridles is always One More.

And I’m particularly excited to show y’all this one, because it’s a 1) a newer, boutique brand 2) a small business 3) woman-owned 4) the owner is awesome. Extra special bonus that the bridle is actually stunning and at a reasonable price point.

The brand is called Black Diamond Designs (website and facebook), based in Chester County, PA. The owner, Amy, is an equestrian herself, and has been making her own specialized and custom tack as well as sidesaddle habits for quite a while. She is an avid sidesaddle rider, foxhunter, and horse show participant. Having seen Amy develop her business over the years, I know that she’s put a lot of thought, energy, and effort into getting everything just right, and her first big line of bridles is no exception. She is a stickler for details, and it shows.

As you can see, I’ve got the hunter bridle, specifically the Wide Noseband Show Hunter Bridle. It’s raised and fancy stitched, with padding on the noseband and browband. It’s also got a really lovely wide monocrown that’s well-padded for the horse’s comfort. Mine is in the new darker “havana” color, so it comes as a rich chocolate brown. These bridles are made of Sedgewick leather, which is very sturdy, hardy, and long-lasting. It takes a little longer to break in than French leather, but it’ll last forever.

The noseband is 1 1/4″ inches, which I think is flattering to the vast majority of heads. As a bit of a bridle snob, one of the first things I do when getting a new bridle is inspect the stitching… is it tight, even, and straight? That can tell you a lot about the quality of the manufacturing process, and there wasn’t a flaw to be found in the stitching of the Black Diamond Designs bridle.

And the fit on Argo – chef’s kiss. Perfection. As someone who also makes custom tack, Amy is always very focused on getting the best possible fit. You can tell, because she’s really nailed the measurements on this bridle. It always drives me nuts when the cheekpieces or the noseband are wildly out of proportion with the rest of the bridle (ahem… France…) but there’s definitely no such problem with this one.

You can opt to get the bridle with matching reins, too… these are laced like a traditional hunter rein but have rubber lining on the inside for extra grip, which is brilliant. She said those are her most popular, best-selling item, and I can see why!

The price point is really impressive to me for a bridle of this quality, at only $150 for the bridle alone or $235 for the bridle and the matching reins. There aren’t many well-made bridles available in that price range anymore!

Amy also works one-on-one with her customers to ensure that they end up with the right design and size, and has tons of measurements available – you don’t get customer service like that very often!

In addition to the wide noseband hunter bridle she also has flat hunt bridles (man I love that classic look) and one with a really cool diamond-shaped noseband, for those that are looking for something a little different.

Basically – if you’re in the market for a nice new bridle in a reasonable price range and want to feel good about the business you’re supporting, definitely take a look at what Black Diamond Designs has to offer! Two big thumbs up.