more cowboy costume fun and a giveaway!

I didn't get a chance to post the pictures of this adorable stick horse we made to go with the cute cowboy costume yesterday, so here he is. We didn't use a pattern for him, so this isn't a full tutorial, but this way you can make him your own!

Here's what you'll need:

*Dowel (from the home improvement store)
*Felt for the head, mane, and eyes
*Bandanna-print fabric
*Stuffing/Fiberfill
*Rubber band or hair elastic

1. Draw the shapes of the top and bottom of head on felt and cut it out. Cut a strip long enough for the mane. Sandwich the mane between the two pieces of the back of the head. Sew the head pieces together and turn right-side out. Leave bottom open. Clip along mane to make fringe.

2. Draw and cut out ears--one piece in felt and one piece in bandanna fabric for each ear. Sew right-sides together, then turn right-side out. Hand-stitch to head. Cut out eyes and hand stitch them on as well.

3. Stuff head with stuffing.

4. Gather open end of head around one end of the dowel. Secure with rubber band. Tie a piece of bandanna fabric around the neck to hide the elastic.

5. Giddy up!

And for the littlest cowboy or cowgirl, try these bandanna pants, made from two bandannas. We found this tutorial from makesomethingnow, but changed it up a little by adding buttonholes where the ends of the drawstring exit.

Yeehaw! We are so excited that we've almost reached 30,000 hits since we started Little Birdie Secrets at the end of July! To celebrate, we're having another giveaway to help you be a more crafty you in the kitchen. They even go with our cowboy costume theme--can you say "cowboy birthday party"?

One lucky winner will receive this Wild West Ice Cream Sandwich Mold set from Williams Sonoma (a $15 value)! Use any cookie or brownie recipe and any flavor ice cream with the boot, hat, or badge mold to make these sweet treats. You can eat them immediately, or stick them in the freezer for later (if you can resist them that long). To enter our 30,000 hit giveaway, just leave us a comment on this post BEFORE we reach 30,000 hits (see our Sitemeter counter below). We'll draw the winner the day we reach our mark. Good luck!