Happy Friday, everyone! After just releasing Breyerfest tickets, Breyer then decided to finally release Cooper, a gorgeous leopard appaloosa, to Collector Club members. He looks amazing without his tack on, and I wish I could purchase him myself because I love his loud color, but since we will be in between addresses next month, I'm offering him for sale in my store to someone who will cherish him. Next up is a test run available to Collector Club members only. I was a bit saddened to find out that Breyer had intended to release this guy as a regular run as a gold medal series, but they never ended up doing so, probably because gold Valegro didn't sell well. I love anything Thoroughbred and the gold tone shading is just stunning on this guy. I wouldn't have hestiated purchasing him at his regular run price but I can't afford his current asking price of $1200 right now. I'd much rather buy a real horse with that kind of money. Good luck though to anyone who enters! You only have until February 28th to put your name in. Collector Club members should have received the latest newsletter, and seen the sneak peek for the new Birds of a Feather series coming next month. This one looks promising, looks like either a stocky or draft mold. I'm hoping they'll release it later in the month so we'll have a mailbox put in by that time at our new house, because I do plan on entering for this one. I'm a sucker for anything flashy. The only "bird" I've won so far is Goldfinch, so I'd love to have another. I'm probably the last person to get him, but Dax is here! I'm astonished by how much the quality of the Stablemates Club horses keep improving year after year. I mean honestly it seems as if they'd eventually run out of colors! In the case of Dax, they may have. Doesn't he look like a shrinky of the variation Quill from Breyerfest 2019? (Picture used from IDYB for reference) My guy also had an oopsie in the form of the star on his forehead. It... well... is hard to explain but it is a little lighter than his chestnut color but not completely white like it should be. It isn't masking either. There is nothing to pick off. It just looks like the artist accidentally oversprayed the star with a lighter brown during one of the many layers it takes to make a dun colored horse like him. It's cool, and I love it. Sorry for the horrible picture (it was taken on my phone which doesn't have a macro setting) but you can see it on his forehead. He will be a keeper for sure.
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Those that plan on going to in-person Breyerfest... VIP, All Access and General Admission tickets are now available for purchase on Breyer's website. They did say that VIPs will be again limited to only one per account and, just like last year, you will have to pay for your models upfront. With the VIP ticket you get your choice of 2 special runs, 2 limited editions and a 4 pack of the event stablemates along with, of course, the celebration horse. I've decided to forego the VIP this year since there are way too many models I'm interested in that choosing just two would be agonizing, plus I already have my swag box from last year that I plan on using at Breyerfest this year. The last time I checked, VIP tickets still hadn't sold out, but it wouldn't surprise me if they do within a matter of days, especially since Breyer never announced how many they were offering this year. Online access tickets will not be available until March, at a future announced date. They are NOT available for purchase yet. Breyer still hasn't announced when they will be selecting models for All Access ticket holders but I'm assuming sometime in June or early July since tickets are only available through May 2nd this year. I will release any new information as it becomes available. I received a package today from UPS which I thought for sure was Dax. Instead they were the warehouse finds that I bought back in January, which I'd almost completely forgot about. Although I originally bought just the chestnut and palomino, I decided to add the silver bay and the Classics winter decorator, Baltazar. Originally I wasn't planning on purchasing him after weeding out almost all my Classics horses, but he looked so much like Born to Run's twin (one of only about a half dozen Classics I did keep) and his name matched that of two other Peter Stones that I have that I couldn't help but add him to my collection of Balthazars. Here his is with the other Balthazar from Stone's 12 Days of Christmas event. My third Balthazar is packed away in storage. In the past, most of the warehouse finds were remakes of previously made Breyers. They just slapped a slightly different paint job and instead of calling it Susecion and Le Fire, for example (who was a "warehouse find" back in 2014) they call it #430011. Some people claim there are even slight differences in the paint jobs, like with the Clydesdale mare and foal people were mentioning a metallic sheen and dappling that