Emma Hamilton Leatherwork

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Emma Hamilton Leatherwork

SMS Qualified Saddler
Equestrian & Leather Repairs Society of Master Saddlers Qualified Saddler
Dyslexic, ADHD and Autistic

14/05/2026

Just received my certificate for my membership of The Society of Master Saddlers as a Qualified Saddlers for 2026. I'm really proud to be an SMS member and to be able to show my clients the level of skill and high standards I hold myself to. Becoming a qualified saddler was a huge achievement for me and I feel very proud to be able to display the SMS badge

06/05/2026

I repaired this lovely little satchel recently which held some special memories for the client. I replaced the front straps, removed the shoulder straps on the back and added a cross-body strap instead. It also had a good clean and condition to bring some of the life back into it

15/03/2026

Here is a repair I did on a lovely banjo case recently. The strap with the buckle that holds the case closed had torn so I replaced this with a new piece of leather so it's as good as new again.

11/06/2024

And here's the finished bridle from my last post, it turned out just how I had hoped and it fits just right, I'm really pleased with it. Hopefully I will get some photos of it in action soon that I can share.

The handsome highland I made this for is hoping to get out and about with his mum doing some longer distance rides and hacking over the summer. He's fairly young and still learning lots about being a ridden horse but they make a great partnership and I can't wait to see what they get up to. His mum has been so considerate of his needs and has made sure all his equipment fits correctly and he is happy and confident with how she trains and manages him. I love working with such caring owners, it means that what I do is just the icing on the cake to achieving a happy ridden partnership 😊

This boy has quite a prominent TMJ which is the big jaw joint you can see above a horse's eye so I had to make sure the headpiece I made for him kept the side straps back enough to avoid rubbing this sensitive area. I also always make sure that the buckles on the side of the bridle are not too high up, they should be level with the horse's eye as this also means they won't rub the TMJ.

01/06/2024

I'm currently working on an interesting bespoke bridle for a client who is just starting out doing endurance rides. After discussing exactly what they needed and having a good think about how I would make a bridle to fit their needs, I've come up with a design that is part bridle and part headcollar to easily allow for leading/tying during stop offs on rides. It will also have clips on the cheekpieces to easily allow the bit to be removed. I'm including a padded anatomical headpiece shaped to this horses individual shape to ensure he is nice and comfortable on long rides. I can't wait to see it finished 🥰

27/05/2024

A simple wee repair to a keeper on this throatlash, now it's as good as new 🥰

Now the weather is getting so nice, if you're out and about with your horse a bit more it's a good idea to check over your tack to see if there is and torn leather or loose stitching. Your safety is so important and often repairs like this won't cost much at all and will save you having to buy a new part or full new bridle.

If you have some tack that needs repaired, send me a message to see if I'm able to help. I can carry out repairs on bridles, breastplates, stirrup leathers etc. and can accept items in the post. (I don't take in saddles for work)

25/05/2024

I just realised that I haven't posted in almost a month, I've been so busy the last few weeks. Skye is doing AMAZING, I'm so proud of both of us getting to where we are now. Skye is now relaxed about leading up to the gate, being tied outside with some hay to munch and getting her feet picked out. It doesn't sound like much but I was reflecting on how stressful it used to be and how much easier these things are now 😊 She's also picked up the bitless bridle cues so well, I only have to use the slightest cue with the reins to ask her to stop/turn and she seems to be really enjoying it. She's had her saddle on a couple of times too so I think next I'll work on getting her confident with me standing up on a mounting block as when we did used to ride, she was a bit anxious around the mounting block and me getting on board.

I've been doing ok but unfortunately at my recent appointment to check my ADHD medication, my blood pressure was a bit high so my dose has been reduced. I was really upset at first as I felt like I was doing so great and having to reduce my dose felt like the rug had been pulled out from under me. I'm still adjusting to how this feels and what my capacity is but it's going alright so far. Hopefully I can get used to this as my new normal moving forward and I can get settled down into more of a routine and feel more confident to work towards my goals 😊

23/04/2024

I've been busy behind the scenes making some design changes to my business branding and my website to better reflect me as a person and a business. I've also updated some of the info on my website to hopefully make it nice and clear what services I offer and how to go about arranging for me to carry out a piece of work for you. The link to my website is in my page bio or click the link below if you want to check it out and let me know what you think 😊

www.emmahamiltonleatherwork.co.uk

18/04/2024

Skye has been doing so well over the last few months, I've really noticed a change in her behaviour, she is so much calmer and better able to cope with things that she used to find really stressful. She is even able to calm herself down if something spooks her and she is way less reactive. I'm so proud of how far we have both come together. I've learnt so much from her and things I've been learning about myself, my ADHD and my mental health have helped me to better understand her 😊.

