DIY Concrete Equestrian Statue

If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time, you already know how much I love everything horses, along with everything DIY. And when I can combine the two together, we are talking happiness overload!

So when I found this DIY concrete look equestrian statue, I was beyond excited.

Not only do I write a blog, but I love reading them too. Bless’er House is one of my favorite to read. Have you visited Bless’er House? If you haven’t you should. Her blog is my absolute favorite. So many ideas, and really large DIY projects.

Way back in 2018, Lauren posted a tutorial for a DIY horse statue, and when I saw it, I wanted to do this project. So I kept it in my archives of to do projects. And just last week, I was revisiting different posts I had saved, and I cam across it again.

I decided now is the time to make this project happen. So first I had to start by finding a similar Breyer horse to start my project. And while I was skimming through eBay for the perfect specimen, I cam across this listing:

And then I looked back to Lauren’s post:

It’s the same horse that she used! Now, mine was more expensive. She reports that she got hers for a dollar. Yeah, a dollar for a Breyer. I wish I was that lucky. No, mine ended up costing about $34.00 total for two models including shipping.

DIY Concrete Equestrian Statue

And in her post, she reports you can get them new for around $6.00 – $8.00. But new Breyers will run you around $40.00. So the fact that I got two of them for around $40.00, I was happy.

But I decided to save money on the base by going a different route. I went to the Dollar Tree to see if I could find something to use as my statues base. I looked at picture frames, or wall hangings, but couldn’t find the right base.

So I made one last trip down the aisle where they have glasses, cups and plates, and I found this:

I was so excited! This will be perfect for the base for my statue.

So know that I have explained the major components to the statue, how about I show you how to make it?

DIY Concrete Equestrian Statue

Supplies (Some affiliate links are provided)

Model Horse (Classic size Breyer is what I used)
Gray Paint (I used 3 different colors)
Stone look spray paint
Dollar Tree plastic charger boat (I have no idea of what it is really called)
E6000 Adhesive
2 stencil type paint brushes

You are going to start by painting the horse, and the base. If you want to get really fancy, there is a faux concrete paint made by Folk Art. But the kit itself is $22.00. That was a little much for me, which is why I opted for the different shades of gray paint and the stone finish spray paint.

Set up the horse and the base in an area that you can use the spray paint. And then spray away! I did multiple coats of this on both pieces. It gives a raised surface to the pieces. Then give it ample time to dry, at least 24 hours.

Once the spray paint has had time to dry, then you can use the gray paint to paint both pieces. When you are painting, you kind of bounce the paint on. Dabbing the paint will give extra texture to each piece. Allow the paint to dry in between color changes.

And after your paint has dried, you can go back and add little highlights (or low lights with a darker paint).

The different shades of gray along with the spray paint bumps help to make the horse look as if he is made from concrete! How cool is that?!?!?!

DIY Concrete Equestrian Statue

Once you are happy with how your horse, and base look, and they are dry, you attach the horse to the base. I used E6000 adhesive. This stuff is amazing and works very well to secure the horse to the base. You don’t need very much, just a little bit on the bottom of each hoof will work.

This glue is the best. I used it when I made my Dollar Store Cupcake Stands for my daughter’s wedding, and the glue held very securely. This is my go to adhesive for any craft project I do. I love it!

This was a really simple (and fun) project. And since I have another Breyer model, I think I am going do more of an antiquing look, and see if I can make him look wooden. I mean, I could do another concrete one, but I think one is enough. It’s good to mix things up, don’t you think?

DIY Concrete Equestrian Statue

I also really liked the way Lauren showcased her horse (she said he needed a name, so she named him Stoney lol) so I tried to duplicate the look she was able to achieve using ‘Stoney’ as the focal point.

I found this hand blown glass vase on eBay, and added some greenery that I bought when Hobby Lobby was having a sale:

Overall, I am really happy with how this project turned out.

I have always wanted a horse statue like this ever since I was a little kid watching the Brady Bunch, and seeing their horse statue that was a focal point in their living room. And you can buy them ready made, if you want to spend upwards of $150.00.

DIY Concrete Equestrian Statue

But because I wasn’t ready to shell out $150 for something I could make myself, I decided to go the DIY route. And I am so glad that I did. I’m even more glad that I found Lauren’s post that inspired me to do it! So thank you Lauren for the inspiration. Mine cost me more than hers, she was able to do it for around $15.00. But with the more expensive horse, my project cost me around $23.00. I already had the paint, and paint brushes. I just had to buy the base, the horse, and the stone spray paint because I sued what I had on another project. But $23.00 for a cool horse statue? Oh yeah, it was worth it.