the previous set didn't have before. I will be pulling yet another image from IDYB for this next reference, but the chestnut Trakehner warehouse find is the same, or very similar, to the special run available in the grab bags of only ten lucky people back in 2008. He was a solid metallic chestnut with no socks and a white blaze. The difference this time is that Breyer gave him the more modern tail versus the vintage tail of the 2008 run. As to the Stock Horse Gelding, although there isn't a previous model that looks exactly like him, if you owned the Appaloosa Surprise dunalino from Breyerfest 2009, they would make good brothers. This was the first Breyerfest where Breyer started throwing out surprise models, and it became a hit ever since. I think the gloss on this boy really brings out his shading. Of the three I bought, he ended up becoming my favorite. He smells terrible though. The gloss finish on him really stinks. I never really liked the Roemer mold. He had the perfectly sculpted Warmblood head and neck on what is, in my opinion, a too plump body, making his head look way too small for his body size. However, the silver bay color the warehouse find came on somehow complimented his body and didn't make him look all that bad. He is a bit darker in real life than the pictures show and his mane/tail are pearly. It really is amazing how a modern paint job can drastically change a vintage mold. I'm going to assume that Dax should arrive some time this week. The ball needs to get rolling on Honeybear and the Premier Club stablemate though...
To in person Breyerfest attendees: Breyer has announced today that they will be doing away with the line numbers next year (thank goodness because I always tended to get horrible spots) and will instead be having people make a master list online - just like we've been the past couple years - before the event and them pick up their selected models at the Kentucky Horse Park when they go in person in July. You can read more about it on Breyer's latest blog post here so while I'm excited since I had better odds getting the models I wanted with the master list, there may be some slight changes in regards to pickups. So what does this mean for the people that pre-ordered pickups? Your deposit that you already paid will be going towards the ticket costs I need to purchase your special run(s). The remaining money I was requiring on July 1st was to pay for the actual cost of your model. The good news is that this year I'll know if I was able to obtain your model before I even get to Breyerfest this year rather than stressing over my spot in line, which is awesome! I will also know before Breyerfest weekend if I will have any leftovers to offer the waitlist people (I have plenty of waitlist people to scoop up any extra models so I'll be taking off the waitlist later today) which is also great. This gives the attendees that go in person more time to enjoy the other activities without having to worry about getting to the special run line in time. However, when I originally scheduled pickups, I made a date of July 1st for the remaining amount. Just a heads up: it could possibly stay the same, or it may change slightly depending upon the date Breyer wants us to pay for our models by. They did say this year that models would be paid for before we even get to Breyerfest rather than at Breyerfest, but they haven't yet announced a date for when the models need to be paid by. If they give us until the week before Breyerfest then the date of July 1st will still be good. However, if they say that models must be paid for by May or June, then I may have to change it. We'll see once more information is released, hopefully soon. The final payment for shipping won't be changing, however. It will still be required the weekend after Breyerfest once I have your model(s) in hand and can calculate shipping for you. Also my Model Horse store will be closing temporarily for the month of March...Also I just wanted to announce that Adamek and Morganquest arrived to me today and will be on their way to their new owners Monday at the latest. Both the Misty set and Adamek have sold out so I won't be getting in any more of them until we're moved into our new address. If you ordered Nistar Blazing Kansas and Ethel or Sjoerd from me, they are not coming until June per the latest update from Breyer, so that timing will work out perfectly. I will however be closing the Model Horse store temporarily for the month of March since we will be in between addresses and I won't be able to ship anything out. Any remaining models that weren't sold via pre-orders will be available until February 25th, so if you're interested in any leftovers, be sure to put in your order. I will try to keep my blog as updated as much as I can if Breyer releases anything new but I'll be doing everything by phone since we won't have much access to the internet until I get my office set up. I plan on re-opening the store the beginning of April.
