The South Shore News & Tribune
What's Knot To Like About New Bridles?
Tribune photo by JOHN CEBALLOS
Teri Katchur of Wimauma demonstrates her new invention as she applies her macramé horse bridle to Goldie, the miniature horse who helped inspire her creation. Katchur currently has a patent pending for her macramé animal products, which she's dubbed Unique Tack Designs.
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Published: May 7, 2008
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WIMAUMA - Teri Katchur has invented a new equine product she believes will make life easier for horses and their owners.
To her surprise, the invention was made possible thanks largely to a skill she picked up nearly 30 years ago.
"I'd learned to macrame when I was 13," Katchur said. "I never really expected that it would help me as much as it has after all these years."
Katchur, 42, has devised a different type of bridle using macrame techniques.
Bridles are harnesses consisting of a headstall, bit and reins, fitted about a horse's head and used to restrain or guide the animal. Traditional bridles are made of leather.
Macrame is a form of textile-making, using knotting rather than weaving or knitting. Materials used in macrame include cotton, hemp and yarn, and the technique is commonly used to create wall hangings, articles of clothing and other furnishings.
Katchur first got the idea for her creation in 2003.
She had bought a rope to use as a halter for her miniature horse, Goldie, but wanted something finer.
After a friend created the rope halter for Goldie, featuring a decorative design, Katchur realized she could put her macrame skills to use.
"It's not a whole lot different, and it basically serves the same function as a normal bridle," Katchur said. "It's just a different design."
In addition to the aesthetic value of offering a wide variety of colors, Katchur said, her bridle feels a lot easier in horse owners' hands and is a lot easier to wash than its leather counterpart. She should know, having been around horses almost her entire life.
"I've been around them for as long as I can remember," said Katchur, a Louisville, Ky., native who moved to Wimauma in 1997. "To this day, taking care of the horses and the other animals takes up most of my day, but I love it."
Katchur has lived on the same 5-acre property with her sister, Shelley, and her mother, Loyce, since moving to Florida 11 years ago. But they're far from the only ones on the premises.
The trio is joined by nine horses, seven goats, a potbelly pig, chickens, several dogs and other animals.
"She's Teri very creative, and she's come up with all sorts of things for the animals," Loyce said.
Besides the bridle, Katchur has also created a macrame collar and leash for dogs.
After she consulted Advent Product Development, her creations - which Katchur has dubbed Unique Tack Designs - have a patent pending.
"I really didn't want to be one of those people in that TV commercial saying, 'I should've gotten a patent,'" said Katchur with a laugh.
She also submitted her designs in late April to Weaver Leather Inc., which manufactures, markets and distributes tack and other pet products.
Whether her macrame inventions take off, Katchur has plenty of ideas on the back burner.
"Right now the plan is to get these going first, but I've got lots of other ideas I'm working on right now and that I can develop in the next few years," she said.
GET TO KNOW
WHO: Teri Katchur
AGE: 42
LIVES: Wimauma
DEVELOPED: Macrame bridle
Reporter John Ceballos can be reached at (813) 865-1555 or jceballos@tampatrib.com.
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