• About
  • Contact

twelveOeight

Creating a home + life you love

  • Project Gallery
  • Our house
  • DIY
  • Craft Ideas
  • Recipe Search
Decorating· DIY· home decor

DIY Spotted Horse Bookends

February 5, 2015 By Tanya 36 Comments

Tweet
Share17
Share
Pin6K
6K Shares

DIY Horse Bookend twelveOeightblog.com #bookend #diy #horsebookend #upcycle #thriftstore #twelveOeight #craft

While I haven’t been riding in oh, let’s just round down and call it 20 years, I still am amazed and
in awe of these gorgeous creatures.  They are a little scary too for those of us who are not exactly
expert riders.

My daughter Abbie’s room has quite a few horse accents in it, and I find them popping up all over
since cleaning out my family home this past year.

1208 (twelveOeight) , the house I grew up in and our family built, was a small working farm
and orchard for many years.  And the inspiration behind this blog of mine!


I think we had our horses until I was about 6.
I was sad to see them go, not really because I had done any riding at that point, but because how much
my Mom and Grandpa loved them.

So many stories, pictures, and memories of the way a tack room smells, and barrels of oats.
So while I don’t have a tack room, just a set of spurs, a few ropes, and lots of equine ephemera,
I thought I might add a twist on these rustic wood bookends by adding a pretty Spotted Saddle
Horse.

How to make horse bookends twelveOeightblog.com #horse #diy #bookend #craft #diyhome #twelveOeight

I was picking up a few pieces of furniture to refinish from a local thrift store and saw this horse
for .99 so  you know, I had to buy it. 

Am I the only one who feels obligated to buy really cute things because we are worried that
whoever ends up with them won’t appreciate them properly?

That really sounds like some sort of disorder that should have a name, and maybe some hope
that we can someday use self control when thrifting.

Thrift-itis.

That will work for now.

I brought it home and thought it would look pretty on Abbie’s dresser, but I have seen so many
fun spray-painted animals turned into bookends, or glued to the tops of jars that I figured I could
turn it into something fun.

Here is what I used and how I made these super duper easy DIY Horse Bookends…

 

DIY Horse Bookends twelveOeightblog.com #bloggers #bloggerhomes #DIY #horsedecor #twelveOeightblog

Supplies:

  • 4 pieces of scrap wood or pine board cut into 6″ long pieces (my board was 5 1/2 ” long)
  • Wood stain or antiquing polish that is dark to tint the wood
  • Plastic horse, I would avoid one with a mane, it might get messy!
  • Saw
  • Hammer and 6-8 nails
  • Paper towels
  • Glue
  • Fine sandpaper

 

DIY Horse Bookends twelveOeightblog.com

Directions:

To connect your wood squares, follow the arrows in the picture above and connect two pieces in an “L”
shape with a few nails.  Next you can use either wood stain, acrylic paint, or I used dark wood wax
and I am really pleased with how rich the color is, yet still kind of sheer.

I rubbed in the wax, and once it was completely dry, used a bit of sandpaper to smooth out the edges.
The plastic horse wasn’t quite as easy to cut as the wood, but I just measured the halfway mark from
end to end and made the cut right down the center.

Placing each bookend level in front of me, I chose the placement for each end of the horse and used
a line of glue everywhere the plastic would be meeting with wood.

I let the pieces dry well, and put them to use right away!

 

DIY Horse Bookends 2 twelveOeightblog.com

So, I’m pretty sure we can safely add “carpentry skills” to our resumes now don’t you think?

 

DIY Horse Bookend twelveOeightblog.com #bookend #diy #horsebookend #upcycle #thriftstore #twelveOeight #craft

So, there you have it.  A pair of fun horse bookends that you could do all kinds of different things with. 

A hot pink horse, silver horse, painted wood, adding metal brads to the wood for a more
detailed, industrial look.  I think a couple of vintage garden gnomes would look like of cute too!