As my camera is in storage right now and my phone takes horrible pictures, I won't be able to snap pictures of any of the rest of the regular runs before I send them out, but just a heads up Adamek does have a metallic sheen as is usual with the Akhal Teke breed and his white blaze is mapped! You guys I nearly screamed in joy when I saw that since, as far as I know, Breyer has never mapped any of the regular run models in the past. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I've been collecting since the early 2000s and don't remember any with mapping. I really hope this will be the way of the future since that mapping is gorgeous. Definitely puts Adamek on wish list now. Those who ordered him from me I'm sure will be super happy with him! I'll probably buy him from the KHP once we're settled in because their gift shop sales benefit their real horses. Since there haven't been any new releases today, this post will be more of a personal one rather than a release announcement. My husband asked me to limit my Breyer spendings for a few months until we moved into our new house now that we finally have an official closing date of April 1st as long as there are no more hiccups. I didn't realize how much being without my models affected me though until I couldn't see them every day. I kept a few with me that I planned to sell off but the majority are packed away in storage, and I've come to realize that I can't completely leave the hobby. I'm counting down the days until we move in and I can put up my shelves again. Is it just a hobby at this point? Or an addiction? I don't know, but I can't deny the adrenaline rush I feel when I try to beat it to the punch on a new release! I did want to talk about our goals with our new property, since a couple of you have asked me about it. As a bit of history, back in the early 2000s, my then neighbor had the dreams to start a farm animal rescue. She would go to the Mt. Hope and Sugarcreek horse auctions here in Ohio, rescuing as many animals as she could, and then find them permanent homes. On top of all the other farm animals, she started with just three horses and ended up with sixteen by the end of the year. This is where I came in. With that amount of horses, she needed help, and I was all too happy to not only work with the horses, but advocate for animal rescue. She recognized my love of horses and so that was primarily what I worked with. Whenever a new horse came in, I was often the guinea pig thrown up on it for the first ride. This helped me develop a knack for training green horses. Lots of hard work later, I was made a board member and my neighbor's small rescue ended up becoming one of the largest 501(c)3 rescues in the state. When I moved away after marrying my husband in 2011, I lost touch with my neighbor, but I didn't stop doing my share of helping horses in need. Of course, with starting a family and having less time, it was more a side gig so I only rescued a handful of horses since then, mostly retired OTTBs, plus we only had enough acreage to keep a couple horses at a time. So when we saw this beautiful piece of land that was up for sale while we were down in Kentucky last year, it called to us. The tranquility reminded me of something out of a Robert Frost poem and the scenery made my husband think of the Minnesota midwest he grew up in. In other words, we felt at home. Not only that, but it was the perfect place to raise horses because it was hay grass, and thoughts of starting my own little rescue loomed in my mind. I decided to put in an offer, and it was accepted. We found a home and barn builder, and now we're just waiting until the building is completed which is set for the beginning of April. After living in the snow and cloud covered Great Lakes region for the past 10 years, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Kentucky doesn't get much snow. Up near Cleveland where we currently live, it is common for temperatures to fall below freezing for most of the winter and up to 60" of snow yearly. We still have about a foot of snow on the ground as I type this. The snow in the area where we'll be moving to in Kentucky is usually gone by the next day so I'm sure the horses will be happier too. As to my model horse collection, I might be making changes, focusing more on solid colors rather than pintos or appaloosas since their white areas have the tendency to yellow through the years. With northeast Ohio being one of the cloudiest areas in the country due to lake effect, I have a good portion of my collection that needs some window time. We're going to continue being an online only seller and are not planning on opening a physical store location at this time since the majority of our customers are from all over the country, although we do plan to add some other gifts to our store other than just model horses. Within the next year, I will be focusing on obtaining some retired regular runs to sell at all times, not just for sales I hold throughout the year. Our small business will help fund the rescued horses for now since we're a long way from a non-profit organization. As John Heywood wrote, "Rome wasn't built in a day, but they were laying bricks every hour". This is my philosophy.
