It started with a love of beautiful things. “I’ve always been inspired by fashion,” Melonie Rainey says. She became a photo stylist in her early 20’s and did what she refers to as “backyard modeling.” Her niche, however, was in “making other people look pretty.” She used her insight to help designers plan their shows, pick out wardrobes, and create settings for photo shoots.

It was a fun career but life took Melonie in other directions, including becoming a court reporter (a job she can do from home), starting White Birch Farm with her husband, and launching Riding Couture, an e-boutique featuring everything from vests to stock ties for discerning equestriennes.

A dressage rider herself, Melonie saw an opportunity when friends admired the unique stock ties she wore to shows. “I could design some great stock ties,” she thought. “After show season ended, I started fabric shopping, working with seamstresses, patterns, and designing a logo. The name came right away. Once you get inspired, one things leads to another.”

Like many an equestrienne, Melonie got her start with horses as a cowgirl (which perhaps explains her attraction to “bling”). “I was a cowgirl for the first 20 years,” Melonie says, “but lost touch with horses when I went to college, started a career, and so on.” Eight years ago the urge to ride reawakened. She lived in Seattle at the time and found RockMeadow Stables nearby. “It was a hunter/jumper facility,” she says. “I showed up in knee-high Harley Davidson boots to ride. I’m sure they thought I was insane.” She began taking hunter/jumper lessons but “when I met a dressage person—that was all she wrote.”

“After a while, boarding got old,” Melonie says. She and her husband traded in their Seattle condo for a farm in Marysville, Washington. The 15-stall barn became White Birch Farm, which now houses both boarders and her own horses. “I currently have four horses,” she says. “My Prix St. Georges horse, who is off with an injury, two Palomino ponies, and a seven year-old import I’m schooling to third level.”

In 2005, Melonie took a rolling rack of stock ties and vest samples to the Northwest Dressage Expo and began vendoring at local shows, such as DevonWood. She also created her website: www.ridingcouture.com “It was the next logical step to take,” she says. And, while her products are sold in some stores, such as Noble Horse Gallery, Melonie isn’t interested in opening up a storefront herself. “We’re strictly an e-boutique for equestriennes,” she says. At this point, sales are primarily regional. “We’re taking baby steps,” she says, “not wanting to grow too quickly.”

In mid-December, Melonie’s work was featured at Crave, a Seattle-area fashion show. Models wore her “bling” tee-shirts, featuring her signature fleur de lis design; stiletto-heeled riding boot; and a glittering, stylized horse head. “It’s an equestrian lifestyle with an edge,” Melonie says. “Classic style meets diva styling.”

“I’m inspired by the likes of Coco Chanel, Ralph Lauren, and Juicy Couture,” Melonie says. “I like to meld the very casual (like jeans and boots) with a classy, sophisticated look. Edgy but not too trendy.”

Discussing her business plans, Melonie notes, “It’s been a lot of fun, and the possibilities are endless.” Her goal is to position Riding Couture as a brand name—“not just a stock tie or a whip”. Her hope is to design everything from blankets to dressage boots, an inclusive brand name. Indeed, the Northwest is home to several successful equestrian designers, including Kerrits Riding Apparel and Fun In the Saddle (FITS) breeches, all of which blend an eye for style with the kind of practicality that comes from a true understanding of horses and horsewear.

For those of us who love our horses—and enjoy wearing more than a plaid flannel shirt with our muck boots—Riding Couture is a welcome breath of fresh air. “Bling” isn’t just for cowgirls any more!