Things You'll Need
Sturdy cloth material--a supple leather, or even a quilted, pre-stuffed fabric
Sewing machine
Thread
Measuring tape
Rocking horse
So you just bought or assembled a beautiful little rocking horse, but something is missing that would make this toy a lot more fun, not to mention more safe. Learn how to make a rocking horse saddle to complete this new toy.
Step 1
Before you buy anything, make some measurements. The first thing you will want to measure is the width of your rocking horse. Next, measure the length of your child's leg, or whoever will be riding the rocking horse.Now you can buy your material because you know the right amount you need. Multiply the length of your child's leg by 1.5. Then add that number to the width of your rocking horse, and that will give you the number of yards of material to buy.
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Step 2
Choose a material that is sturdy and can endure some wear and tear, and some stress on the fabric. A supple leather is recommended--not too thick, because it will be too much for your machine to handle, and may be rough on your child's skin. For smaller kids, a pre-stuffed, quilted material will also work nicely and offers extra padding.
Step 3
On the underside of the fabric--the side that faces down--draw a pattern for the saddle. The body of the saddle should be the width of the rocking horse. Then draw the sections that will fall to the side of the rocking horse. Each of those sections should be 3/4ths the length of your child's leg, because the stirrup for the saddle should be shorter than the length of leg. That way your child has some support while in the saddle.
Your saddle pattern should look something like a rounded "T". The top of the "T," the sections for the legs, should taper off the body of the saddle, about eight inches thick at first, and then tapering to a rounded point.
Step 4
Cut out the pattern of your saddle.
Step 5
Carefully cut a hole in each of the tapered ends of the saddle's "T" shape. This hole will be where the stirrups start.
Step 6
Create a saddle stirrup using your leftover leather. You can do this by cutting out two strips of leather, each of which are long enough to go around your child's foot with some room left over. Insert this leather strip through the hole that you cut into the tapered end of the saddle's "T," and use the sewing machine to sew the two ends of the strip together in a circle.
Step 7
Repeat this step for the other saddle stirrup. If you need to, you can reinforce the stirrup with another layer of material.
Step 8
Throw the saddle onto your rocking horse, and let your child rock the night away--that is, until it's bedtime.
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