The sun is shining and the flowers are blooming—it’s the perfect time to create your very own horse halter planter! This year, use your green thumb to plant some beautiful blooms in a fun, festive pot set inside a halter. You can repurpose an old halter or buy a new one. Either way, your new horsey planter is sure to brighten someone’s day.

Materials for a Halter Planter ◆ horse halter ◆ flower pot ◆ potting soil ◆ flowers

Important: Make sure to measure your halter and flower pot so the flower pot will fit nicely inside the halter. For reference, we used an 8″ garden pot and a large halter measuring 11.5″ around the nose.

Step 1: Fill your flower pot a little more than halfway with potting soil.

Step 2: Place your flowers in your pot and arrange them how you would like. We used prim-roses, calendulas, and pan-sies, but any of your favorite flowers will work perfectly.

Step 3: Fill the remaining space around the garden pot with potting soil. Don’t forget to give your flowers a little water!

Step 4: Fasten your halter (the part that normally goes around your horse’s nose) around the garden pot, making sure it’s secure when hanging.

Step 5: Hang your horsey halter planter at home or at the barn so all your barn buddies can enjoy the bright, beautiful blooms of color.

This article about how to make a DIY horse halter planter appeared in the Spring 2021 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Horsey Halter Planter appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Horses love sugar cubes, but did you know you can make your own? These sweet DIY horse sugar cubes are sure to brighten any dreary winter day. You can take them to the barn to share with your horse, or keep them all for yourself and enjoy with a warm cup of tea. While this recipe contains only horse-safe ingredients, it’s important to check with your veterinarian first if your horse has any health concerns.

Materials ◆ 1 cup sugar (white, brown or both mixed together) ◆ 1 teaspoon water ◆ Silicone mold* *Silicone molds can be found at your local craft store or on Amazon (where we found the super-cute snowflake one!) Tip! If your mold is too big, only fill it halfway with sugar to make smaller sugar cubes.

Instructions

Step 1: Preheat oven to 180°F.

Step2: Mix sugar and water with a fork until the water is evenly mixed in and the mixture looks like wet sand.

Step 3: Press sugar into the mold, making sure to pack in until firm.

Step 4: Place the mold on a cookie sheet and bake for 60 minutes.

Step 5: Remove from oven and let cool.

Step 6: Carefully remove sugar cubes from the mold, pressing from the bottom.

Step 7: Enjoy!

Tip!

Make and package heart-shaped DIY Horse sugar cubes as fun, festive Valentine’s Day gifts for all of your barn buddies and their horses!

This article about how to create horse sugar cubes appeared in the Winter 2021 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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As you get ready to spend more time at the barn this season, prepare for the sunshine with these super easy, no-sew retro bags with a horse design! Find a new or old horsey T-shirt that you want to turn into a bag (we got ours on Amazon.com), and then follow the steps below. Grab all your barn buddies, some T-shirts, and a pair of scissors, and within minutes you’ll all be ready to strut into school or the stables with your new no-sew spring bags. What are you waiting for? Let’s get started!

Materials ◆ Retro horsey t-shirt ◆ Scissors

Step 1: Cut the sleeves off the shirt.

Step 2: Cut out the neck of the shirt. You can cut it a little lower and wider if you want to create a larger handle.

Step 3: If your shirt has a bottom hem, cut that off too.

Step 4: On to the fringe! Cut strips along the bottom of the shirt. These strips can be any length you want. If you want shorter fringe, cut shorter strips. For longer fringe, cut longer strips.

Step 5: Now, take each strip (the front piece and the back piece) and tie them together. Make sure to tie a double knot.

Step 6: Fill your bag and take it to the barn!

Tip: Don’t worry if your cuts aren’t perfect. T-shirt material will likely fold in on itself (which is exactly the look you’re going for), and you won’t even be able to notice!

