Need your help giving a little horse a new lease on life...

[Technicolor Pony]

Well my grandmother and I went to several Thrift stores and a few fall craft sales to shop for Christmas gifts and ideas, and I rescued a little horse... O.k. so he's not the living, breathing kinda, but he had such a wonderful expression and once well loved appearance, I just couldn't pass him up... I paid $5.00 for this little find. I know I was supposed to be shopping for Christmas presents... but this little guy will be staying here

. I'll show him to you first...

Now here is where I need help.... He seems to be made of corduroy, but is quite mildewy, and has several tears in his coat. He is stuffed with straw, and THAT is all in tact. His muzzle is wooden and chipping, but I do not want to repaint that... I love the old "well loved" look... I just can't help but think some little boy or little girl once patted and kissed that muzzle. Overall, he is in pretty good shape. I just love his little ears and expression!!!! I don't have a clue how to fix the tears in his side or how to reattach a tail. I also need to re-do his harness.... ANY help you could give would be much appreciated. One person suggested Oxy-clean and a soft tooth brush for his coat... I think if I could kinda closely match the mane color, I could use Homespun yarn or something similar for his tail, but first I'd like to patch his side and tail area... Here are his "rough spots"

Again... thanks for all your suggestions!

Chris

 

[Sixstardanes]

Wow! What a find. Lucky dog!

If I had this pony I'd probably clean with a damp warm wash cloth, toothbrush & Shout stain remover.

Would probably patch him up with darker cloth here and there (some where needed and others not)

to make him look pinto... this is also a cheat to make it work without looking odd.

For the tail I'd find a nice mop or fabric or wig or maybe even a real tail (you can get at at online carousel shops)

and insert into the hole and secure with a hot glue from a hot glue gun.

I love stuff like this!

Best of luck.

Hope we see it completed.

 

[Miniv]

I think you have a little treasure on your hands!

To clean him........The oxi-clean isn't a bad idea.....or how about an upholstery cleaner with a small brush? Perhaps someone else has a better suggestion.

For mending, it depends on how brittle the cloth is whether you would want to risk stitching it all back together. Or, how about putting patches over the area, which would add to the country craft "well loved" look?

It does look like a fun project, though.

 

[AppyLover2]

WOW Chris What a find. He's absolutely adorable. Since his hide seems to be pretty well past just some blind stitching to pull it together over the holes I have 2 thoughts. One is that you could maybe make him a pinto by patching him....the other is, make him a whole new hide....although that would take away some of his beautiful loved look. Whatever you do with him I'd love to see it after the work is done.

 

[Sterling]

Oh what a cute little toy horse!!! Good suggestions above.....and I wanted to add....I see that you're not the only one in love with this little guy.......kitty cat also seems to be admiring him as well...

 

[Sixstardanes]

Relooking at this fella...

If you are concerned about the mold (external and possibly internal)

you could dismantle (taking many photos as you do it)

and dispose of his pelt & the straw.

From the looks of him he looks like he has a wooden skeleton/frame.

You could then rebuild him with upholstery foam and if not good with sewing could attach the new hide (whatever strikes your fancy) with hot glue.

For an example here's a costume I designed & built that I named "Dane".

His head is foam that I carved and the fake fur is hot glued to it.

Just a thought.

 

[muffntuf]

Wow, I would contact a antique dealer, I think you found a steal here!

 

[Technicolor Pony]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions! Rachel.... I just love that Dane suit!!! I love your artwork also! After the suggestion about mold/mildew on the inside also, I decided to carefully pull back a bit of the fabric and see what it looked like. Good news... It seems the mildew/mold is only on top of the fabric... the underside looks very bright, so hopefully I won't have to pull him completely apart. I really don't want to take him apart. As for fixings his boo-boo's... I was kinda thinking along the same as y'all with patches to make him a pinto.... You know... I LOVE pintos anyway! I'm gonna try Shout and Oxy-clean and see which works best... and become best friends with the extra toothbrush I have... I can't wait to start.

Question... do you think I should make his new patches with corduroy or something different... I would like it so seem as though it was originally there. I haven't checked out any tail options yet, but I will, and I'll let y'all see choices as I go.... Hey... this could be a forum wide project! lol...

Oh, and, I think I WILL contact an antique dealer... I'm curious and I LOVE finding out about stuff!!! And LOVE researching things! Thanks!

And please keep the suggestions coming!

Chris

 

[Marty]

Wow what a find is right.

You might want to consider taking him down to an appoulstry shop and seeing what they say too

 

[REO]

You don't want more moisture to cause more mold. What was it I read about BAKING SODA? Making it into a paste, rub in and brush it off when it's dry? Can you try that first?

He's BEAUTIFUL!!!

As to the rest, I'd maybe take him to an antique place and find out the best way to fix him.

