We've had yet more reveals already this week - and it's only the beginning of the week - that I'm starting to become a bit overwhelmed with the blog posts. Ugh! Breyer! Anyways, before I get to the really good stuff, we have three regular run limited edition reveals. First up is the holiday 2023 horse Highlander who has a cute reindeer costume in a stunning silver buckskin color on the Cantering Warmblood mold. Next up is Spectre who is the 2023 Halloween horse. Done in an orange and purple with glow in the dark ghosts and bubbly spots (like coming out of a cauldron brew) this guy looks promising, and he's on Ashquar to boot! The spring flagship release is one that I think all of us are going to want. Mariposa and Flor are a mare and foal set done on two all time favorite molds. Considering the fact that I was not collecting yet during the original Susecion and Le Fire craze, these molds have been elusive to my collection except for the unicorn pair, Diadem and Alcor. It seems like most of the flagship stores are already holding them for customers so my chances of finding this set appear to be slim as well. Since they are in plain bay, I guess I won't be too upset if I can't track them down, as personally I would've preferred a flashier colorway. Could you imagine if they ever made Susecion into the surprise model for Breyerfest like they did with Giselle when they separated her from Gilen? Yikes! Now, for the reveal we've all been waiting for and who is the title of this post, is Speos the first Breyerfest special run of 2023 to be revealed. He is meant to portray an Egyptian chariot horse on the new Amazigh mold in a fiery chestnut color with a white blaze. I don't know what it is about solid chestnuts that I like so much, but I like him! That was quick. I wasn't expecting Breyer to reveal the special runs so quickly but since they did, I've posted the event stablemates to my Breyerfest Pickup page for pre-order as promised. Shipping for the stablemates this year is FREE whether you order just one or all four. I will post a limited number of the special runs the day they are revealed. If Breyer is still doing Breyerfest the same way they did last year, I may post more later, but definitely visit my blog daily if you're interested in purchasing Breyerfest models for pickup. I will be adding a post soon listing all of this year's special runs, as I do every year, and will update as more are released.
Today I unexpectedly got Tiz the Law and Obsidian. It's honestly been a long time since I've seen Obsidian, so if you're interested in him, I now have a half dozen available in-hand. As I said in my previous post, I do not know if Breyer will have another restock by Christmas once they distribute this shipment to all their dealers, so if you want him as a gift, I highly recommend purchasing him now. This order I just received of Obsidian I ordered way back in April so that's how long it took to get him. Yes, things are crazy right now. Anyway this is the first time I've seen Tiz the Law in hand, and he has pretty nice shading for a bay. The shipment I received wasn't my full order but it was enough to complete my pre-orders so the next shipment - who knows when it'll get here - will be extras. However, I'm still waiting on my Marc of Charms (apparently he was so popular that Breyer is having a hard time keeping up with orders) so anyone who ordered Tiz the Law with Marc of Charm is still going to have to wait a bit longer. Hopefully he'll be here by Saturday but we'll see. I didn't even know this shipment was on the way, didn't get a shipping notification or anything, so I can only guess when they'll show up. No information on any upcoming club models yet. The Stablemate Club ordering time frame for Raider has come and gone but still no shipping notification. I'm beginning to wonder if they don't have all of those in stock yet either. I'm still wondering why they used a sneak peek of Astrid for the Collector Club newsletter last month, making us think she'd be released in August, and then we never heard any more. If you want to take the gamble, Breyer did release the annual Stablemate Club grab bag. It contains two past Stablemate Club models for $49.95 plus shipping. This is a good way for those who haven't been club members to get the models close to cost, or possibly even gambler's choices. As I've been in the club since the second year, I already have or had most of the models so I won't be taking up the offer. To be honest I'm still recovering from Breyerfest so I'm saving for that VIP sale of leftover BF SRs which should also be happening this month some time. Usually the Halloween bling bag stablemates and Classics Halloween horse would be released this month too but due to issues with shipping, they might be delayed as well.
