Project Information
I've been finding myself making more and more and buying less and less when it comes to seasonal gifts and birthdays. Although I'm sure my siblings and relatives are probably tired of wood-gifts, I'm certain that's not the case for my daughter. Here is a project I made a for her 1st birthday. Although she's warmed up to it now after a few weeks, she was a bit wary of it at first!
I didn't have any kind of a plan for making this rocking horse, just a image in my mind of what I wanted it to look like in the end. I started with the rocking base and used a string-pencil trick to draw a nice arch using a fairly large radius. Once I got the first side shaped, I was able to trace, cut, and smooth the second piece to match the first.
From there, I created some spanners that are secured with pocket-hole screws on the underside of the base.
The leg-supports were cut using the same method as the rockers and were secured at an angle that made the height of the horse saddle something that my daughter could grow into a bit.
Next, I cut the main body of the horse. I have to say I was a bit disappointed in the overall shape because it just looked too sea-horse-like. Nevertheless, I was low on material and low on time, so I kept moving forward. With the body attached to the leg supports, I cut a saddle out of walnut to contrast the oak of the rest of the horse.
The leg supports were masked with the leg-profiles (again, took a few tries because I'm no equestrian and am lacking the knowledge of horse anatomy) and they were screwed/glued to the supports.
In the end, I added a "stirrup" to the saddle to act as a foot-hold for my youngster. The tail and mane were made from plastic mesh that has thick yarn knotted through it and then is screwed into the wood body. Leather ears were cut and also screwed into the head. A dowel was added at the neck of the body to give another hand-hold. The whole thing was coated in a high-gloss Danish oil. Much less sea-horse-like now, eh?!
I didn't have any kind of a plan for making this rocking horse, just a image in my mind of what I wanted it to look like in the end. I started with the rocking base and used a string-pencil trick to draw a nice arch using a fairly large radius. Once I got the first side shaped, I was able to trace, cut, and smooth the second piece to match the first.
From there, I created some spanners that are secured with pocket-hole screws on the underside of the base.
The leg-supports were cut using the same method as the rockers and were secured at an angle that made the height of the horse saddle something that my daughter could grow into a bit.
Next, I cut the main body of the horse. I have to say I was a bit disappointed in the overall shape because it just looked too sea-horse-like. Nevertheless, I was low on material and low on time, so I kept moving forward. With the body attached to the leg supports, I cut a saddle out of walnut to contrast the oak of the rest of the horse.
The leg supports were masked with the leg-profiles (again, took a few tries because I'm no equestrian and am lacking the knowledge of horse anatomy) and they were screwed/glued to the supports.
In the end, I added a "stirrup" to the saddle to act as a foot-hold for my youngster. The tail and mane were made from plastic mesh that has thick yarn knotted through it and then is screwed into the wood body. Leather ears were cut and also screwed into the head. A dowel was added at the neck of the body to give another hand-hold. The whole thing was coated in a high-gloss Danish oil. Much less sea-horse-like now, eh?!