Gift Idea: DIY Stick Horses

Many of us can remember back to a time in our life when we had a stick horse laying around. They are classic toys and classic for a reason! To this day, stick horses are great toy to spark a child's imagination!  1. Supplies: fabric, stuffing, yarn, long wooden dowels, styrofoam balls, felt. 2. Carve out a portion of the styrofoam ball and glue the stick into the ball. 3. Cut out your horse head from your fabric. Cut yarn (about 30 inches) and double over. 4. Sew around the perimeter of the horse head, adding the yarn in as you go. Make sure to leave the bottom or "neck" open. This is where you will add your stuffing.  5. Turn the horse head inside out and begin stuffing.  6. Once you have the horse head mostly stuffed, insert the ball into the neck and finish stuffing around the ball. Hand-stitch the opening closed. 7. Cut out the horse's ears and stitch around the perimeter. Turn right-side out and hand-stitch in place. 8. Add details such as a bridle and eyes. For these horses, I cut eyelashes from black felt and used fabric glue to glue them into place. I used the sewing machine to sew strips of scrap leather together to create the bridle and reins.  I've been making these horses for all the nieces and nephews! I'm hoping these will be fun toys they will cherish for years to come. xo. Katie

Comments

[Becky]

Awww, I remember having something like that as a kid!

[Jenny]

Wow, these are so adorable!!!

[Britney]

Those are the cutest things ever!! I want one for myself!
Britney

[Dija]

What a cute idea! They look so fun to play with! Thanks for sharing!

[Betsy]

I always wanted one of these as a kid.

http://suspironews.blogspot.com/

[Marie-Eve @aprettynest]

That's an amazing idea ! My son got one for Christmas last year and he loved it so much !

[Ashley O]

These are so cute! My three year old just saw the picture and said "I can't decide which one I want!" Definitely making these for Christmas ;) Thank you!

[Carlee]

Katie I love your DIY projects. Especially because they are family oriented since you have kids! Love them, and these are awesome.
Carlee
Almost Endearing

[Jennifer]

Super cute idea for little ones!

xo Jennifer

http://seekingstyleblog.wordpress.com

[Emma]

I had a vintage one of these as a child at my grandparent house! It brings back great memories :)
This is a lovely version!
xx EmmaKnitted.blogspot.com

[irene wibowo]

wow.. so cute :) nice idea :)
http://lovesimplegreen.blogspot.com/

[Angel]

Gah I love this. so cute!

[Jessica Marie]

Ugh. I love these. My mom made each of my brothers and me one when we were young. The boys' were made from old men's shirts...they were plaid and denim. True cowboy horses. Mine, though...mine was something different. Mine was made of this blue flower-patterned fabric...it's mane was periwinkle blue yarn with strands of pearl-studded ribbons going through it. Its eyes were perfect. Of course, it was too beautiful for a little tomboy, so I played with the boys'. That worked out, though, because mine has been preserved whereas theirs....well, let's just say they're gone. One may have suffered a heroic death when it became a war-horse.

Anyway, I love these. Thank you for making age-appropriate toys for kids...toys that let them be kids. Toys that don't ask kids to be teens. Crafts that don't cause teens to be adults. Let's all be little...

[hampton]

Aggggh, these are SO CUTE! I have been on the lookout for a fun gift for my 15 month old nephew! I think he is a bit young for this still but I am definitely filing this idea away for years to come.

[Lindsay]

Oh yes, these are so cute! We live in Wyoming and they sell them here for $40 at the cowboy store nearby! These are much more cost effective I would think and way cuter. Thanks for sharing, girls!

[Valentina]

they're amazing!

Valentina
http://valentinaduracinsky.blogspot.com/

[fawn]

These are so cute. I'd love to make one for my baby girl. :)

[Norma Diaz]

So cute!
Perfect Christmas gift for the little ones.

N|D

http://rainbowsandtress.blogspot.com/

[CHICKYTHING]

quite intimidating but super cute

[Emma]

so sweet. we called them 'hobbie horses' I don't know if that is a British term ;)