How & Why to "Hot Cloth" your horse
🧼 What Is Hot Cloth Grooming?
Hot clothing is a classic grooming technique used to cleanse, condition, and refresh the coat without a full bath. It helps lift dirt, smooth the hair cuticle, and leave the coat soft, polished, and healthy-looking.
Perfect for:
❄️ Winter grooming
✂️ After body clipping
🌟 Show prep & final shine
🐴 Dry, dull, dusty coats
🤍 Maintaining white or light-colored horses between baths
🔥 The GLISTEN Hot Cloth Method
Our modern approach skips the messy water-and-oil bucket method for a cleaner, more even application.
Instead of adding oils to water, we spray GLISTEN directly where it’s needed, then use a warm cloth to distribute conditioning ingredients through the hair while lifting away excess product, dust, and residue.
The result: hydrated, polished hair without greasy buildup.
✅ What You’ll Need
• GLISTEN Silicone-Free Conditioning Spray
• A bowl or bucket of hot water
• 1 to 2 clean soft cloths or flannel towels
• Optional wool mitt or polishing cloth for finishing shine
💧 How To Hot Cloth
1️⃣ Brush the coat, mane, or tail to remove loose dirt and debris.
2️⃣ Lightly mist GLISTEN directly onto the coat or hair section by section.
3️⃣ Dip your cloth into hot water and wring it out well. The cloth should feel warm and damp, never dripping.
4️⃣ Gently work the warm cloth over the area in the direction of hair growth. This helps evenly distribute conditioning ingredients while lifting dirt and excess product from the surface.
5️⃣ Repeat as needed throughout the coat, mane, and tail.
6️⃣ Finish with a final wipe using a dry soft cloth or wool mitt for added polish and shine.
🤍 Our Favorite Method for White Horses
For white or light-colored manes and tails, we love using the hot cloth method after applying GLISTEN.
Lightly spray the hair, comb through thoroughly, then use a warm cloth to gently wipe down the mane or tail. This helps:
• Push conditioning ingredients deeper into the hair
• Remove excess product from the surface
• Reduce dust and dirt attraction
• Leave the hair soft, light, and silky instead of coated
This step is especially helpful for keeping white tails cleaner between grooming sessions.
💡 Why We Don’t Add Oils to Water
Traditional hot cloth grooming often mixes oils into a bucket of water, but oil and water naturally separate, leading to uneven application and wasted product.
GLISTEN was designed to be applied directly to the hair where it can evenly condition, soften, and support healthy shine without heavy residue or buildup.