Horse Fly Fringe Crochet Pattern

Free Pattern for Equestrians

If you’ve ever tried to enjoy a peaceful ride on a warm day, you already know the struggle. The sun is shining, your horse is ready to go… and the flies show up like they were personally invited.

Horse fly fringe is a simple little solution that can make a big difference. Those swinging strands sit right on the browband and gently move as your horse walks, helping keep pesky flies away from their eyes. Practical and surprisingly easy to make.

The best part? You can crochet one yourself in no time.

This horse fly fringe crochet pattern is a quick and beginner friendly project that uses basic stitches and only a small amount of yarn. It is a great stash buster and a fun way to make something useful for the barn. You can customize the length, colors, and fit to match your horse’s tack or your favorite riding gear.

So grab your hook, a bit of yarn, and let’s make something that will keep your horse a little more comfortable on those buggy summer rides.

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Materials Needed

• 100% cotton Lilly's Sugar & Cream in color of choice.
• 4 mm crochet hook
• Soft Measuring Tape
• Stitch marker
• Scissors

Abbreviations Used in Pattern

• ch = Chain
• sl st = Slip Stitch
• sc = single crochet
• sp = space
• st = stitch
• sts = stitches
• fo = fasten off

Skill Level

Beginner

Measurements/Size

To measure your horse for a browband, use a soft tape measure and measure from the base of one ear, across the horse’s forehead, to the base of the other ear. Let the tape follow the natural curve of the horse’s head so the browband will sit comfortably without feeling tight or pinching.
Browband measurements can vary by breed and head shape, but typical sizes are:
Mini: 13 to 14 inches
Horse: 16 to 17 inches
Draft: 18 to 21 inches

If your measurement falls between sizes, it is usually best to allow a little extra room so the browband sits comfortably across the forehead.

Fringe width: approx. 40 cm (approx. 16 inches)

Fringe height: approx. 25 cm. (approx. 10 inches)

Yardage

I used about 52 m for this project (approx. 57 yards)

Gauge

16 sts and 12 rows in sc = 10 cm (4") with a 4 mm hook.

Notes

This horse fly fringe pattern is beginner-friendly with step-by-step photo tutorials.

We will be using the Moss/Granite stitch for the browband of this pattern. This is really simple, using just chains and single crochet stitches. Instructions in pattern below.

You can make the pattern larger or smaller by either: changing the yarn weight and/or hook size, adding or reducing the number of chains. 

- Numbers at the end of each row (in brackets) indicate the number of final stitches in that row. 

- [ ] means repeat instructions inside these brackets.

- Please note that I use US crochet terms.

Easy Horse Fly Fringe Crochet Pattern Instructions

Browband

This is the top band that sits across the horse’s forehead and attaches to the bridle or halter. We'll be using the moss/granite stitch for this section.

R1: Tie a slip knot on your hook and chain 60 (60)

Note: For our horse size, the ideal measurement for the browband is 40 cm (approx. 16 inches). Best to measure your horse's browband size or refer to the chart above for different horse sizes.

R2: Sc into the second chain from your hook, [ch 1, sk a st, sc] x 30, turn. (60)

R3: [ch 1, sk a st, sc into ch 1 space from R2] x 30, turn. (60)

R4: [ch 1, sk a st, sc into ch 1 space from R3] x 30 (60). Leave a short tail, cut yarn and fasten off.

Fringe

Place a stitch marker 10 sts from either end of the browband.

[Tie a slip knot on your hook and chain 30, sl st to the next chain space after stitch marker (inserting your hook from front to back), chain 30, cut, fasten off.] 

Repeat the [ ] fringe instructions along the browband 22 times until you reach the second stitch marker (adjust [ ] repeat number to the length of your browband).

Remove stitch markers.

Tie Straps x 2

Tie a slip knot on your hook and chain 60. (60)

Leave a short tail, cut your yarn and fasten off.

Repeat for the second tie strap.

Finishing

Attach each tie strap to the one end of the browband by pulling it through the second stitch from the end of the browband with your crochet hook.

Pull the tie strap through that stitch to halfway and tie a knot in the center. Pull the knot tightly to secure. You can use these ties to attach the horse fly fringe to the horse's halter or bridle.

Depending on the size of your horse's head, you can adjust the positioning of these straps by placing them in any center stitch of your browband, just like a belt. 

Weave in your ends. You can trim the bottoms of the fringe to look neater if you like.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial.

Happy hooking!

May

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