We haven't gone for a ride for at least a year and a half, neither of us were ready for riding up till now but with us both doing much better mentally and emotionally I felt I would take the first step to potentially work towards riding. I decided to add extra rings to her noseband so I can use it as a sidepull bitless bridle to see what Skye thinks (I still need to come up with a solution to hold the cheekpiece straps securely). I do have a bit for her that she did find comfortable but I want to take a different approach this time, really take our time and listen to how Skye is doing every step of the way. We may go back to using the bit but I want to try something different for restarting her so she associates riding with feeling happier and more relaxed.

As far as I know, she's never been ridden bitless before so I knew I would need to teach her what the rein signals mean before even thinking about getting on board. For our first session on the ground, she did brilliantly. She really quickly picked up what I was asking her and was turning and stopping with very light rein aids. I've been using clicker training with Skye for a while and it has been working brilliantly for us for all kinds of things. Although we are different species, clicker training is a language that we can both understand. Skye really clearly understands when I tell her she's done something right and I'm sure she has learnt things much more quickly.

14/04/2024

Just received my SMS Qualified Saddler membership renewal certificate for 2024. I'm super proud to be a member of the Society of Master Saddlers and to be part of such an amazing community of talented saddlery makers and fitters. The SMS are such a fantastic organisation promoting a high standard in the quality of handmade saddlery and saddlery fitting as well as educating the public of how working with a highly skilled SMS member will ensure their horse is happy, comfortable and can perform at their best. I'm really proud to have become a Qualified Saddler after working hard during my 3 year apprenticeship with Laura Nickel at Amayzing Saddlery and achieving my saddle and bridle making qualifications. It gives me real confidence to know that my saddlery work meets the high standards required to pass the City & Guilds exams as these are assessed by Master Saddlers with years of experience in the trade. I feel so proud to be able to display the SMS badge for my clients to see 🥰

07/04/2024

I have been having a good think about how my business works for me and how I feel about the different types of work I take on. Since my ADHD diagnosis nearly a year ago, I've learnt so much about how my brain works and have gotten much better at recognising when I am struggling and accepting the things I find difficult or stressful.

I wanted to give you all an update about some of the changes I have decided to make to my business moving forward to help keep it manageable for me now I have a much better understanding of how my ADHD and my mental health affects me.

I will be continuing to do tack repairs and making bespoke bridles and other items of tack

I will continue to offer bridle fitting appointments but will regularly check to make sure that I have enough capacity to book clients for appointments

I will decide on a case-by-case basis if I will accept an item for repair, particularly for larger or more complex repairs

I will no longer be doing any work on saddles or any boot alterations/repairs

My decision to take on pieces of work depends on so many factors that affect how challenging the work will be. I may decide on certain occasions to not accept a certain item that I have accepted previously or I may take on more challenging work depending on how I am feeling or my current workload. My capacity can vary day-to-day due to my ADHD symptoms and so I want to be mindful of this so I can better manage my workload and avoid wearing myself out.

Thank you to all my clients who have been so kind and supportive of me and my work and for your lovely messages and comments on my social media posts. I am feeling really good about the decisions I have made for my business and feel these are the right changes for me to make at this point of my life. I could never completely stop making things, especially leatherworking, and so I hope that taking a little step back means that I can continue to run my business and who knows, maybe in the future I will feel ready to jump back into it head first.

Address

Opening Hours

Tuesday	09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday	09:00 - 17:00
Thursday	09:00 - 17:00
Friday	12:00 - 17:00
Saturday	09:00 - 17:00

Website

https://www.emmahamiltonleatherwork.co.uk/

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