Prepping- Diamond Mane
Diamond braids look striking on horses with long manes. As the name implies, rubber bands are placed strategically throughout the mane to create little diamond shapes.
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When competing in a horse show, it’s important for your horse to be clean and to have its mane and tail neatly braided. A tidy mane and tail not only displays the horse at its best, but also shows that you put a lot of time and effort into your horsemanship.
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How to create the perfect diamond braid -
Lightly spray your horses mane first. Combing your horse’s mane so that it lies smoothly on one side of the neck with no knots. We use the PP Wax Stick to hold down fine hairs along the base of your horses mane to have a smooth & neat appearance.
You now need to divide the mane into between 20 and 24 small sections. To do this, start at the top of the neck, near the head, and gather a small section of mane. Wrap a small rubber band around the section, as if you were creating a ponytail. The rubber band should be near the top of the mane, but far enough down that the mane lies flat. Continue working your way down the neck. Try to separate the mane into evenly sized sections.
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Holding the first ponytail section in one hand. Separate the next ponytail into two even pieces. Combine one of these pieces with the complete first ponytail section. Twist a rubber band around this new section, creating a new ponytail. Place the rubber band about 1 and ½ to 2 inches down the section of mane. This creates a gap in the braid, which imparts a lace effect.
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Next separate the third ponytail section in half. Combine half of this section with the remaining half of the section you used in the previous step. Again, twist a rubber band around this new section, about 1 and ½ to 2 inches down the section. Keep the bands even. If you placed the band about 2 inches down the first section, place it about 2 inches down on the second section.
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Working your way down the mane, separating the ponytail sections in half. Continue creating new ponytails by joining the halves of adjacent sections.
Finish the first row by joining the entire last ponytail section with half of the section that came just before it on the neck, as you did to start the row.
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Start a new row, working in the same way. Separate the new second ponytail section in half and join it with the first ponytail. Wrap a rubber band around it. Keep working down the neck. Create as many rows as you like to create a web or net effect.
Finish off with a light spray of Shimmer to create a beautiful finish to your mane.
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Paddock pictures to give a sample for diagram