I'm really sorry for having to announce this everyone but I'm going to be leaving my blog temporarily. As you all probably have read, my son came down with COVID at the beginning of January and we thought we were out of the woods... until my husband started showing symptoms last Thursday and was hospitalized for it over the weekend. Thankfully he is on the mend but now I'm coming down with a fever and aches so unfortunately guys I don't think I'm going to get out of it. I've been caring for too many infected people that it was inevitable. While my family recovers, I'm going to be taking a couple weeks off from my blog so if Breyer releases anything new in the coming weeks, I'll post it as soon as I'm better. I'm aiming on sending out that discount for free shipping on the celebration horse to those that purchased special runs on Valentine's Day by which we should all be feeling better by then. If that changes, I'll let y'all know. In the meantime I appreciate your understanding and wishes for a speedy recovery.
A roan, a grullo, a leopard appy, a palomino pinto on Wyatt and a rose grey... all colors I collect. If I thought Breyerfest 2021 was going to break the bank with it's flashy horses that fell right into my colorful collection, Breyerfest 2022 is going to really leave me broke. There isn't a single special run that I don't like. The only three I'm not getting for my own collection is the deco because I never do, the bear set because I only collect equines and the mare/foal pair just because I have enough stock horses that I conga as it is (take the Dundee surprise last year, for example) so I don't want to be tempted to add another. The mare/foal pair remind me a lot of Vixen and Blitzen in color. My guess is either Landler or Stein will be the matte/glossy split since it's always been a solid color, though admittedly the majority are solid colors this year, which is perfectly fine since we had so many pintos and appys last year. I'm actually thinking about adding more solid colors to my collection since the white areas tend to go yellow with age. For the mane variation, I still think the only one that makes sense is Rapunzel, unless Breyer has something else up their sleeve. Thankfully I'm safe on the limited editions, although I might get Chardonnay in gloss if they make glossies again. Now who will be our 2022 Rotating Draft Surprise? Many are speculating a draft breed, although I'm still considering other breeds, and one big one I'm considering is Bobby Jo because she is "rotating" and has been used rather lightly since her release in 2015. However with two other stock breeds already in the lineup (the mare/foal and Wyatt) we may have to look at something else. There are no Arabs so maybe my guess from last year, the Arabian mare, will be for this year? After all, when Breyer brought the mold back as a limited edition flagship special run, it would've been more productive to make more than just 2500 bodies of the mold. My final non-draft guess is Carrick. Since Justify retired, we have yet to see Carrick. Plus, it's not uncommon for previous celebration molds to be used as the surprise down the road. If it by chance IS a draft, I think we can discount Georg and now Shannondell after today's Birds of a Feather release, Cardinal, who is $185 and limited to (a rather large) 500 pieces to anyone that wants to enter: Everyone is now screaming Othello, however I'm reluctant to put him on my list due to the popularity factor. I did say the same about Dundee last year and it turned out the masses were correct, so who knows? My thinking was that there is NO POSSIBLE WAY it could be Dundee, he is far too popular. You could've knocked me over with a feather when I heard he actually WAS the surprise. I would've guessed Bristol for this year (being a year big on warmbloods) but I think that's a bit too obvious since she was released the same year as Dundee. If I had to really throw one out there... how about Emma? Yes, I know she's already being used as an Event Stablemate, but maybe that'd be the curve ball Breyer wants to throw? I'm no longer considering previous auction models in the criteria since that doesn't seem to matter anymore. Goffert or the Gypsy Vanner would be my biggest guesses, although another nobody has really considered is Wixom. Who do you think it'll be and why?