 

DIY Horse Bookends 3 twelveOeightblog.com

Until next time, thank you for reading friend, love you SO!!

incelebstyle

facebook twitter pinterest bloglovin google+ instagram linkedin mail

 

connect with fab link parties I love click here
& http://www.savvysouthernstyle.net/
Tweet
Share17
Share
Pin6K
6K Shares

Filed Under: Decorating, DIY, home decor

Comments

  1. Denise on a whim says

    February 6, 2015 at 7:55 am

    I really like these bookends, Tanya! Very cool 🙂

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 6, 2015 at 1:34 pm

      Thank you Denise!! I really appreciate your sweet message today friend 🙂 have a wonderful weekend- xoxo

      Reply
  2. Alexis says

    February 10, 2015 at 10:17 am

    Ah, these are so cool! Love them, Tanya!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 10, 2015 at 4:28 pm

      Hey Alexis!!
      Thank you friend 🙂 I just can’t get over how easy they were to make. I hope you are having a fab week- xoxo

      Reply
  3. Leslie says

    February 11, 2015 at 8:15 am

    My mother’s friend would love this! She loves horses. You did a great job! Happy Wednesday!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 11, 2015 at 9:08 am

      My Mom loved horses too, isn’t it funny how having things like that around make someone we love seem right with us? Thanks so much Leslie, hope you are having a fabulous week- xoxo

      Reply
  4. Alice W. says

    February 11, 2015 at 10:57 am

    These are seriously awesome!! LOVE!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 11, 2015 at 4:19 pm

      Thank you so much Alice, I really appreciate it!! xoxo

      Reply
  5. Denise says

    February 12, 2015 at 11:51 am

    Tanya I love this! I had something like this in my head for my youngest son! Now I just need to get on it. 🙂 Thanks for sharing at Fridays Unfolded! I will be featuring you this week 🙂

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 12, 2015 at 9:09 pm

      Thanks Denise!! We are really loving them, and thank you so much for the feature too 🙂 xoxo

      Reply
  6. Erica says

    February 12, 2015 at 3:48 pm

    Very cute! Perfect for any horse lover 🙂 My sister has a bunch of old plastic ponies like this one, but I doubt she’d let me have one to cut apart – she’s too attached! Haha

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 12, 2015 at 9:02 pm

      I love these plastic ponies! I don’t have any of mine anymore but since this one was a thrifty find I figured it wouldn’t be quite as painful to saw it in half. I still felt a bit like a horse hater though. Thank you again, xoxo

      Reply
  7. jessica says

    February 13, 2015 at 5:45 am

    OMG i Love this idea and how they turned out! I have been looking for crazy bookends to showcase in my living room and this hit the spot. I am so excited right now!! I would love to invite you over to my blog to join our link party! I would be honored to have you there!!!
    ok, now I am off to rummage through my daughters toys lol.
    Shared EVERYWHERE!!
    Jess

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 13, 2015 at 11:48 am

      You are too sweet Jess, thank you!! They are a little crazy, and my 5 year old just stared at me when I came back in from the garage with a plastic horse cut in half. I am sure this will be something that scars him, but by golly it’s for the sake of DIY!! xoxo

      Reply
  8. Deborah says

    February 17, 2015 at 3:43 pm

    I love it. I can’t wait to make one for my granddaughters room. She loves horses and books. Win Win. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 18, 2015 at 7:26 am

      Hi Deborah!
      My daughter loves them so much too 🙂
      Thank you for your sweet message- xoxo

      Tanya

      Reply
  9. Emily says

    February 18, 2015 at 7:03 am

    Tanya, I love these! Horses have been my favorite animal since I was a little girl 🙂 I’m featuring these at Creative Spark today. Hope you’ll link up with us again this week!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 18, 2015 at 7:18 am

      Thank you so much Emily!! I really appreciate it 🙂 xoxo

      Reply
  10. Michelle from Weekend Craft says

    February 19, 2015 at 4:52 am

    These came out so great. I’ve actually had a similar project on my list for awhile but I can’t seem to find a elephant. I keep my eyes peeled at every thrift store I am at. The search continues! Thanks so much for stopping by Creative Spark Link Party last week. Hope you stop by again today! http://bit.ly/17pM9dP

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 19, 2015 at 6:48 am

      Thank you Michelle!!
      An elephant would be fabulous, hope you find the right one soon 🙂
      Thank you for your message, xoxox

      Reply
  11. Dana Benjamin says

    November 4, 2016 at 12:41 pm

    These are absolutely adorable and look easy to make. I think they would make a great client gift for my horse property buyers.

