For years, my notes lived everywhere: in the back of a diary, on my phone, in a trainer’s message, on a vet’s invoice or simply in my own memory. Each scrap meant something on the day, but scattered like that, they never quite added up to anything.
I wanted a journal where I could reflect on my time with my horses, while keeping all their important information together in one place. But nothing I found combined the two, and nothing quite matched the quality I had in mind. I wanted something beautiful, something I would genuinely look forward to writing in, and something I would keep and look back on for years to come.
So I made it.
I'm a born analyser and a perfectionist. I believe in cause and effect, not random coincidences or a stab in the dark. I don't want to guess why something has changed. I want to understand it. And more importantly, I want to be able to look back and find the information that helps me make sense of it.
Horses speak softly. A softer eye. A better morning. A day that didn’t feel quite right. Most of what they tell us is quiet, and it is easy to miss when you are busy, tired, or only looking at one day at a time. What changed things for me was writing it down, week after week, in one place. Small moments started to form a picture. I could see that a stiff week followed a change in work, that a breakthrough came after a quieter month, that how I felt at the start of a session showed up in how he went.
That is what this journal is for: recognising patterns. Not to judge a single ride, but to see the thread running through a whole year, and to understand your horse a little better because of it.
Why paper, in a digital world
We have apps for everything now, and I use plenty of them. But I didn’t want my year with my horse to live behind a screen.
Something happens when you write by hand. You slow down. You choose your words. You notice things you would scroll past on a phone. Ten minutes with a pen after riding is an opportunity to reflect, notice the small details and consider what they might be telling you.
A book is also there when you want it, with no battery, no login and no notifications. And at the end of the year you have something real: a record you can hold, flick back through, and keep on a shelf beside the years before it.
Inside the journal
The journal moves from the big picture to the everyday, across 338 pages. Every page has a purpose, with gentle prompts to guide you through it. I believe it may be one of the most comprehensive equestrian journals you will find, and without a doubt, one of the most beautiful.
This is not a book of lists or budgets. It's far more than a planner or a collection of records. It's a place to record, recognise and reflect. To look beyond individual days and begin to understand the bigger picture of your horse's life, training and wellbeing.
At the front of the book
- Essential details about your horse, all in one place.
- Important dates at a glance, from vaccinations to horsebox insurance renewals.
- Contact information for your entire care team, including vets, farriers, dentists, saddle fitters, physios and trainers.
- A personal profile capturing your horse’s character, personality and what makes them so special to you.
Your year
- A thoughtfully structured annual planner for important dates, competitions and reminders, keeping everything organised and within easy reach.
- Comprehensive health and care records, bringing together vaccinations, veterinary visits, medications, injuries and illnesses, worming, dental care and saddle fitting.
- Dedicated body condition and weight tracking, alongside a detailed record of your horse’s feeding programme.
- Reviews at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months, offering an opportunity to reflect on progress, identify patterns and celebrate achievements.
Your month
- Twelve undated months with individual dividers and accompanying month labels, giving you the freedom to begin at any time of year.
- A personal quote from me to introduce each month, offering a little inspiration and encouragement.
- Dedicated Goals & Focus pages to establish your priorities, intentions and training goals for the month ahead.
- Thoughtful wellbeing reflections, capturing how you and your horse are feeling physically and mentally at the start of each month.
- Detailed farriery and treatment records, keeping track of care, observations and recommendations.
- An easy-to-use monthly activity chart, capturing what you did and how often, from riding and training to rest days.
- A dedicated Breakthroughs page to capture those lightbulb moments, when something suddenly makes sense.
Your week
- A practical weekly planner to organise training, lessons, competitions and rest days.
- Dedicated journal pages to reflect on schooling sessions, lessons and competitions, capturing observations, progress and areas to work on.
- Competition records with space for venues, classes, scores and personal reflections on your performance.
- Room for those everyday observations and small details that, over time, reveal patterns and help you understand your horse more deeply.
Made to last
I've spent seventeen years creating beautiful boots, and I wanted this journal to reflect exactly the same attention to detail. Although the idea had been in my head for years, it took twelve months to design, sample and refine. Every detail was considered, not just for how it looks, but for how it will be used every day. And I truly believe you'll use every single page.
- A beautiful leather cover in rich burgundy, this year’s edition colour (each year will have its own), finished with the gold foil horse mark, with a J for Journal hidden in its line.
- Premium antique gold wire binding, specially selected for its strength and durability. Designed to withstand repeated opening and folding without losing its shape, allowing the journal to lie completely flat or fold back on itself for effortless writing.
- Thick, luxurious 110 gsm paper with rounded corners, chosen to minimise ink showing through when writing on both sides, while helping to protect the pages from wear and tear.
- B5, my idea of the perfect journal size, offering generous space to write while remaining beautifully proportioned and easy to take anywhere, from the tack room to a sun lounger by the pool or your favourite café.
- A generous inner margin on every page, ensuring nothing disappears into the binding.
- A superior ribbed elastic closure, a carefully considered finishing detail that keeps the journal securely closed and its pages protected wherever you take it.
- A beautifully coordinated, rigid presentation slipcase, finished in the same rich burgundy as the journal and included with every first edition.
When the first sample arrived this autumn, I knew we'd got it right. There was just one tiny detail to change: the foil had come back a little too rose gold, rather than the true gold I'd imagined. Even that had to be perfect, so the printers remade it in true gold. This book is everything I wanted it to be and more.
The first edition
The first edition is limited to 150 leather copies, each with a complimentary rigid matching slipcase, at £120. Orders will be dispatched in the first week of December.
I'm incredibly grateful to my focus group, who encouraged me through every stage, particularly when I was ready to abandon the whole idea. Bookbinder after bookbinder told me it couldn't be done, while others simply never replied.
But I wasn't prepared to compromise. Eventually, that search led us to one of the finest bookbinders in the world. The result is everything I'd hoped for, and I'm so proud of what we've created.
Everyone who has seen and held it has told me it's one of the most beautiful journals they've ever seen, and I, for one, believe them.
I hope you love it as much as I do. What began as an idea I carried around for years has finally become something real, and I couldn't be prouder to share it.
Above all, I hope that by the end of the year, you know your horse a little better than you did at the start.
Let me know what you think. I’d love to hear.
Cate
Founder | CEO celeris UK and The Essential Horse Journal