Again this is still very early in the year so guesses may change as more models are released up through July, plus we still have yet to see what the special event models (like the Seattle Soiree) will be this year. While we're on that subject, I do need to whine that I never get picked for said events, and unfortunately this year with us moving, I won't even be able to get to enter. Speaking of which, our move in goal for our Kentucky house is by March 1st. After that things should start settling down and I can focus on my business again. The majority of our stuff has already been moved there including my real horse, Ace, who is being cared for by our awesome new neighbors, the same neighbors that helped us find Ace a friend, a Paso Fino gelding named Robbie that we rescued from an auction in Horse Cave, Kentucky. He reminds me so much of Breyer horse, Cupid, as he's also a bay with a heart shaped star. He is on my Rescues page if you'd like to meet him. He's skin and bones right now (the Amish drove him to death) but I'll take an after photo in a few months once we fatten him up a bit. He has a heavyweight blanket, unlimited hay, 24/7 access to pasture and my neighbor feeds him twice a day for us so he is on his way to mending. My model collection is being the last to be brought down and I'm crossing my fingers nobody gets damaged in the process. The rest of the Breyerfest special run pickups will be offered this Friday, the 21st, until sell out. Once sold out I will be sending the discount code for the celebration model to those who purchased either a special run or limited edition. A waitlist will be placed on my Breyerfest pickup page on Monday. No money will be required for the waitlist but of course no guarantee of getting the piece you want. It depends on how many extras I end up with. It will be first come, first offered. If you find another pickup person by then you can always decline and the next person in line will be offered the model. Pricing will be the same as for pickups and must be paid in full, plus shipping, to get your model. No time pays on waitlist models. Surprises - if any are to be had - will also be available the week after Breyerfest. Prices will depend upon the mold and color. If you are a vintage mold collector or, like me, and like vintage molds in modern colors, Breyer has released new warehouse finds. They were originally available for $34.99 but Breyer hiked up the price to $44.99 I guess when they realized how popular they were. Here is what is currently available: These guys are NOT regular runs. They will only be available until they sell out. I ended up purchasing the metallic chestnut Trakhenner and glossy palomino Quarter Horse. I was teetering on the Man o'War and silver bay Warmblood. I might buy them later if they don't sell out right away. I would've bought Black Beauty if it were any other mold because I love that liver chestnut color. However, every horse I had on that mold never stood, and so it's now one of the molds I avoid.
First things first, I'd like to give a shout out to those who pre-ordered Breyerfest models from me. All have sold out over the weekend but there will be more. Last year Breyer made nine special runs and we still have yet to see the decorator (which was teased in a sneak peek for tomorrow's reveal) as well as the vintage mold. There will probably another store special since the past few years there was three, plus pop up tent specials so look for those to be posted soon! Those that pre-order limited editions or special runs from me will have a discount coming for free shipping on the celebration model once all special runs have been revealed. If you'd like to add one to your order, I put a few celebration models off to the side just for this but I do warn that the discount will only apply until the remaining stock sell out so don't delay! I will announce the date/time when the discount will be sent to make it fair for everyone. If you already purchased a celebration model and end up also purchasing a special run from me, I'll take off shipping for the celebration model when I calculate your shipping costs in July since you already paid for shipping once. In the meantime my Breyerfest glossies came. While Rhev was glaringly handsome in gloss to the point where I'm having a hard time choosing between the two, especially as my matte is a slight variation that lacks the "kissy spot" on his nose... ...the one I was looking forward to most, Josie, had unsightly bubbling in the gloss and scratches on her front legs. I was pretty disappointed and I might try to contact Breyer about it tomorrow to see if I can return her for a replacement. I haven't asked for a replacement since my flawed Henrick from the Stablemates Club because I don't like being the person that complains about every flaw they find, I was really looking forward to her. It's always glossies I seem to have issues with, which is why when people ask if I prefer matte or glossy, I'm more a matte gal for that reason. As a customizer I know that gloss is a finicky finish that has to be applied evenly and thinly or bubbling can happen. I'll probably end up eventually reselling my matte Josie because I definitely like the glossy better. I would have skipped the matte from my VIP ticket had I known that they were going to offer glossies again. On the other hand, I may keep both versions of Rhev. Usually I'm happy with one or the other, however the variations look so different with the matte having more of a light buttermilk shade while the gloss makes the color much darker, almost golden in appearance that they could essentially be different horses with the same pattern. Which begs the question: will glossies be offered again this year? Of course we won't know for sure until Breyer releases that information but there's a good chance they will be.
