In light of this weeks legendary Cheltenham Festival, we thought it would be most appropriate to do a “stable-themed” fashion shoot for the March issue of Cotswold Style and were lucky enough to be able to shoot at the impressive Kim Bailey Racing yard as well as a local pony stables.

They say never work with children and animals so we felt if only fair to kill two proverbial birds with one stone….caution firmly thrown to the wind!

Early on a Sunday morning, the models were preened and groomed for the shoot at Vallenders Salon in Cheltenham by some of the best stylists the Cotswolds has to offer and then we hit the road to our first location at Kim Bailey’s yard, where finishing touches were applied in rather cold conditions!

This years fashion trends are full of tweed, suede and felt (all very Cotswolds), so fashion stylist Yvette Brentnall secured some fabulous garments from Cotswold staple Filkins Woollen Mill along with Cheltenham based Blue Clothing.

One of our models, Mandy, is an accomplished rider and was very up for our idea of a saucy shot of her bearback riding one of the yard’s racehorses.

That is, until it decide to throw her off at the first turn! But a very brave if not slightly bruised Mandy got right back on that horse; we’re thrilled that she did as we managed to capture the cover image!

Along with some great close-ups to show that awesome tweed cape!

Then of course, all the models wanted a go with the majestic “Azure Aware”!

After a few more shots around the yard we moved onto our second location.

Our second location was Thorndale Farm, which houses some exquisite Shetland ponies along with some other beauties too. Our child models joined in for this part of the shoot and this is when the fun really began with climbing into chicken coups, co-ordinating children, ponies and a dog and then bringing our adult models into the mix too – it was all going on!

We love working on a fun shoot and also love a day out in the beautiful Cotswolds so we couldn’t think of a better way to spend a misty Sunday morning!

We hope you’ve enjoyed the images and wish you luck if you’re getting involved with the Cheltenham Festival – and don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled for Kim Bailey’s star horses!

Credits

Photography: © Stefanie Calleja-Gera

Assistant Photographer: Davey Terrific

Fashion Stylist: Yvette Brentnall

Stylist Assistants: Tracy Doughty, Iona Moyle & Amelia Pincott

Clothing: Cotswold Woollen Weavers, Filkins & Blue, Cheltenham

Models: Henry Doughty, Jamie Roche, Amy Finn & Mandy Hall

Child Models: Jack & Clova Logan & Cosmo Blanchfield

Hair Stylist: Jo Vallender & Jerome Herve – Vallenders Salon

Make-up Artists: Monika Vrublova & Valentina Calandra

Locations: Kim Bailey Racing and Thorndale Farm, Andoversford

Videography: Ivy PR