I spoke too soon. Breyer revealed the mid year releases through email to dealers today. They are expected to arrive to us dealers around the last week of June. Unfortunately we were also informed that the pandemic has increased prices of supplies and shipments so current prices are what they are up until July 1st. After that, pricing will be going up, so I encourage anyone interested in purchasing models to get their order put in early to beat the price increase. Breyer confirmed that Old Glory will be made in unlimited quantities and is estimated to be re-released in September. He is still available on my website for those of you who'd like to pre-order one from that shipment. Now to introduce the new guys... That rumor about Marc of Charm being a future Breyerfest horse? Well, he's actually going to be a regular run, and he is part of the mid year lineup. Not surprisingly since we just had Livingston released on the older Saddlebred mold that Marc of Charm is on the Hamilton mold. Next up is Tiz the Law. Everybody loved him for his unique facial markings, and he was a pretty good horse on the track as well. Breyer made a model of him already despite being recently retired. He is on the Lonesome Glory mold. Omega Fahim is a black beauty in his own right. He is a champion Arabian stallion and has a shimmery solid black body with an iridescent blue sheen. He is on the popular Shagya Arabian mold and would be the perfect addition to your conga! To round out the traditionals there is the annual Halloween horse, Thriller, who is on the Gypsy Vanner mold and glows in the dark. He is Breyer's intake on a zombie horse. Finally we have two new Classics, a Black Stallion model and book set on the Malik mold, and a new addition to the Cupcake horse series: Red Velvet. He looks similar to the original Cupcake except he has a chestnut base coat instead of bay. All these new models are available on my website for pre-ordering. All are in unlimited quantities (meaning you can order as many as you want) except for Thriller. Dealers are limited to only 12 models of him so he will sell out quick. I appreciate all pre-orders and your support of my small business :)
Unless you were selected for the True Blue event, it has been pretty quiet on Breyer's end of late. I decided to go ahead and write a post anyways despite there not being any new releases other than a prize model from Breyerfest and a test model to Collector Club members for - now hold your hats - $1350! He's pretty, and I was actually tempted to put my name in for him even though my odds of winning him were astronomical. I didn't because Breyerfest is just around the corner, as are the mid years, so I need to save as much as possible. In all honesty, I've been itching to buy some new ponies but market prices have been ridiculous for months. However, with people now starting to sell off some pieces from their own collections to make money/room for Breyerfest models, the tables are starting to turn. I recently just purchased a good portion of a fellow hobbyist's collection because she was downsizing for This reason. This was my first large collection I've ever purchased, and it certainly made up for the dry spell. Some of the horses will be sold, others will be kept for my personal collection. Hopefully it'll help cure the buying bug until July.
Crane selections have already gone out to those who entered as well as the waiting list, and Stablemate Club members should have their buying bug cured soon, as will Premier Club members when we will be able to finally purchase Fireheart next month, which I'm really excited to see this boy in person. Attention stablemate collectors... there ARE going to be a new series of regular run stablemates this year after all, and I think you're going to like them! We will have a beautiful bay varnish appaloosa on the elusive Corbin mold, who has only been made a handful of times. There is a mulberry grey Alborozo, black Charleston (finally a regular run!) and a palomino pinto Standing Warmblood. Finally, my two personal favorites are the blue roan pinto Cob and dun - or buckskin - Django. Here are pictures: These guys are available for pre-ordering on my Store page as individuals or the complete set. They are expected to be released late spring. The models for the True Blue event were also revealed today, and I really regret not getting a ticket. I would've loved to have that Old Timer and Ruffian! Congrats to the winners of the True Blue event! Fingers crossed y'all get what you want!
The rest of my 2021 regular run shipment is here! Weirdly my Atticus and Julius tagged along for the ride with my dealer order, and despite being paid for together, they were both shipped as two separate packages. So much for a box buddy, kind of defeats the purpose. Anyways, at least they're here, and for Atticus I ended up with the matte one. I really like his rich bay realistic Clydesdale coloring. Reminds me of the Budweiser horses. I still have yet to purchase Atticus on my other account only because I was waiting to see if Lafayette was coming out since I paid for Carter at the end of January last year. I'm giving them until Tuesday of next week to release him before I buy my second Atticus. Hopefully I'll get the glossy with my second one. I don't really like the new packaging. I kind of like the mini window boxes more, especially as there wasn't anything keeping Atticus from floating around in the box except a single layer of bubblewrap. However, I miss the days when they came with drawstring bags the most because then Breyer had to actually ship them in those sturdier brown shipping boxes and not the cheap tiny flimsy horsey cardboard that they ship them in now that crush easily... or in my case was left out in the snow and was soaked. I have several Vintage Club horses in my collection but Julius is my first directly from Breyer. This is my first year ever in the club, mostly because vintage horses aren't really my thing. I grew up in the 90s/early 2000s during the Kathleen Moody craze when she revolutionized the molds for Breyer. I was excited to find out that I had a low club number too, only #85 of 500. I've never had one under 100 so this was a nice surprise. Julius is a stunning specimen and that vintage red roan looks really good on him. I'm excited to add him to my herd. I love the box and COA with some facts on it that Breyer includes with each horse. He was a mold that I didn't really care for at first (I much prefer action molds) until I bought Oak from Breyerfest, and now he's grown on me. He reminds me of a Belgian I rode in my childhood. Adding Theo to my collection as well now puts my Georg conga up to three. All I'm missing is the original Georg. Theo is really nice too and slightly metallic in color. They look really good together. Now Breyer needs to make a blue roan :) I was a bit disappointed in my dealer order. It looked like Breyer was really in a hurry to get them out the door and I had a few arrive with damaged boxes. Three of the Orren Mixers I'll have to sell out of box because they were just too damaged. One of the Theos had a huge hole in the plastic on the front of the box so I'm just going to keep him for myself since he was an extra anyway. I always purchase a few more than what I sell for pre-orders to cover any damages that occur in the mail. The rest thankfully arrived unscathed and will be on their way to their new homes within the next few days. All extras will be posted on eBay. Here are pictures of the rest of my order that I didn't show in my last post: Before anyone asks, I didn't get any chase models with this shipment, neither the rare or the ultra rare. Oh, well. After getting three chases in a row last year, ya win some and ya lose some. I did however get a few variations. Some of my yellow Prince Charmings had a orange hue while the majority were a soft yellow. One of my Crois had a blue interference while the rest were pearly purple. It looked like an oopsie because the blue interference was only on one side, like the artist realized they weren't supposed to do that and stopped midway through the paint job.
