Tutorial: Give Me a Hand, Here!

    Today's tutorial will show you how to fix the Breyer rider's hands to hold the reins more properly. I was requested to make this tutorial after posting a close-up of my Yvonne doll's modified hands on deviantART.

They were only modified to hold the reins between the pinky and the ring finger. I didn't alter anything else. Today, I'm going to show you how to alter your rider's hands so they can hold the reins with a tight grip, and between their pinky and ring finger!

So, here's what you'll need:

• A Cutting Board
• A candle or heat source
• A knife (Preferably an x-acto knife, but any razor sharp blade will do)
• The rider you want to modify
• A spare bridle or piece of lace to use as the reins

    Okay! So, before we get cutting anything, let's take a look at how reins are supposed to be held (English or barrel reins [when using two hands], not split or romal reins.) I have a set of reins laying nearby, so I'll show you quickly how the rein is held. Ideally, you want your hands closed tight around the reins. Basically, make a fist. I had to loosen my grip to get these photos, because I had to use one hand to take the picture. If these aren't clear enough, try googling it!

    Now that we know what it looks like, let's get to work! For a single set of reins, the rein should come out of the bottom of the ring finger, like pictured above. So, we're going to cut the pinky away, as shown here:

    You don't have to map it out if you don't want to. I did, to show clearly where I was going to cut. Now, if you're needing the rider to hold a double set of reins, such as with a full bridle or pelham bit, you'll want to cut the ring finger away as well, following this second line here:

    Today we're only doing the pinky. So, start heating up the hand with your heat source. Try to get only their fingers, as if you heat too much up, you may warp their hands in unnatural ways. 

    You may have noticed I burnt her thumb. Always be careful when dealing with heat! Be sure you disperse the heat over the area; don't just hold it in one place. Also, be careful not to burn yourself!

    Once you get their hand heated up, Lay their hand down and take your knife, and cut along the crease of the pinky. The fingers may flatten out; this is okay. Be careful to cut only the crease, as you may weaken the integrity of the fingers if you cut anywhere else.

DO NOT CUT LIKE THIS!! You WILL cut yourself!
I had already cut her finger away, but I couldn't get it on camera, so I had to hold it like this for the picture.
 LAY IT ON THE CUTTING BOARD TO CUT!!!

    At this point, you should be able to move their pinky independently from the rest of their fingers. Now, re-heat their hand and press the flat part of their fingers (by the top knuckles) into the cutting board. You want to start closing their fingers into a fist. Hold the hand in place until it cools down. You can gently blow on it to aid in cooling. 

I thought I had a picture of this! Sorry!

 Now, get that spare rein I mentioned, and shove it in their palm. We're going to start closing their fingers around the rein. For this stage, I have a thick cotton rein. The idea here was to have the thicker rein in place so I didn't close her hand too much, but I ended up needing to close it more anyway, so you can get away with a thin leather lace if you want to.

Now reheat their hand, and press the fingers around the reins. You don't have to worry about getting a round shape just yet, but you are certainly welcome to try. There's no right and wrong way to do this, just as long as you keep working to achieve your end goal.

    Keep heating and working it until you get the right shape you want.

Here's what the finished hand looks like compared to the original:

Hopefully yours won't have a burnt thumb!

    Now do the same for the other side! Your rider will then have a tight grip and reins won't be able to fall out very easily! If you're still not satisfied with your hands, keep working with them until you reach a point that you're happy with. You can always come back to it later if you decide you're still not happy with it!

She won't be letting go of those reins any time soon!

    For the best results, use skived reins. These ones are a bit too thick, which makes them stiff and not want to sit on the pinky right. If you use the correct thickness of lace, the riders will have a better time holding the reins between their pinkies.

    I hope this helped! If you have any questions or suggestions for future posts, please leave a comment!

Over and Out!