This article about how to create a diy no-sew bag with a horse design appeared in the Spring 2020 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post DIY Spring Into Fashion: Make a No-Sew Bag with a Horse Design appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Deck the halls! The holidays are coming up, and what better way to get ready than with a horse Christmas DIY craft to celebrate the festivities? Follow these steps and trim your tree with a bunch of adorable, wood slice barn ornaments. Happy holidays and a horsey new year!

Materials ◆ wood slices with holes in the top ◆ acrylic paint ◆ permanent or paint markers ◆ twine

STEP 1: Paint a circle on each ornament and let dry.

STEP 2: Decorate your ornaments using paint, paint markers and permanent markers.

STEP 3: String twine through each ornament, and you’re ready to hang them on the tree!

This article on creating a horse-related Christmas DIY ornament appeared in the Fall 2020 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

Further Reading

◆ Have a Very Horsey Holiday with These Equestrian Gift Ideas
◆ That’s a Wrap: 11 Fun and Fabulous Holiday Gifts for Horsey Kids
◆ Gift Ideas for Horse-Crazy Kids
◆ Homemade Horsey Gifts: Horse-Themed Gift Box

The post A Horse Christmas DIY: Wood Slice Barn Ornament appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Time to give thanks! The Thanksgiving holiday is coming up, and what better way to get ready than with a horse-related fall DIY craft for your holiday decor? Follow these steps for a decoration that will bring you some luck, and everyone will be thankful for your cute horseshoe décor on Thanksgiving. Happy Horsey Thanksgiving!

STEP 1: Weave twine through the nail holes to create a handle. Start at the bottom and weave until you get to the end of the other side, leaving extra twine at the top so your horseshoe will hang. Don’t forget to tie knots on the back so the twine doesn’t slip through the holes! You might also need to tape down the twine at the ends of the horseshoe so it hangs evenly.

STEP 2: Tape your fall foliage to one side of the horseshoe.

STEP 3: Tape the end of a long piece of twine to the back of the horseshoe. Wrap the twine over the stem of your fall foliage. This will hide your tape!

STEP 4: Once wrapped, secure your twine to the back of the horse-shoe with tape (or ask an adult to help with a little hot glue).

This article on creating a horse-related fall DIY craft appeared in the Fall 2020 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

Further Reading

◆ A Thanksgiving Treat
◆ Happy Horsey Holidays: Throw a Horsey Holiday Party
◆ A Rider’s Holiday Wish List
◆ A Horse Owner’s Holiday Season Struggles
◆ Have a Very Horsey Holiday with These Equestrian Gift Ideas
◆ That’s a Wrap: 11 Fun and Fabulous Holiday Gifts for Horsey Kids
◆ Gift Ideas for Horse-Crazy Kids
◆ Homemade Horsey Gifts
◆ Stable Advice: Holiday Gifts for Horse Professionals
◆ 4 Gift Ideas for the Horse Enthusiast Who Has Everything
◆ Luxury Gifts for Horse Lovers

The post A Horse-Related Fall DIY Craft appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

It’s time to deck the halls! Everyone deserves to have a little horsey spirit this holiday season, and these colorful felt horse ornaments are sure to brighten up any tree. Make one (or 10) for your own tree, and don’t forget to wrap up a couple of ornaments for your barn buddies. They make perfect presents for trainers, too. You can also make them at your holiday barn parties!

Instructions for Felt Horse Ornament.

STEP 1: Choose a shape (we chose a horse) and print it. Cut it out and place it over two pieces of felt.

Tip: You can even use a needle to hold your pattern in place.

STEP 2: Cut out your felt. Make sure you have two pieces!

STEP 3: Thread your needle by putting the thread through the eye of the needle. Tie a knot at the end of the thread and trim the end. You will need a lot of thread for this project (about five time around your shape). If you aren’t sure, add extra. Better to have too much than not enough!

STEP 4: Pull the needle through the top piece of felt so the knot is on the inside of your ornament and the needle comes out through the front.

STEP 5: Put the needle through both pieces of felt going from front to back. Pull the needle through the loop of the string. Pull tight to close the loop but not tight enough to pinch the felt. The edge should still be straight.