I'm quite good at mending such things and I wish he were mine so I could. You lucky gal!

Please post pics of how he comes along? Kiss his muzzle for me!

 

[AppyLover2]

If you're going to patch him I'd definitely go with the same type fabric that he already is. Looks like wide whale/wale(?) corduroy. I'd also be sure to run the pile of the fabric in the same direction. Just a thought...a soft finger nail brush might be better than a tooth brush. I like REO's suggestion about trying baking soda first.

 

[Technicolor Pony]

O.k. so I stayed up last night doing a bit of research on rocking horses. The only style of rocking horse that I found that looks like my little guy is sold by Zeiger Enterprises in New Jersey that import and distribute gifts and collectibles from Eastern Europe. The rocking horses (as I believe I read) are created in Poland. They are hand made. The tack is basically the same, except my guy has a tack on the top of the nose band (which some of the older horses did... I checked out a few antique sites) and my guy is missing the saddle. Zeiger is the only one that I found, that keeps the wooden muzzle WITH the fabric covering... the others I found are either all fabric or all wood bodied NOT both. I sent an e-mail to their company last night to try to obtain more information.

I'll try some of the stain removing techniques today.... I'll try the baking soda first... the brush I have is one of Tylers (he's 5) old tooth brushes... very soft.

Thanks again!

Oh... and.... he needs a name....hmmmmm

 

[REO]

I felt that someone called him Prince at one time. But for some reason, I wanted to call him Charlie LOL!

I'm dying to hear any info you find about him! How old is he? I was thinking 40's? No idea!

I can't remember what about the baking soda...was it mixed with anything? Or just a think paste?

I hope it works!

I love your new horsie!

 

[Miniv]

Someone suggested patching by matching the corduroy..........Because of its age, there is no way. I still think some fun patches would be good. Someone also suggested making the patches look like pinto spots!

That was a great idea to do some research on the possible maker. That may help you a lot!

 

[CKC]

That's such a great find.

I don't have any advice as to how to clean it, but wanted to comment on the oxi-clean.

I used the oxi-clean spray for stains on one of my sons shirts. Great product, but don't leave it sitting to soak for a long time. I had forgotten about it for about 3 days. The shirt had holes all in it. The oxi-clean ate through it.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

He's adorable!

Since you go to the thrift stores, check in the pillow section frequently and you may find some cordouroy that will work. I like the idea of same-vintage repair. Also, if he won't be ridden, don't worry about the repair--it might even affect his future value. Just stabilyzing him for now might be best.

Another thing you might try with the mildew, is setting him in the sun. Or in an unobtrusive spot, a diluted bleach solution. I have noticed that sometimes the mildrew stain does not appear to go away immediately when treated, but will disappear over time. Some antique fabric collectors have had good luck with a product called Lestoil.

 

[Technicolor Pony]

Well, I tried the baking soda paste... with water and with vinegar (mist from spray bottle, so as not to soak the fabric) that didn't work. I also found a website that gave instructions for corduroy mildew that said to use salt and white vinegar (it lightened it up a bit)... I wanted to try the less harsh cleaners first, then if those didn't work, go from there. I'm testing small spots under his mane to try out the different cleaners. I think Oxy-clean will be my next choice... I will use it lightly... Rinsing is what I'm worried about... like CKC said, I don't want it to eat through though... Hmmm... I like the idea of setting him out in the sun, but should probably put a very diluted cleaning solution on him, maybe?

I'm gonna go on a search for some old corduroy pants for patches (I'll pick up several colors and we'll see what looks best), but I think for the time being (if I find some) I'll cut the patches and just tack them on sparingly, so that they can be easily removed without further damaging the fabric, but will keep him together. If I can't get all the mildew stains off, that's o.k., I love him anyway... I just want to keep it from spreading more, and I want to cover the biggest holes so that they don't get worse, and so that he keeps his stuffing (which is beginning to flake out in places on his side) and I'd like to give him a tail.

And REO, I agree about "Prince"... any other thoughts out there?

Thanks again for all your help!

 

[REO]

I think the baking soda was supposed to be a thick paste, gently scrubbed in, let dry and brushed off.

I have some brown cords (pants) but they're not the large "cord" type like your horse is. Holler if you need them.

 

[Sixstardanes]

I see him having a name like Noble.

 

[Technicolor Pony]

I wanted to let y'all know that I am going to take the little guy in to an antique shop tomorrow when the lady who appraises is supposed to be in. But, you know, upon a closer look, I'm not sure he's as old as he looks... I can't really tell if his eyes are glass or plastic, and I also noticed some blue twine type stuff in there that reminds me of blue hay string... hmmmm.... plastic in general would make this guy younger, I would think. We'll see what she says tomorrow...

Oh, and I did make the baking soda into a paste... I waited until it dried then I brushed it off. It may have have lightened it a bit, but it also may take several applications.