Dressage to Excellence @safingual - Tumblr Blog

How has this GIF gotten me this many likes 😂😭 I would have done it so differently now

I got the opportunity to take Chester to a lesson with Tristan Tucker this week!

It’s super interesting to hear how a professional how sees and works with a lot of horses perceives your horse and what he would do differently.

Lots of homework for us but very thankful for the opportunity!

#equine #Tristan Tucker #TRT method #equestrian #horse #chester #horsblr #dressage #groundwork #mypictures #myposts

Had a really inspiring dressage clinic with Chester today, some puzzle pieces really slotted together 👌

#equine #equestrian #horse #dressage #horsblr #myposts #mypictures #chester

I just received the final photos of the shoot and I’m totally in love! 😍

Can’t believe I got to meet two heart horses in my lifetime. 💕

#equine #equestrian #horse #dressage #horsblr #mypictures #myposts #Chester

and a video of the beautiful heather shoot! 🥰

#equine #equestrian #horse #horsblr #myposts #mypictures #Chester

Waldi in 2017 versus Chester in 2025!

So thankful for both these horses. 🤩

#equine #horse #equestrian #dressage #horsblr #myposts #mypictures #waldemar #chester

I had a photoshoot with Chester on the heather yesterday and already received the first picture! 😍

#equine #horse #equestrian #dressage #myposts #horsblr #mypictures #chester

out hacking

#equine #equestrian #dressage #horse #horsblr #mypictures #myposts #Chester

When vets declared Waldi healthy yet unfit for high ridden work, I was so torn.

On one hand I really wanted to keep him.

I’d made a promise—he saved my life, so I’d cherish his. But horses are expensive, and as a 20-something-yo, I didn’t have much to spend.

I had the money for one horse; not two.

I had to choose.

I could sell Waldi as a lovely schoolmaster. Could hope he would feel physically well enough to teach young, starting riders.

He definitely had the personality for it.

But… over the years of owning Waldi, I know he sacrifices himself for you. And knowing that, I didn’t want to sell him to someone that might exploit him unknowingly.

I kept him, even if it crushed my own dreams.

It wasn’t without cause!

Waldi is with someone who looks after him daily, and I visit him weekly. He’s still his kind soul and still loves his sugar cubes a little too much. 🤍

AND I get to chase my equestrian dreams with a new horse. 🥰

Now, on to chasing my new dreams with Chester! 🥰

my beige flag is that, when separated from horses for too long, anything is mountable 😂

#myposts #mypictures #horse #equestrian

It's been a while, huh?

Recently I met someone who knew me "from Tumblr". It was such an alien experience--especially because I was also there with Chester and not Waldi, with which I ran the entire Tumblr account back in the day.

It did, however, encourage me to write an update here (to those that are still interested!).

When I got Waldi, I was unstable, looking for meaning in life, maybe close to ending it.

Waldi saved my life.

And I think, looking back on it, that was also my main reason to create this blog. To share the happiness and enjoyment I got from being around him, and to see that being reflected by so many... you all made us happy.

In a time where messages like these might mean bad things, here's something nice:

Waldi is still doing well and thriving. 🥰

And he's still mine.

It might seem minor, but to me it means an awful lot. It means that I get to keep an eye on his management, to be able to retire him when he got injured and never recovered. I got to return him to the place I've seen him at his happiest. He's still there to this day, together with an equally wonderful Shetland pony, Kelly. She's bloody amazing. I love her. 😂

My amazing job and parents *also* gave me the opportunity to get a second horse, to pursue my equestrian goals that Waldi set such a high standard for.

Chester is doing amazing. I am so happy to be able to ride without being afraid I might be asking too much. He's genuinely so happy to work that it makes the riding all the more fun.

It was amazing starting this blog as a 16-year-old, and here I am, almost 27 and owning 3 horses, an amazing car, trailer, and have amazing friends. Only a home is missing--soon!

Thank you for everything. Thank you for believing in me and Waldi.

Thank you for believing in horses.

