Why is western show attire, and tack, so gaudy?

Well, yes there is an amount of "bling" in that type of showing. . . but when you look at dressage riders and english show clothes that are nice and simple with the price tag of 2,000-4,000 dollars. . .. english riders can't talk either about how much their own "bling" really is. (go look in the dover tack catalog. . . those prices don't lie)