Janis P.
In Disney’s new animated adventure film, Tangled, The Captain of the Guard’s horse, MAXIMUS, has made it his personal mission to capture the bandit Flynn Rider. Fearless in his pursuit, the horse defies danger to follow Flynn where other guards refuse to go – it seems nothing will stop this “tough-guy cop” from getting his man. Once Maximus meets Rapunzel his heart softens, and he begins to see the world differently. What started as a relentless pursuit may just be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Let your little one tame this super-cop horse Maximus by creating a miniature hobbyhorse version of the feisty steed, easily assembled in about an hour from a dowel and a fuzzy sock. Then set them free to pursue Flynn Rider, a most charming bandit, as he races throughout the kingdom.
Courtesy: Disney FamilyFun magazine. Go to familyfun.com for more great ideas.
Materials
- 1 fuzzy slipper sock
- Polyester stuffing
- Needle and thread
- Felt (off-white, yellow, brown)
- Hot-glue gun
- Yarn needle + 13 yards’ thick yarn
- Thick dowel or broom handle, cut to fit child (ours measures 2 ½ feet)
- 1 ½ yards cording (we used velvet)
Total time needed: 1-2 hours
Instructions:
1. Loosely fill the slipper sock with polyester stuffing.
2. Nostrils: With the heel facing up, pinch the fabric on one side of the toe and sew a 1/2-inch-wide horizontal stitch across the pinch. Knot the ends; repeat for the other nostril.
3. Ears: Cut four matching rounded triangles from felt (ours are 2 inches wide by 2 1/2 inches high). Glue them together in pairs. Slightly bend each ear to create a hollow, then sew them to the head as shown.
4. Eyes: Cut out and sew together almond-shapes from felt for eyes and pupils; sew onto head.
5. Forelock: Sew a 4-inch piece of yarn through the head where shown, then knot it close to the head so it looks like fringe. Repeat, tying 10 lengths of yarn about ½ inch apart to the top of the head. (Tip: To avoid continuously rethreading the needle, use one 2-foot length of yarn at a time and trim it after each stitch.)
6. Mane: Sew and tie 35 1-foot-long pieces of yarn about 1/2 inch apart to the back of the head and neck. Taper the width of the mane into a V shape as you work your way down the sock.
7. Pad the top of the dowel with a large handful of stuffing. Pull the head over the dowel and add stuffing as needed. Apply one large bead of glue to the dowel, then press the sock to the glue for 5 seconds. Pleat and glue your way around the dowel, then glue a length of cording to the dowel just below the sock.
8. Bridle: Glue two 1-foot lengths of cording around the horse’s head as shown (fold the ends under to hide the raw edges). To make the rein, drape a 21-inch length of cording around the back of the horse’s head, then glue it to the sides of the bridle as shown, wrapping the ends around the cording at the nose to hide the raw edges.
Many thanks to Disney Family Fun magazine and the Tangled team for this fun craft idea! For more like this, join their Facebook page.
Disney’s new animation Tangled is in UK cinemas from Friday January 28th.
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