Hillside Saddlery

13/04/2026

Sometimes what looks like a simple strap, requires a lot of work to get to the finished piece…

27/03/2026

27/03/2026

Custom length reins? No problem!
🐎 🐎 🐎
As we can make everything in our workshop, we can make them to your specification.
Our customer wanted her reins 5/8”
wide with buckle ends and measuring 58” long.
We’ve used bridle butt from B.J Leather in black. This is gorgeous leather that was nice to work with, and feels lovely to handle. All hardware is from the fabulous Abbey England.

Everything you see, is edged, stitched and finished by hand. 💪

23/03/2026

If you’re in the market for a new saddle this year we’ve got you covered!

We stock new Symonds Saddlery saddles to suit a range of different disciplines. From showing, to XC and even little pony saddles for the kids!
Call us to get booked in and we can bring saddles out to you, to see which will be suitable for you and your horse or pony.

Olympus GP
Built on an English wooden spring tree and flocked with 100% wool panels, this saddle is suitable for many types of horses, including high withered thoroughbreds.

Panther XC
Built on an English wooden spring tree and flocked with 100% wool panels, this saddle is very popular for show jumping, XC, and hunting. The latex in the seat and pads give a comfortable stable jumping position, and comes with either Velcro or standard knee rolls.

Panther K2 Event
Like the Panther XC, but with a deeper cantle for more support.

Olympia K2 Event
Similar to the Panther K2 Event; however is slightly narrower across the seat, and a round cantle for more support.

Ray Working Hunter
There are beautiful saddles and renowned for being Britains leading show saddle. They can come with a deep seat if you prefer a deeper seat.

Oxford VSD
Built on an English wooden spring tree like the Ray Working Hunter, and flocked with 100% wool panels, this saddle gives great stability on wide horses and works particularly well for fell ponies.

Cambridge Pony
Gorgeous little show saddle, and also available as an event or VSD.

We are a proud suppliers of Symonds saddles. An independent saddle maker, Ray Symonds has been making saddles under his own banner of Symonds Saddlery for 40 years, but has many years of experience in the saddle industry.
Each saddle is hand crafted by Ray from start to finish, and we’ve had the pleasure of working with him for many years.

09/01/2026

💜💜💜
We’ve already cast our votes for The Sir Peter O’Sullevan Charitable Trust RoR Partnership of the Year Award 2026.

Local girl Gemma Potts is in the final.

Remember to get your votes in soon.
💜💜💜

24/12/2025

Season’s greetings, one and all. That’s us closed now. Re-opening on the 5th. Enjoy the rest of this year and we’ll see you in 2026 🥳

18/12/2025

Collar on the bench this week.
The patent on the side pieces had completely flaked away leaving it unsightly and unusable.
The collar was stripped down, patterns were taken from the original side pieces and then cut from new soft leather. The patent piping was salvaged and added to the new side pieces, before the side pieces were hand stitched back into place on the collar.

17/11/2025

New hairband, Laura?

22/10/2025

If you’re in the market for an 18” saddle but don’t have a huge budget, we have a great selection of quality used saddles from reputable brands in stock.
With different colours, styles and widths available, book an appointment and we can come to your yard with a suitable selection to try with you and your horse.
Alternatively, we’re open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 9am-4pm and Wednesday 9am-12.30pm when you can come and browse our stock.

29/09/2025

A sentimental crop belonging to a clients grandfather came in for repair last month.
The open keeper had broken, and the loop end of the lash was about to break off too.
The original thread had to come off first, and a new keeper was made up. It was then spliced back into place by hand using a gorgeous hand sewing thread from Xiange, sourced to match the original as closely as possible. The ends of the loops were soaked in different leather foods over the space of the week to see if we could try and restore as much as possible as they were really dry and brittle, however the only way to make the crop fit for future use, was to create a new loop slightly further down and splice it into place.
The piece of twine that came on the crop as a cracker was placed back on. 💙

25/09/2025

🐎🐎🐎Jump Saddles🐎🐎🐎

We’ve got a good selection of new and preloved jump saddles in stock from brands including Symonds, Kings, Barnsby, Harry Dabbs, Silhouette, Dever, Wintec & more.
Stock is always changing, so feel free to call in and browse what’s current stock, or book a visit to your yard and we’ll bring suitable saddles to you.
We’ve hundreds of saddles to choose from, across all sizes and disciplines.

Alternatively, if you just want your current saddle checked to make sure it’s fitting correctly, then book a call out to your yard for a saddle check.