You also saved my life.

#equine #horse #equestrian #myposts #mypictures #dressage #horsblr #saferion

doedreamss

Titan - Irish Cob stallion owned by Arina Libontova

nihildep

‘Stop’ - horse color study during my lunchbreaks

Two art commission spots open!

Hi guys - long time no see! Here’s an update for you, and more on the art front!

I have some awesome news... there’s a new horse buddy coming for me! Waldi’s injuries were more intense than I hoped and it’s gotten to a point where I thought it wasn’t fair to him to keep putting him through the medical spiel. I decided to retire him last September. He’s still with me and will remain so to the very end. I made that promise years ago and I intend to keep it.

But I missed the riding, so I had a long thought (and endless financial calculations) and decided it was worth working for a second horse. So I’ve been putting more hours at work to save up and have been visiting potential horses since May.

Phew, I forgot how exhausting horse searching is. 😅

But I found him! Meet Chester Z, a 5 year old Zangersheide gelding with experience in dressage, showjumping, and cross. I’m totally over the moon with him, he’s such a sweetheart and so totally different yet similar to Waldi!

He will be vet-checked and if that’s all in order, he will join Waldi and me in July.

Of course I have the financial means (otherwise I would have never done this), but fattening my monetary buffer would actually not be a bad idea. My work holidays are coming up so I wanted to spend some time drawing again!

There will be two spots open per week. Depending on the complexity and response, I might be opening new spots sooner or later. I’ll announce that all!

Onto the art options:

Full-portrait | US$100 / £73 / €85

Examples

You will receive 3 or 4 sketches to pick the best pose, of that post I will draw your horse bit by bit. I will require payment after I’ve shown a speedpaint of the chosen sketch. After I received the money, I’ll keep you posted on the painting’s progress so you can send in feedback and help me make it the work of your dreams.

Speedpaint | US$30 / £22 / €25

Examples

You will receive a quickly painted work of your horse (only headshots) where I show the most prominent colours and detail. I will require payment after I’ve shown the sketch.

Full Body | US$100 / £73 / €85US$180 / £130 / €150

Examples

You will receive a fully coloured full body work of your horse. Poses and construction can influence the price, but it wouldn’t go over €200.

You can contact me through messaging or by sending me an email on [email protected]. 🥰

An official goodbye!

Hi everyone!

It’s odd - despite being away from this blog for the better part of three years, I still never really figured it to be... closed.

Things have moved on for me, though, and while I’ve had an amazing time on this account and met so many great people, Tumblr mostly feels like a dying platform.

Being a content creator on here takes so much more energy than it did at the beginning of this journey, it’s harder for me to post - frankly, I forget it even exists nine out of ten times.

But from past personal experiences, it’s nice to know what has become of the people that you followed a few years ago, maybe even people you’ve looked up to, considered friends, or felt inspired by.

If any of those boxes apply to me and Waldi, I’m extremely honoured and grateful for your love and support!

This is a goodbye from Tumblr, but it’s not the end.

In an earlier post I revealed that I graduated from University (finally, after a lot of hard work and many struggles!) and found a place to settle down. Waldi and I moved across the country for a job that combined my specialisation and interest with my dream: horses.

Since November, I’ve been working for and with Tristan Tucker, an Australian Grand-Prix dressage rider based in the Netherlands, and I’ve learnt so much about horses and their language.

It’s been more than amazing.

Last month, I got a full-time contract, so it’s all settled and set. I’m... happier than I’ve ever felt before, being around horses and working in a field that inspires and challenges me in every step of the way.

In all aspects, my job feels like an extension of what I did here on Tumblr, running a blog and sharing all my experiences. I’ve learnt so many valuable things and met so many amazing people who’ve all contributed to my growth and helped me become a person I can be proud of today.

Waldi is still in my life and I’ve made a vow to myself that he’ll always be, despite the tendon injury we’re battling through right now. We’ve come a long way and the injury is healing well so far, so I’m hoping that he’ll be back to perfect any time soon!