Merry Christmas to all! If you're a Collector Club member, you were able to snag one of these today. Meet Spice Drop: A Croi in silver or gold filigree? Yes, please! Even though she is clearware, I decided to try for one, considering my love of the Croi mold and the fact that I haven't purchased a Santa Surprise in years. Spice sold out in about 10 minutes and the website kept crashing during checkout but I was able to put in my order. Can't wait to see which color I get! This is actually one gambler's choice that I don't really have a stand out favorite. What about you? Did you get one and, if so, who are you hoping to get? There are an additional 12 pieces of coal, as per usual, but only 2025 of the Croi models themselves, so I'm thinking they didn't really increase them much from the 500 pieces that are typically offered for the Santa Surprise, which to me is kind of a shocker considering that they're upping the numbers for everything else. Maybe next year they'll consider increasing it to 750 pieces.
Just like how quickly Honeybunch sold out last year being on the Emma mold, so did Gingerbread. He is already sold out, and "he" actually turned out to be a "she". That's right, folks! Breyer made Gingerbread a mare. Lots of people were complaining of flaws with this gal, and I was one of them who ended up with a flawed model. The model I was sent had a huge goober stuck to the side of her face. In a way it makes her unique, as it looks almost like a human beauty mark. Can't get perfect ponies every time, I guess. Her coloring is still very pretty with some slight metallic shimmer. The annual holiday horse, Arctic Grandeur, is also here and the last round of pre-orders were shipped off to their new homes today. This guy, like Cirrus, is pearly as well but he is much darker shaded, almost a steely grey. I actually like medium to dark greys so he'll fit well into my collection. I have all the holiday horses since I began collecting in 2007 starting with Wintersong. Here is a picture of Arctic, with and without tack: Finally, the unicorn set has landed, and my first ever on this mold. I don't really understand the complaints with this set (other than factory flaws, of course) when I was just happy to get a set of these two at cost. The mare of the pair I ended up was mostly white with light blue shading. There was hardly any pink except around her muzzle and eyes. Her foal color shifts between blue and black under the light. He is adorable. They both are, really, and as much as I'd love Breyer to stop adding a horn to everything, I do think this pair were kind of destined to be unicorns. It has been a lovely holiday season so far. If you're in the Vintage Club, the gambler's choice, Nugget, as well as the vintage stablemate and optional purchase Dusk and Dawn are now available for pre-order. Since Breyer's vintage decorator colors aren't something I collect, both of the traditionals are going to new homes, as well as the stablemate since I don't usually keep those anyways, so those who pre-ordered them keep on the lookout... they should be arriving within a couple weeks to you :)
I'm hoping we'll see Astrid soon, and I'm really surprised nobody has mentioned anything of Chalice, the Deluxe stablemate model who was supposed to be shipped in the fall this year. Although we're winding down to the end of the year, there's still so much to look forward to! If you haven't been under the new releases on Breyer's website, meet Gingerbread, the next in the annual A Pony for Christmas series. I've collected this series since they started it with the Haflinger in 2018 and so I have already purchased Gingerbread for my personal collection who will be joining said Haflinger (who didn't have a name) and Honeybunch on my shelves. I will not be carrying these on my website. They are a Breyer web exclusive, not available to dealers. He comes with a cute gift box and blanket. Being on the Bouncer mold, this guy will probably be pretty popular. So what's left? Well, we already have our Classics unicorn in Solar Flare. There may or may not be a limited edition holiday decorator, Christoff was offered last year but this was the first time they'd done it so I have no idea if it'll be a new tradition or if it was just a one time thing. We should also be getting a web exclusive holiday mare and foal set. Speculation was that this will be the Arabian mare and foal mold teased to us in the Collector Club newsletter from last month but it's possible they'll be the holiday lottery models. I truly hope not because I would love to have an obtainable set at original price but then another part of me feels like they're going to slap a horn on them.
The past few years they've also offered stablemate blind bags for the holiday season. It started with the Fruitcake Fillies, then the Starry Skies, but then it really got into the holiday spirit with the Festive Filigrees. The Collector Club Appreciation event, which was done last year around this time but so far has been no mention of this year, is still up in the air. Deluxe members from this year are still eagerly awaiting their exclusive stablemate (whose name I cannot for the life of me recall but he was on the Alborozo mold and was a replica of the $22,000 auction horse) that was supposed to arrive fall 2020. So all in all, still quite a bit to look forward to. The best time of the year is upon us! The October newsletter showed up in my mailbox today. It contained a really interesting article about the history of the Halloween horses and a giveaway to enter for Salem and Ratsputin. I entered for the fun of it since my Salem I had ended up taking a nosedive off the shelf and got a nice scratch down his side along with an ear rub so I sold him off for a lot lower than I would've liked. I don't expect to replace him ever again given the prices he's going for now so it'd be nice to win him back, though I don't expect anything to come of it since they're only giving away one set. It looks like the winter decorator which is done as a lottery model is going to be on time, as it's usually available in November and the newsletter contained a sneak peek of it. It appears they're going back to the blue filigree coloring of Benasque from the previous year, which is awesome because I missed out on Benasque and I love Breyer's glittery blue ponies. Mirror Image and the blue Lancelot will forever be part of my collection. The mold for this one is hard to tell (there was no indication in the description) but it appears very muscle-y. There have been so many releases lately that Identify Your Breyer has even had a hard time keeping up. Some of the latest releases still aren't pictured on there. I think we can finally breathe a little easier now. Unless There is still Black Friday to look forward to, although with most stores putting out their deals early, it wouldn't surprise me if Breyer does the same. For Collector Club members, there may be previous club releases posted that had a hard time selling, though if you've been up-to-date on the club for the past few years, it most likely won't be anything too spectacular. For those who are new, you might find some diamonds in the rough.