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      November 6, 2016 at 4:06 pm

      Thank you Dana! That would be a horse lovers dream for sure 🙂 Thank you for visiting!!

      xo, Tanya

      Reply
  12. suba pron says

    August 15, 2018 at 7:56 am

    HK9CWl Thank you for this impressive report. I am refreshed following reading this. Thank you!

    Reply
  13. Josie says

    May 29, 2020 at 11:49 am

    This is too cute! What kind of glue did you use?

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      June 11, 2020 at 7:24 am

      Just a thin line of high-temp hot glue and I worked quickly before it set up 🙂 thank you for stopping by!!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Vintage Inspiration Party #177 - Architectural Salvage, Milk Paint, Horses and More! - Knick of Time says:
    February 17, 2015 at 6:00 pm

    […] 911 turned architectural salvage into a gorgeous display to hang above her doorway. Twelve-O-Eight turned a toy horse into beautiful bookends.   My Vintage Life shared her lovely collection of […]

    Reply
  2. Creative Spark Link Party #42 | two purple couches says:
    February 18, 2015 at 3:01 am

    […] […]

    Reply
  3. Clever DIY | Inspiration² Link Party | My Fabuless Life says:
    February 18, 2015 at 5:45 pm

    […] Cutting Board Wall Art | via Anderson & Grant Built In Floating Shelves | Our Home Notebook DIY Horse Bookends | via Twelve O Eight DIY Tree Stump Bench | via The Summery Umbrella Easy Paint Dipped Basket | via Love Grows […]

    Reply
  4. Display Your Books In Style – Quirky DIY Bookends - Architect Online says:
    September 17, 2016 at 7:43 pm

    […] bookends but there’s always room for one more. So check out the horse bookends featured on Twelveoeightblog. They’re really beautiful and we love that the horse wasn’t spray painted and has that spotted […]

    Reply
  5. 40 Decorative DIY Bookends To Spruce Up Your Shelves • Cool Crafts says:
    February 7, 2017 at 6:41 am

    […] it came to making cool DIY bookends, Twelve O Eight opted for a horse of course! This is a great idea to upcycle old […]

    Reply
  6. 44 Cool DIY Bookends That Are Easy to Make - stylishbuzz says:
    April 25, 2017 at 3:23 pm

    […] From TwelveOEightBlog […]

    Reply
  7. 44 Cool DIY Bookends That Are Easy to Make – Diy says:
    May 7, 2017 at 4:44 pm

    […] From TwelveOEightBlog […]

    Reply
  8. Equestrian Charm: Innovative DIY Projects for People who Love Horses - DIY CHICKS says:
    August 25, 2017 at 7:16 pm

    […] can pride themselves on their western cowboy charm! If you can’t wait to get started on them, Twelve O Eight has the […]

    Reply
  9. Creative and Stylish DIY Bookends! - landeelu.com says:
    March 30, 2018 at 4:08 pm

    […] DIY Spotted Horse Bookends | twelveOeight […]

    Reply
  10. Amazing Horse Crafts for Kids says:
    June 7, 2018 at 3:56 am

    […] Twelve-O-Eight […]

    Reply
  11. Cowgirl Weekend 13 - Cowgirl Magazine says:
    October 3, 2018 at 11:31 am

    […] Image and DIY by twelveOeight. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

hi there !!

Welcome to twelveOeight! I'm Tanya and I am so glad you are here. If you are ready to start loving the home you have now, then join me on my mission. One thrifty project at a time we can make our today homes our dream homes.

Search This Site

what’s new at twelveOeight

  • Mexican Wedding Cookies + a Christmas wish
  • Our Christmas entry way and family room
  • How to make a Paper Gingerbread House Garland
  • Quick and easy weeknight Stromboli
  • How to make (thrifty) Copper Christmas Bells

twelveOeight Projects & DIY’s:

I am thrilled to be part of:

POPSUGAR Select PLUS

Featured In:


Sponsors/Advertising

Advertise with IZEA Media

Web Analytics

© 2012–2023 Twelve O Eight Blog · Site by Moonsteam Design