Year of the Horse Hand Puppet for Chinese New Year 2026
Ah we do love Chinese New Year – well as we know, it isn’t JUST Chinese New Year, but probably better to call it Lunar New Year! Lunar New Year 2026 falls on Wednesday 29th January 2026 and yes.. it is the Year of the Horse! And with that we have a number of fablouse Horse Crafts for you to try! Such a fun movable horse paper doll!
Year of the Horse Paper Finger Puppet
You can get a Full Set of Zodiac Animal Puppets here:
You can either get just the Year of the Horse puppet.. or why not grab the full set of 12 Zodiac Puppets?
What you’ll need for your paper horse puppet:
This is a great horse puppet craft as it requires minimal set up time!
- The paper farm animal horse printable – available here (add the discount code YeeHaa to check out and get it for free or grab it for $1 on TPT)
- A pair of scissors
- A gluestick
- Coloring pens, pencils , crayons – whatever takes your fancy!
This is currently a FREE Horse Puppet Printable – simply enter the 100% code at check out (discount code: YeeHaa ) or support this website and get it for $1 here! Or get the full set of Zodiac Puppets in one go!
Step by Step guide to create your own 3d horse hand puppet for Chinese New Year!
You can watch the video tutorial for the Snake Puppet here.. it is made in the same way! Or follow the step by step instructions that follow!
Color in your horse coloring page
Color in the horse printable in whatever color you like. you could go brown and black for a more simple look or perhaps even pink and blue for a crazy exciting mystical look! Rememeber, this is YOUR horse which means that you can choose however it looks like, it’s completley up to you!
Cut out the horse shape
Once you’re happy with your design and coloring, carefully cut out the outline of the horse using a pair of scissors as neatly as possible. It doesn’t have to be the neatest outline in the world, so dont stress if theres a few ridges here and there. This is also the perfect opportunity for younger kids to practice and improve their cutting skills and the curvy lines require much more focus and control.
Make the horse mouth folds
Once the horse printable is fully cut out, fold the head on the lines by the mouth. If done correctly, an ‘M’ shape should be the result.
Neaten the creases once you are happy!
Cut out the finger tabs
Cut out the two strips of paper provided on the coloring template. The two strips of paper has marks on each ends that tells you where to glue down. So, glue down one of the strips designated areas onto the back of the horse’s mouth. Then glue the other part of the first strip down. This should create a loop. Repeat this step with the second strip, however glue it onto the other half of the mouth at the back. These loops are the fingerholes for your paper horse puppet.
Flatten the tabs a bit:
Here you have this cute horse puppet finished:
Aren’t these fun??
I hope you enjoy making your very own Horse Finger Puppets!
Don’t forget that they come as part of a large set of 12 Zodiac Finger Puppets.. and that you can also check these Chinese New Year Crafts here too! More Year of the Horse crafts coming soon too!