Other than that, unless Breyer has anything else up their sleeves, which I wouldn't put past them, the only others left are the upcoming blue filigree guy, the lottery animal and the Santa Surprise. Two on the rocks are a winter stablemates gambler's choice (last year it was the Starry Skies which didn't sell really well so they may not do another) and the Connoisseur quality Ambrose that they released right before the new year. Will they do another at the end of this year or was he just a fluke? I guess we'll find out. Ambrose was $295 to purchase though, which is pretty steep for all but the most serious of collectors. Just when you think it was over, Breyer has cranked out yet another release today. This is Christoff the new Classics winter decorator. I'm assuming this guy is taking the place of the previously released web exclusive Classics (examples are Frosty, Coeur de Lion, Zenith, etc.) but this guy is unique because he's a clearware, and his pattern is very similar to St. Moritz. I may end up adding this guy as a buddy to ride with when I purchase the final Premier Club horse, provided he's still available by then. Only 2,000 were made. I'm assuming they'll release some wintry stablemates either next month or in December so I'll let y'all know if that happens. In the meantime, I've received Valerio, and I ended up with the sooty buckskin appaloosa. The first thing I thought was that he looks very similar to Andante. Here are some in-hand pictures of him before I package him up to be sent to his new home: Unfortunately he just wasn't my cup of tea. Although he was described by Breyer as a "sooty buckskin" he just looked too bay to me, especially as the one I received was super dark, hardly any yellow at all. I probably won't hunt down the rose grey since prices are outrageous for this guy so instead I will be looking forward to the dapple grey Clydesdale and the chunky broodmare in December!
Of course they had to add in a chase model, Licorice, the solid black zebra who, as with Coal from last year, was limited to 12 pieces. The rest of the colors were limited to 500 each and Breyer was charging $135 each (free shipping was included - even to international buyers) which seems to me like they were making sure there were enough zebras so that most CC members have a chance to get one so that way they wouldn't have to deal with the complaints from the CC Appreciation deal about them selling out too fast. But people are going to complain anyways. In this case it was the price being too high for not being "limited" enough.
While most people thought it wasn't worth it, I did go ahead and buy one. I loved all the colors and I'm excited to add it to my collection. I plan on keeping whichever one Breyer sends me as a part of my permanent collection. I love the pearly sheen and the high gloss finish. I also love that they're on a mold that isn't very common. I would like to end this post by wishing all my readers that share a love of plastic ponies, no matter where you are or what you celebrate this time of the year, a very happy holiday! I apologize yet again for the double daily post, but Breyer has been pumping out horses faster than we can save for them. Now without further ado... Meet Avoriaz the Collector Club winter decorator lottery model! It appears that this horse is on the Performance Lipizzaner Mare mold and is rose gold. You could either win her in a gambler's choice of filigree - aka dappled - or solid colored (usually called "charm") and there were only 175 pieces made of each. While I admit she is tempting, as I absolutely love rose gold anything, I have to pass. Her $160 price tag is just too steep for me at this time of the year. I'm already having a hard time saving up for the club deposits. Ugh! Breyer you really know how to drain people's wallets.
