Horse-themed gift ideas for an 8 yo girl

[mrudman]

Ok, all my 7 yo (almost 8 yo) is asking for is a horse for her birthday.. (i'm in trouble, lol)...

So I'm trying to think of some horse-themed ideas I could get her for her gifts.

Going to try to find some nice earrings to get her.. and thought of taking her to a local place to go on a trail ride with the family.

The main thing I'd like to try to do though is turn her bedroom into a horse-themed one... but I am having a heck of a time finding a comforter for her bed. The problem is, she has a daybed, and I cannot find a horse-themed daybed comforter anywhere. Anyone know of any sites that offer one?

Looking for a nice looking one, not too girly, not too childish.. but not overly western-themed either if you kwim.

Any other ideas I could do for her?

Thanks,

 

[momtomari]

there is a horse stamp set out there. I got mine at learning express but seen them at michael's. at michael's i've also seen plaster horses to paint. and from learning express i also got a mosiac set with horse theme.

 

[bjscheel]

I just got a catalog "Back in the Saddle" with tons of neat stuff. I'm sure they have a website if you search on it.

Will a twin size comforter work on a day bed?

 

[Jaime4004]

Are there any horse farms near you? I got my DD6 five riding lessons for $100. That was her gift and she loved it! (She had also asked for a real horse.)

 

[mrudman]

there is a horse stamp set out there. I got mine at learning express but seen them at michael's. at michael's i've also seen plaster horses to paint. and from learning express i also got a mosiac set with horse theme.

thanks, will look into those.. she'd probably like the stamp set.

 

[mrudman]

I just got a catalog "Back in the Saddle" with tons of neat stuff. I'm sure they have a website if you search on it.

Will a twin size comforter work on a day bed?

The twin comforter sets do fit on it fine, but unfortunately if you get something with pictures, or a scene, they'll be sideways then.. was hoping to get it facing the right way... i'll definitely look to see if i can find that catalog though, thanks.

 

[mrudman]

Are there any horse farms near you? I got my DD6 five riding lessons for $100. That was her gift and she loved it! (She had also asked for a real horse.)

Yea, we do have horse farms around here... had thought about giving her lessons (and some of them also do week-long camps).. but not sure if she'd like to be told she'll be getting the lessons/camp in early December (when he birthday is), and have to wait till April or May to actually get to use them.

 

[Juliegirl1]

What about just doing a solid colored or pony print bedspread and then add horse print pillows. That way you don't have to worry about the print being in the wrong direction.

Also don't forget horse books like Black Beauty and Misty of Chincoteague (sp?).

 

[locolala]

Yea, we do have horse farms around here... had thought about giving her lessons (and some of them also do week-long camps).. but not sure if she'd like to be told she'll be getting the lessons/camp in early December (when he birthday is), and have to wait till April or May to actually get to use them.

Depending on if the lesson barns have an indoor ring, you sure can ride in December! A good lesson barn will have an indoor if you're somewhere that it gets really cold. Good luck.. the horse bug bit me when I was 5 and I'm still obsessed! I ride 4-5 times a week, no matter the weather

 

[poohfriend77]

thanks, will look into those.. she'd probably like the stamp set.

We have the Melissa and Doug set, and it's really nice.

I have a horse-crazy 7.5yo DD too. I like the PP's idea of using a solid color comforter/blanket, and then lining the back with horse pillows. Then it would be more like a couch during the day. I've seen horse-print fleece at fabric stores. You could make those pillows where you tie the fleece, and add a throw in the same fabric.

Maybe add a framed horse poster and a shelf for any horse figurines she has, and you'll have a horse room that's not too over-the-top with the theme. Hmmm... we may have to update DD's princess room now that I'm thinking about it.

 

[minniebeth]

What is it with 8/9/10 yo girls and horses?
My DD's Brownie troop went horseback riding and the girls are starstruck!
Now for all the birtday parties, many of the gifts are horse oriented.

The riding lessons idea is great, as well as the room decor~
Like you said, earrings, and I gave one of my DD's friends a pretty sterling silver horse neckalce from Kohl's jewelry dept.

There are all kinds of horse crafts if you look at places like Toys R Us, craft stores, education stores.

A paint you own pottery places has horse oriented items to paint as well for sure.

 

[Squirrel!!!]

My DD10 who is horse crazy loves the realistic Breyer Horses and has a subscription to Horse and Rider. SHe only really looks at the pictures, but still thinks she is cool for getting a horsie magazine in the mail.

 

[mrudman]

Thanks for all the ideas everyone!!

Got a lot of great ideas now to think about and research...