STEP 6: Repeat step 5 until you have almost made it all the way around your ornament.

STEP 7: Fill your ornament with batting and finish sewing up your ornament.

Tip: You can use a pencil to carefully push the batting into any spaces that are a little tight.

STEP 8: Once you have sewn all the way around the ornament, go over your first stitch, making sure the hole is completely closed. Tie a knot and tuck it inside the ornament.

STEP 9: Tie a piece of string or ribbon to the top of your ornament so that you can hang it from your tree.

Happy Holidays!

This DIY article on how to create a felt horse ornament appeared in the November/December 2019 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Deck The Halls DIY: Felt Horse Ornaments appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Trick or treat! What better way to get ready for Halloween than with horsey crafts to celebrate the festivities with a DIY pumpkin? Follow these steps, and your pumpkin is sure to be the best in the patch (or barn!) on Halloween. Happy Halloween!

STEP 1: Print and cut out your favorite horsey picture.

STEP 2: Gently tape your picture to the pumpkin and trace it.

STEP 3: Place thumb tacks along the line you traced.

STEP 4: Fill in your outline with thumb tacks. It’s OK if they overlap!

This article on creating a horse Halloween DIY pumpkin appeared in the Fall 2020 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

Further Reading

◆ Your Horse Can Enjoy Healthy Horse Treats for the Holidays, in Moderation
◆ Featured Video: Mini Horse Carves Pumpkin
◆ Halloween Comes to the Horse World
◆ Halloween on Horseback
◆ Horses in Disguise
◆ Horse Costume Class Tips
◆ Featured Video: Horse vs. Zombies
◆ Are You and Your Horse Ready for Halloween?
◆ Poll: How do you celebrate Halloween with your horse, barn friends, or family?

The post A Horse Halloween DIY: Horsey No-Carve Pumpkin appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Can you believe it’s already time to go back to school? With these super-easy DIY back-to-school horse projects, you’ll be on trend. All of them can be done in three simple steps with only three materials each! Now you can head back to school in style-horsey style, that is.

Pencils & Clips

Materials:
◆ Pencils
◆ Foldback clips
◆ Washi tape

Instructions
Step 1: Cut washi tape to the length you want.
Step 2: Wrap around the pencil or clip. For the pencil, you can wrap in a spiral or the length of the pencil.

TIP: You can make your own horse washi tape! Design your own washi tape with your favorite horse pictures, and print on a clear full-sheet label (we used Avery 18665). Cut it out and add it to your favorite pencils and notebooks.

Horsey Notebook

Materials:
◆ Plain notebook
◆ Gold Sharpie

Instructions
Step 1: Print out a picture of a horse or horseshoe. Using a small piece of tape under the picture, place it on the center of your plain notebook.
Step 2: Using a gold Sharpie, place little dots around the edge of your picture.
Step 3: Continue to add dots, spacing them out a little bit as you go, until you get to the edge of the notebook.

Gold Shoes

Materials:
◆ Plain white shoes (we found ours at Hobby Lobby)
◆ Tulip Color Shot Instant Fabric Color in Gold Shimmer
◆ Horse charm

TIP: I would also recommend using some blue painter’s tape and plastic bags to cover the parts of the shoe you don’t want to be gold. (If you want the entire shoe to be gold, you won’t need these!)

Instructions
Step 1: Remove the laces and prepare the shoes to be painted (if you want to keep part of the shoe white, like we did, use blue painter’s tape and/or a plastic bag to cover it).
Step 2: With an adult’s help, follow the directions on your spray paint bottle and spray the shoes. We used Tulip fabric spray paint, which is amazing! You only have to wait five minutes between coats. Spray as many coats as needed to reach the color you want.
Step 3: Once dry, put the laces back on. Don’t forget to add a cute horsey charm!

This article on DIY back-to-school horse projects originally appeared in the September/October 2019 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Add a Touch of Gold With These Back-To-School DIY Projects appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

This Valentine’s Day, show your barn buddies that they are the frosting to your cupcake with this amazing horse cupcake cake. You’ll be the hit of the stables when you walk up with your masterpiece. It’s easy to make, yet super impressive. Let’s get baking!