Note: All the releases spoken about below are offered to Collector Club members only. Some, if they don't sell out, are then offered to everyone else through Breyer's website. Well, the Classics sized Halloween web special, Salem, has already been sold out. As per usual with the Classics Halloween horse, his release fell in September. Although his price was hiked to $30 from the usual $25 we can consider this still to be a good price to pay for a Classics model, especially one as detailed as Salem with his pearlescent coat, blue eyes, cat design and glow in the dark pinto color. It showed in how quickly people scooped him up, as the past couple years Breyer still had Halloween horses well into the next year. Now where it gets confusing is with the new Spooky stablemates. Are they supposed to take the place of the fall gambler's choice? The year before last, we had Calvin released in September, so it isn't out of the realm of possibility. Last year the Fruitcake Fillies weren't released until December but I think that was more because they were Christmas themed. I'm going to assume, until further notice, that the Spooky stablemates were this year's fall gambler's choice. Finally, with the arrival of Nadifa of the Wild Animal series, I'm starting to get excited because this means that the holidays are officially here! We have the Black Friday deals coming up, although they are almost always unsold club releases, which I have most of the horses from the past several years and the specialty club items are often too expensive for what I'm willing to pay. If you would like to join the Collector Club to get hold of past models at close to original prices, now would be a good time to join! So what else is there to look forward to? Well, the fifth Stablemates Club horse, Priscilla, was released today. When I first saw her, I admit that she didn't really "wow" me. She looked similar to Primrose, the very first SM CC model ever made. At first, I didn't even think she could be a real breed, but then I looked more into it and she could potentially be a Sugarbush Harlequin drafter (think traditional Harley) like the one pictured above. As I wasn't a member of the first year of the SM CC and the fact that her coloring was very similar to Zipped in Black Magic, I decied to give her a try, especially as I had her on eBay for a few days with no takers. Hopefully she'll look better in real life. The last horse in the SM CC is to be released sometime in December. We already know what the new mold will look like thanks to Breyerfest. The mold shown at Breyerfest was glossed... is that a sign that we're looking forward to a glossy final release? I sure hope so! I'm expecting we'll see a preview of the color sometime later in October or November, as well as sneak peeks of the 2020 SM CC horses late in December. Remember Lucien from Breyerfest? He's a beautiful buckskin pinto on the Valegro mold. I'm so happy to see this mold being used again. It's honestly been a while. The coloring is amazing and from word of mouth this guy will probably sell out quick so I hope to get my hands on him because I love flashy horses! I'm expecting him to release sometime this month. The CC SRs have been averaging $75 lately. We are also expected another winter themed decorator, as well as a non-horse model, both of which fall on the pricey side. We're talking usually around $150 which sometimes includes postage and sometimes not. The horse is typically released in November while the animal is released in December. Something else to look forward to, probably around late November/early December, is the release of the holiday mare and foal. The mold it'll be on is a mystery, although I'm expecting a vintage mold since all except one in previous years were vintage molds. If they decide to still do it this year, I'm really hoping for a Clydesdale mare and foal! If you're not a member of the Collector Club, you won't be able to take part in this one either. The Collector Club Appreciation deal is for members only, and you get a free model with a $125 purchase of regular runs. This year, I'm expecting they'll gloss Seamus, the flagship horse, and possibly Bisbee. They usually do one other limited edition too - I'm expecting Bisbee. As for which regular runs they'll choose, I haven't the faintest. We'll have to wait for Breyer to release that information. For those who want to take part, if you join the 2019-2020 membership, you can still have access to the CC Appreciation deal. It usually is offered mid December and sells out very quickly. Just a fair warning.
We also have the annual Just About Horses magazine to look forward to. I'm hoping there will be some reveals for next year in there too, or in the holiday catalog that Breyer ships out. While the JAH is for CC members only, you should still get the holiday catalog since that one is sent to everyone who made a purchase through Breyer's website this year. The holiday catalog had the reveal of Wish and Wonder in it last year. Lastly, I want to discuss the Collector Club Christmas Surprise. This horse, released early Christmas day, is often sold out within hours. It is always a decorator, but what kind of decorator is the question. The first couple years it was a filigree on different Christmas-y colors, while the third year it was a clearware and last year it was a unicorn. The price was originally only $95 with free shipping, but that was hiked up last year to $150 because of the potential to be one of only 12 "naughty" people to get a coal black donkey. A lot of collectors were furious with the price inflation, yet on the other hand all the unicorns ended up selling out because of the donkey, so who knows what Breyer will do this year? You know when a horse wins the Triple Crown, that automatically sets him up to become a Breyer horse, and so it is with Justify. To be honest, I'm not thrilled with this mold. I'll probably get him just because I do try to collect the "big horses" of horse racing, but I was hoping he'd be on more of an action mold. He is also being released on stablemates size and as ornaments. The fourth in the Stablemates Club has been released today. Here is Raleigh, a glossy buckskin pinto American Saddlebred mare. Personally she isn't my cup of tea (she is pretty, no doubt, just not a breed I collect) so I won't be keeping her. She will be available on my eBay page. Dundee is the upcoming Premier Club model... and look at his adorable stablemate namesake! The stablemate in all honesty reminds me of a Lipizzan horse although the traditional version looks more like a stock horse. Either way, they are gorgeous. Around Breyerfest, Collector Club members were asked to vote on their favorite horse from the above models. His name is My Strongest Suit and he will most likely be a limited edition for 2019, or possibly even the Collector Club SR for fall 2018. I chose the buckskin but the grey seems to be most popular on the CC forums so I won't be surprised if that one is the winner next year. Verdades will be released around the World Equestrian Games so be on the look out for him if you collect dressage horses and/or the Salinero mold.
Breyer is offering their final deal of the year today. Get FREE shipping PLUS 10% off most horses on their website if you purchase $50 or more of items. If you're a Collector Club member, you get 20% off of your $50 purchase. You must put in the promo code at checkout for the discounts to apply. Deals are eligible until December 27th. A web exclusive was offered today to Collector Club members only. It is a gambler's choice of three different colors of filigree horses on the Sherman Morgan mold. For $95 it was limited to 350 per color. You could either get Gold, Frankincense (green) or Myrrh (red) shipped randomly by Breyer.
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