The first of the 2022 regular runs are in the house and will be on their way to their new homes soon. Not all of them came with this shipment. I only received the Misty set, Orren Mixers and the swirl stablemates so if you were waiting for those to come in before ordering, I do have some left over if you're interested. The Orren Mixer is especially beautiful with a golden metallic sheen. I have the Classics coming in next week. I'm still waiting on Adamek and Native Sun, who are estimated to arrive by the end of this month. Sjoerd and the black mare/foal set aren't supposed to arrive until spring.
This page will be updated as more models are revealed. It looks like Breyer is revealing one a day (minus weekends) so we should be seeing the full lineup by the end of January. Pickups for special runs are now being offered until sell out. I highly recommend reading my BREYERFEST PICKUP page prior to purchasing. This lists my complete policies, which you must agree to prior to purchasing, and how everything will work this year. I was originally going to offer the limited editions as paid in full only, however due to numerous responses, I have decided to offer them with your choice of either deposit or paid in full. Limited editions will be put on my website within 24 hours of being revealed by Breyer and the remaining special runs this Friday. Special RunsThe following models are available to either VIP or 3 Day in person ticket holders only. This means that these models are only available to those who will be attending Breyerfest in person. Landler is a beautiful dappled rose grey on the Totilas mold. He is named after a popular German dance, hence the mold choice, and is limited to 2,300 pieces. Elbe and Spree are this year's mare and foal set. We get one every other year. They are red bay tobianos on the new Firefly and Hawkeye molds. Definitely eye catching colors! Named after a German river, they are limited to 2,200 sets. Stein is a stunning grullo on the new Fireheart mold. A color I was hoping would eventually pop up on this mold, he is on my personal wish list and is one I'm expecting to be pretty popular. He is named after the German beer cups that are used for toasts. Stein means "stone" hence the grey color. The surprise, that's never revealed ahead of time, is the Rotating Draft Surprise. This is the only model that I won't be offering from Breyerfest until after the event. The speculation is that it will be a draft mold, although that seems too obvious to me, however if there is no draft in the special run lineup then it's possible it could be a draft mold. My top three speculation in that case would be Goffert, Othello or Shannondell since they haven't been used in a couple years as Breyerfest models. Georg will be used already this year as a Collector Club special run and Vermeer was a Breyerfest special run last year. If not a draft, I'm thinking Bobby Jo since she's "rotating" and since she made a return in 2021 as the Tractor Supply limited edition, Cirrus. Sure didn't see this one coming. The animal mold for this year is a bear (despite a good majority of the guesses being a German shepherd) in the form of Haribo brand gummy bears. The bears are not a gambler's choice but instead a three piece set and will come with special packaging rather than in a plastic bag like the other special runs. Breyer is really big on the food for the German theme this year. Marzipan, a must have for my personal collection since Wyatt is one of the molds I plan to conga. A beautiful palomino overo, she is sure to be the light of any collection. Blue horse collectors will love this year's deco! Meet Franz, inspired by German art and made on the Spirit mold. Brahms was another inspired by German art. He is a really unique leopard appaloosa with mottling, ghost spotting and a solid black leg on the Big Ben mold. He is topped in high gloss. This boy will surely be popular being the flashiest horse in the lineup. My daughter, a major Disney fan, would love this final special run reveal... Rapunzel. Breyer definitely went a little Stone-like on this one with the mane modification. It wouldn't surprise me if this one is the 50/50 mane variation split. Limited EditionsThese models were originally the store specials until Breyer changed the name last year. A return to the food theme, meet Black Forest, the cake version this time and the annual Classics sized limited edition. That mane and tail are rather... unique to say the least. He is limited to 3,000 pieces. Wittlesbach is the limited edition stablemate made for this year's Breyerfest theme. Anyone recognize the pattern? He looks very similar to Newmarket from Breyerfest 2018 except in stablemate size this time. He'd make a great mini me if you already have Newmarket! He is also on the new Arabian mold, so if you weren't part of the club last year but want the first obtainable on the mold, here it is. He is limited to 5,000 pieces. The Best of Breyerfest stablemate