Quality horse products: Providing a quality cinch a passion for Lindsay

Hyannis, Neb. – “Why is handmade work not cheap? Because it doesn’t come from China. It comes from passion,” says Krystal Lindsay.

These 16 words say a lot about Lindsay, who makes custom mohair cinches from her home outside of Hyannis, Neb.

Getting her start

Armed with a YouTube video and a creative streak, this cowgirl made her first mohair cinch just a few years ago. What she likes about these cinches is not only the quality she ensures in her work but their durability. The first ones she made are still holding strong.

Lindsay started making custom mohair cinches because she and her husband needed tack for their cowboy work.

“I started out doing it for fun, but as friends saw my work, my business has grown,” she says.

Her husband and mother have become her best salesmen.

“Most of my customers also keep their personal cinches that I have made on hand to show people,” she says.

Mohair

The cinches are made from 100 percent-mohair, which comes from Angora goats.

“What I like about the mohair is it’s less abrasive on the horse,” she explains. “Mohair is actually hypoallergenic. It breathes better than most of the other materials a cinch can be made from.”

Mohair cinches typically don’t cause cinch sores or gall marks around the belly of the horse.

“Every once in a while, I may run into something, but that’s usually because the cinch doesn’t fit quite right, causing cinch sores,” she says.

“Generally, a mohair cinch fits the horse better, is softer and will move with the horse,” she says.

Mohair can be a hard product to find if a person doesn’t know where to look. Lindsay knows of one company in the U.S. that sells their mohair near wholesale and a couple of companies that sell mohair in smaller amounts.

“I purchase mohair from a lady in New York, who custom dyes it for me,” she says. “I can typically get mohair in any color a customer may want.”

Lindsay makes western and Australian cinches.

“The Australian cinches are more like an English cinch,” she says. “It has two buckles and is a lot narrower. My family rides Aussie saddles, so I had to learn how to make this type of cinch for them.”

Custom products

Although most of the cinches are custom made, Lindsay keeps a few on hand for customers who need cinches right away.

She can make a basic cinch in about six to eight hours, but as the design gets more complicated, it takes longer to make.

For custom orders, Lindsay asks customers to pick out a design, the colors and whether they want brass or stainless steel hardware.

“If they want a buckle that is different from what I normally use, they need to let me know before I start making it. Typically, I use a round, three-inch, double bar buckle because it lays flatter on the horse,” she explains.

Some of the cinches she makes also have complicated designs.

“A couple of the cinches I have made that feature brands have been very hard to make,” she says. “Despite that, brands are my favorite because each one is so unique. My favorite cinches are western cinches that are 21 strands and five inches wide.”

Some designs can get too complicated, however.

“I don’t really like doing the diamonds, so I try other interesting designs to make them look different,” she continues. “I made one cinch with a little diamond in the middle and two bigger diamonds connecting to the little one.”

Giving back

Lindsay also donates cinches to raise money for causes she deems worthwhile.

Last Christmas, she completed a custom-made mohair cinch for a cause close to her heart. The breast cancer cinch was a white-bodied cinch with a pink ribbon on it.

“This cinch was complicated to make because of the curve of the ribbon, but it turned out really nice,” she says.

Lindsay raffled off the cinch to raise money for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

She also designs a cinch each year to donate to the Wyoming Wild Ride Ranch Rodeo in Gillette, and this summer, she will design one for the women’s ranch rodeo in Hyannis.

Looking back

Of the cinches she has created, Lindsay says it is pretty hard for her to select a favorite, but she once made a cinch with an evergreen body, with Robin’s egg blue and ocean blue accents. The cinch had triangles on the ends and stripes in the middle with stainless steel hardware. The finished project was amazing, she says.

Eventually, Lindsay would like to make mohair breast collars and is just waiting for an order.

“Breast collars are very time-consuming,” she explains. “I want to have an order before I make one.”

Lindsay can be contacted through her Facebook page, Cowboy Custom Cinches, or by phone at 307-690-2636.

Gayle Smith is a correspondent for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.