Creative Clips Keep Horses “Cool” on New Zealand Coast
18-year-old equestrian entrepreneur, Greta Oskolkov- Schneider, has combined her eye for creative design with her love of horses to create some truly original, unconventional, and inspiring clips for her friends and family on the Kapiti Coast of New Zealand.
Equine clipping trends vary widely depending on the individual breed and discipline. While some favor a more minimalist approach, that focuses on the bridle path, ears, and muzzle, others embrace trace clips, blanket clips, hunter clips, and body clips.
Armed with only her trusty clippers and her ingenuity, (she uses no stencils whatsoever) Oskolkov-Schneider creates “designer” clips such as the giraffe, zebra, brick wall, checkerboard, and spiderweb. The astonishing thing is that this young equestrian doesn’t have considerable experience. She attempted her first clip on her own pony, “Cricket,” in August 2012.
Caption: The “Zebra”
“I borrowed my grazing manager’s clippers, as I didn’t have my own yet,” she says. “Later in the year, his coat had grown out to his summer coat. It was still a bit too thick for him though, so I borrowed some clippers again and did a zebra clip. The clip was cool, but quite impractical. I plan to better it at some stage.”
“My first clippers arrived at the end of May. The day they arrived, I did the checkerboard clip. Then, a week later, I did the giraffe. So really, I haven’t been doing this for very long.”
“The longest I’ve ever spent on one clip is seven hours,” she says. “I did it over two days, and there were breaks in there as well. However, most of them I could do in three hours or so. For a ‘designer’ clip I charge depending on difficulty and how long it takes. It varies between designs. I’m doing a spiderweb at the moment. I think it’s going slowly because I can’t stand spiders!”
Caption: The “Spiderweb”
“I can’t really pinpoint exactly where my ideas come from. Sometimes they come randomly, like in the shower. Others are more thought-out. I like to do designs that are personal and practical to the horse and owner.”
Of all her designs, Oskolkov-Schneider’s favorite is the brick wall, because she says it has the least visible imperfections. If readers look carefully, those who are lovers of rock music might see a reference to a famous English rock band in this particular clip…
Caption: The “Brick Wall” is a reference to which English rock band?
“I get the ‘Why?’ question a lot,” she says. “Mostly, I find it rewarding, like completing a challenge I’ve set for myself. I would love to come [overseas] for clipping if someone paid my airfare!”
Oskolkov-Schneider has been riding horses since she was just six years old. In the past, she competed in show jumping with her pony Cricket, but now the pair has a decidedly more relaxed life in a little town called Otaki on the sandy shores of New Zealand.
“Where we live is a five minute ride from the beach, which we regularly ride out to,” she says. “I have owned Cricket almost five years now. He is what you would call ‘the center of my world!’ ”
Because this youth has such a talent for clipping horses, we wondered if she plans to try her hand at clipping other types of animals.
“I clipped a dog once… I think I will just do that for friends,” she says. “It’s quite a lot more difficult than a horse! I’ve also clipped my mum. Just kidding! I cut her fringe [bangs] one time.”
Scroll below to view more photos of Oskolkov-Schneider’s creative clips. Click on any image to view it in a larger window.