Materials ◆ 38 cupcakes (about 2 boxes of cake mix) ◆ 4-5 tubs of frosting ◆ Colored cupcake liners ◆ Decorative sprinkles & pearls (optional) ◆ Food coloring ◆ Pastry bags or plastic bags Decorating tips and couplers

Step 1: Bake your cupcakes. You can use any flavor you want. We used half vanilla and half chocolate and put them in colorful liners to match the frosting that would be going on top. This isn’t necessary but adds a fun touch!

Step 2: Let your cupcakes cool completely before frosting.

Step 3: Color your frosting. You can make your own frosting, but we just used store-bought tubs of frost-ing and colored them with food coloring. For example, you can add green food coloring to white or vanilla buttercream or cream cheese frosting for the grass. You can also add white food coloring to chocolate frosting to make a lighter brown for the horse’s body. All food coloring can be found at your local craft or grocery store.

Step 4: It’s time to get ready to decorate! These cupcakes have piped frosting, and just because it looks fancy doesn’t mean it’s hard. Let’s break it down:

◆ Cut a small hole in the bottom of a pastry bag (or use a plastic bag).
◆ Insert the base in the bag.
◆ Place the tip on the outside of the bag and screw the other piece of the coupler in place (if you don’t have a cou-pler, you can still make this work
by inserting your tip into a bag and using a little tape to secure it on the outside).
◆ Fill your bag with frosting and you are ready to go!

Step 5: When decorating the cup-cakes, you can use any design or tip you want. These cupcakes were frosted using a 2D drop flower tip. Starting on the outside, make a large circle of frosting and continue toward the center of your cupcake until it’s filled with frosting. Squeeze one last time in the center and then stop squeezing and lift up the icing bag. Continue until you have decorated all of your cupcakes.

Step 6: If you want to add flowers to your grass cupcakes, use the same 2D tip and squeeze a little frosting in one place without moving your hand. Place a pearl in the center.

Step 7: It’s time to assemble! Following the diagram, assemble your cupcakes to form the shape of a horse.

Step 8: Once assembled, you can add details with frosting, like an eye and halter. Your cupcakes are now picture perfect and ready to enjoy. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Heart-Shaped Cupcakes If you have leftover cake batter, you can make heart-shaped cupcakes to get into the Valentine’s Day spirit! Before you fill your cupcake liners, place a marble between the pan and the liner to create a heart shape. Don’t have marbles? Don’t worry! We used foil to create a little ball, and it worked perfectly. Bake as directed, and when you frost your cupcake, make sure to add a tip at the bottom with frosting to complete your heart shape.

This article on making a horse cupcake cake appeared in the January/February 2020 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post DIY: Spread Love and Horse Cupcakes appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Materials

• Horse brushes
• Sandpaper
• Acrylic paint
• Paint brushes
• Blue painter’s tape
• Clear finish gloss spray

Instructions

• Step 1: Lightly sand the wood or plastic backs of the brushes. Any shiny finish should be gone, leaving a dull and porous surface.
  
• Step 2: Place blue painter’s tape around the bristles of your brushes. You don’t want any of the paint getting on the bristles.
  
• Step 3: Paint the handles of your brushes with your base color. This may take a couple of thin coats. If that is the case, let the paint dry in between coats.
  
• Step 4: Paint your design on the horse brushes. We chose to use various sizes of paint brushes and pencils to create a dot pattern.
• Step 5: Ask an adult to help you spray your brushes with a clear finish gloss spray. Let it dry. Check your specific spray for details, but we would recommend letting them sit overnight.
• Step 6: Remove the blue painter’s tape and take your new designed horse brushes to the barn!

Tip: You can use the erasers on pencils, the top of a paint brush handle, or even toothpicks to make nice, clean dots with paint.

This article originally appeared in the May/June 2019 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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