In a way, I do like that they're continuing a virtual component to give everyone access to the store specials, however I don't like that the store specials are now practically worthless. I can't sell my matte Josie for even the price I paid right now while the store specials of yesteryear that were limited to 750 pieces are worth about $150-200 today depending upon the model. So with the good comes the bad, I guess. At least the special runs are still being limited to in person ticket holders. While I understand the frustration people who live too far away to physically attend Breyerfest are going through, the event was like this for years pre-COVID, so it's not too much of a shock that they want to make it in person again as soon as possible. I do note though that with rising cases from the new variant, it is possible the event may be cancelled again. I hope not, but their delay in releasing ticket information is making me think they're being extra cautious. If that happens, pre-orders will still go on as usual except I'll be giving the choice of either free shipping directly from Breyer to be sent to you as is or have it sent to me first and I can check them over for you for major flaws with shipping calculated from my address to yours. I hope it won't come to this but I'm throwing it out there in case someone asks. I received a couple replies that the 2022 Breyerfest special runs have started being revealed, and I apologize that I haven't posted about them. In truth the start of the new year hasn't been good for us. My 6 year old son woke up on the morning of January 3rd unable to breathe. We had to rush him to the ER where they gave him steroids to strengthen his lungs, as we found out he was battling COVID. He just came home today after a 3 day stay in the hospital being given steroid treatments every few hours and it was a nerve wracking time worrying if he was going to be ok. He is doing better now thankfully, but we have all been exposed. For that reason, no mail will be leaving our house to protect others, and I have thus removed all in hand items from my website while we quarantine. Pre-orders are still available since they won't be shipped until late January/February, long after our quarantine is up. I will no longer be selling on eBay this year due to the new tax law so everything on there was also removed. I will be selling solely through my website for 2022. Limited editions will only be available once they're in hand to avoid the shipping fiasco that happened with Equidae last year. This includes the Halloween and Christmas horse as well.
Glossies from Breyerfest are going out now so if you ordered any, keep an eye out for them, and the final Premier Club release is available for purchase. She looks really nice in hand although I sold mine because I'm not big on the mold. Several have already popped up on social media so they're currently shipping. We still have the Premier Club mini Fireheart stablemate yet to arrive, although that usually doesn't arrive until January of the next year. I'll be making a post on the Breyerfest models soon, I promise. Pre-orders on Breyerfest pickups will begin soon. I will update here on my blog the exact date/time they will be put for sale on my website in my Model Horse Store. Hang tight <3 Happy new year to all my fellow collectors out there! I'm so happy to be starting year three of helping you all fulfill your Breyer needs. There are so many exciting models ahead. I lied to myself and joined the Stablemates Club last minute. I wasn't going to but I figured I've been part of it since it's inception so I might as well continue the tradition. I did however only purchase one membership this year instead of two, as I only liked one of the gambler's choices (the rainbow) and my chance of actually getting it is pretty slim. However that's all part of the fun. Can't wait for Miss Phineas! Social media is having their own fun by listing their top 5 purchases of the year. Good grief, I can't decide which are my top five, but the original Dundee (whom I finally found this year after years of searching) is definitely on there. If you have top five model purchases feel free to list them in the comments below. BreyerWest people can get excited for a new model available solely to attendees (they did this some years ago with Classics scale models) and have shown the sneak peek: It kind of looks like the mold Slyder was on in what looks like an Appaloosa pattern. Definitely looks promising! BreyerWest tickets will be going on sale January 3rd. The event takes place at the Rocky Mountain Horse Expo in Denver, Colorado on February 25-27th. Since I'm an east coast gal, I've never been to BreyerWest personally, but I may have to track down one of those models second hand if I can.
The December Collector Club newsletter went out but there wasn't any sneak peeks in it that we haven't seen yet. It was mostly discussing club memberships, the new 2022 releases, a recap of this year's Collector Club models and the monthly giveaway, who was Christoff, the Classics sized winter decorator from last year. |
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