series is continuing this year with series 3. Apparently they are miniatures of favorites from Breyerfest 2016 and I'm super excited to own a mini Pele and Radler! I think these stablemate sets are what I look forward to most at Breyerfest anymore. I'll never be able to own the traditionals so the minis are the next best thing. The mold choices for these guys were pretty good in representing the originals. I think we all saw this coming for the plushie! A little pony in lederhosen was guessed by many, and that's exactly what Breyer did. I tell ya, these plushes get cuter and cuter each year to the point where I'm really considering a plushie collection. His name is Strudel and he's limited to 2,500 pieces with his number on his hoof. Lorelei is the crystal for this year's theme, surprisingly done on the Proud Arabian Mare mold. I will NOT be doing pickups for the crystal due to the fact that they are so fragile to risk breaking during shipping but here is what she is supposed to look like: Chardonnay is another German Riding Pony, just like the celebration horse. He is a solid chestnut with lots of chrome on the Flash mold. He is limited to 3,000 pieces. Chablis is a true German breed. A highly accomplished horse in himself, he is portrayed on the Idocus mold, he is a beautiful dappled bay Wurttemberger warmblood. He is limited to 3,000 pieces. Montanara is the representation of the true Black Forest Horse, a breed that all of us were expecting Breyer to represent for this theme, but the choice of mold was NOT expected. Since this horse is a portrait model of a real horse, it is possible that the owner chose the mold so please keep comments kind. We will see another color on Vermeer soon enough. I personally think this colorway looks great on this vintage mold. Limited to 3,000 pieces. Online Only ExclusivesThis is new, as far as exclusives go. These models are ONLY available to online ticket holders and will NOT be available at in person Breyerfest. For this reason, I will not be offering them on my website since you will be able to purchase them yourselves no matter where you live. The Rhendish draft is the first up. Reminding me more of a Belgian than a German Rhendish in color, he is a light chestnut with three pink hooves and one grey on the popular Georg mold. I think we all kind of expected to see this mold used somewhere for the German themed Breyerfest. They are making a hefty 5,000 of him so plenty to go around. Torlinie is a stablemate made specifically for online ticket holders only. He is the cutest soccer ball pony if I ever did see one and they decided to use the Clydesdale mold to go with the draft theme, since Germany is full of drafters and warmbloods.
I'm eternally grateful to announce that both my son and I have made a full recovery from COVID. My husband is on the mend, as he is no longer testing positive but he still has a lingering cough. Now that all of us are no longer positive, I will be adding in stock ponies back to my web store along pre-orders for the rest of the Breyerfest limited editions that were revealed while we were sick. The free shipping discount for the celebration horse for the buyers of special runs is set to be sent to your emails this Friday, February 11th and will run through Sunday or until sell out. I have set aside some Nikolas models just for this weekend so you all can get the celebration horse shipped free with your special run, if you choose to do so. As to the regular runs because I know a lot of people have been asking... the only ones currently being shipped right now are the Unicorn Swirl stablemates gift set and Cora the Classics mermaid horse. I haven't received a shipping notice for anything else yet, but rumor has it that some of the traditionals should begin shipping this month. I will keep you all posted. If you have not seen the new Valentine's Day plushie for 2022, here it is: How cute is it to have a donkey plush? I'm actually thinking about getting this for my daughter, who is a forever growing Breyer fan. Her little tail and long ears are too adorable!
A final thought I was going to suggest before I pop out of here is possibly a guide for Breyerfest to those who are making 2022 their first year to go, or even veterans who just need some fresh ideas. As you all know by now, we are planning on making the move to Kentucky this spring once our house is finished being built however I have been making trips to Kentucky for years now and am quite familiar with the Lexington - and surrounding - areas. I was thinking about adding a page here on my website to give ideas of other places to see locally besides the KHP where Breyerfest is held. I can also offer recommendations as to lodging because we all know that the Clarion and Embassy fill up like literally the day people know when the exact dates will be for next year's Breyerfest. Would any of you be interested? Let me know in the comments! |
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