Do like the idea of a solid-colored bedspread, then pillows to match... I can sew pretty good too, so definitely gonna look to see if I can find any horse fabrics. Could make pillows, etc to match it... and that way if she does become sick of the horse theme, the bedspread wouldn't go to waste.

Thanks all,

 

[IUTBAM]

My DD is 17 now, and has been a horse-lover for years (she takes lessons and leases a horse, so we have that fix taken care of). She has an extensive collection of Breyer horses, but she started collecting those when she was older. When my DD was 8-10, she absolutely LOVED the Grand Champions horses (you can get them at Walmart), and they are SO much cheaper than Breyers (and are great to "play with"...because they are less expensive). She didn't worry about the chips or scratches like she does on her Breyer horses now, which are the main decor in her den.

Horse themed books are a great idea as well...Black Beauty would be great if she hasn't already read it, as well as the Misty and Stormy books. With the Secretariat movie out, I've found a lot of cool horse themed gifts for my DD that she doesn't have. TY makes a new Secretariat Beanie Baby, and she's getting one of those. She also has a subscription to Horse Illustrated, and Horse and Rider. I believe there's a magazine called "Young Rider" that might be appropriate for a younger girl. If you do decide to get her lessons, you could get her a hoof pick (not expensive), or a curry comb. She'd probably get a kick out of having her own. Depending on if she's more interested in western riding (which my DD is) or English, a pair of cowboy boots is a fun thing...(my DD has 7 pair...she loves her boots, lol).

There's also a Breyer card game called "Hold Your Horses" that DD has had for YEARS and she still loves it. And they do make a "horse-opoloy" game based off Monopoly. She might also enjoy a DVD of the movie Dreamer (really cute, and very kid-friendly) or Racing Stripes. Walmart also sells a DVD that has Black Beauty, National Velvet, International Velvet and Seabiscuit (the older version) all on one DVD for less than $10!

 

[funkychunkymonkey]

I saw a paint your own horse kit at fleet farm for 7.98 . They also have horse puzzles for 6.89.

 

[robinb]

I had Breyer model horses when I was a kid. Any horse loving girl would love that kind of thing. I liked having the whole family of one breed - stallion, mare and matching foal.

 

[Bren's Mom]

If your dd is into American Girl at all but the prices are too much, the Target knockoff (Our Generation) has beautiful horses!

http://www.target.com/Our-Generatio...om_size-bin,target_com_brand-bin&frombrowse=0

http://www.target.com/Our-Generatio...om_size-bin,target_com_brand-bin&frombrowse=0

(There are several others also.)

And they have a doll now with a 'Horse' theme:

http://www.target.com/Our-Generatio...om_size-bin,target_com_brand-bin&frombrowse=0


AG also has a book 'Girls and their Horses'...although that might be kind of mean if she's wanting one! LOL

There is a book set called 'Horse Diaries'. Amazon sells them and may have a 'look inside' for them if you want to see if they're in dd's reading range.

This set is adorable, you could get a plain quilt/comforter for the bed and buy this one to hang on the wall. Then the matching shams and window treatments:

http://www.thecompanystore.com/Pony...id=ck-bedroom-bedding-girls-quilts-comforters

Or have someone make you a quilt with a horse theme, with it running in the right direction. My SIL makes quilts, she's got an Etsy store and does custom quilts to order...I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who could do this for you.

 

[heatherwillmom]

I used to have horses. I had a lot of horse supply catalogs. Most had gifts too. I had a horse blanket, tote bags, purses, jewelry, etc. You can put in a search for horse supplies & get lots of ideas

 

[pintamino]

You might subscribe to a couple horse supply catalogs (Dover Saddlery comes to mind for English) and put those in the box with her gift. I used to love just flipping through them before I started riding

I agree with whoever said basic grooming supplies. That and a lead rope were my first things to own when I was taking lessons. Some barns want you to use exclusively their equipment for safety and/or sanitary reasons though, so it might be better to wait on that until she has established a lesson barn (which will happen. There is no other cure for the horse bug! )

 

[budbeerlady]

Dd had her birthday party at our horse barn and did a trail ride with 5 girls on Saturday. They LOVED it! One of Dd's favorite gifts was the Saddleclub Horse Crazy movie, its very cute! In Michigan we ride year round inside.

For her bed we found a quilt store near our home that made her a quilt with paint horse fabric. She loves it and it was about the same cost as buying one online. I made the solid color curtains and finished them off with horse button accents. She also loves the Pony Pals books!

Rod western is a fun place to shop. http://www.rods.com/