Meet the 2021 traditional regular runs! Breyer revealed them today when they sent us dealers the digital dealer catalog. I have to say that this lineup is probably one of the best ever. I'm so excited to share them with you (I do apologize for the rather grainy pictures... I was in a hurry to get them up and took pictures of my computer screen) and pre-orders are currently being taken right here on my website. Estimated ship time is late January to early February. I will post the Classics and stablemates in a different post tomorrow, although they're available on my website as well. If you would like to see them, visit my 2021 New Releases page :) Here he is... the man we all saw in the Collector Club JAH annual magazine. The second in the Ideal Series, which apparently is going to continue on for a few years. Honestly I wasn't too impressed with the chestnut from last year, but I gotta say this guy will fit right in with my flashy herd. To go along with their Breyerfest theme, from what I'm seeing of the 2021 regular runs, I'm expecting a colorful year! It's nice to see a return of the Roxy mold, this time on a beautiful dun blanket appaloosa, complete with a realistic mottled nose. I have a small conga on this mold and I plan to also eventually add this guy to my own collection. His name, quite fittingly, is Choclately. Another mold making a comeback is the Icelandic Horse. This is the first color I've actually liked on this mold. The grey of Elska was too light for my liking (was mostly bare plastic) and the plain bay of Svali Fra Tjorn was too common. I regret not entering for Honeysuckle but at the time I was just getting back into collecting again and didn't have the funds for her. Two things have happened with this release that I've been secretly wishing for in years: one is a cremello in a regular run. Two is a traditional scale model of Cloud's herd members. They did them in Classics series but only Cloud was made in traditional. Well, I got what I wished for, and on one of my favorite all-time molds (yes, I'm a Forever Saige fan rarity) so this set will definitely be joining my herd! This is Encore, Cloud's daughter, and her foal, Tor. Admittedly I wasn't in love with initial release of Georg, not because of his mold... even though he's not an action-y pose, which is what I like most, he had the most dreamy eyes and his face is so full of expression, it almost looks as if he's smiling... it was more due to his color. I'm not fond of plain bays - not his fault - it's just my preference. However, I have loved just about every other color this horse has come out in so far, and I'm really digging this bay roan. The bay roan will look so good with my Vintage Club red roan Julius that I can't wait to see him in person! I expect a big sell out on this boy, whose name is Theo (I cherish the short and simple names) and he's an Ardennes. When I first saw this guy, I initially thought that he would make a good stallion to Bellatrix and Spica. Although I can't tell if he's solid black or will have a bluish tinge like they did, I guess I'll find out once he's in-hand. His name is Obsidian and he's a beautiful black stallion on the Gypsy Vanner mold. This stunning boy is Arctic Grandeur and he is your 2021 holiday horse! I have signed up to purchase him, although I'm not doing pre-orders until it gets closer to time, as he's not expected to release until September 2021 and I don't like to hold people's money that long. He is a stunning grey horse (looks very close to the color of his original release minus the star dapples) and is carrying a friend in the form of an arctic fox on his back. Last but not least, this is your spring flagship horse, Livingston. Now, as I am an online dealer only, I won't be getting him myself. In order to get the flagship horses, you have to have a physical brick-and-mortar store and you have to spend a certain amount of money in Breyer orders. However, I do have some fellow dealers in my area where I sometimes can purchase them to offer here on my website, although I do have to price them a bit higher since they are technically second hand. I will try my best to locate a couple of these beauties to put here on my website when he's released in April.
So I just received my last order of the year as a Breyer dealer. My next order won't be until 2021 when the new regular runs are released. Looking back I am incredibly grateful to Breyer for making me part of their team by accepting my application to become an online dealer, but especially to my many customers who have made it all possible and worthwhile. I'm happy to be able to offer you all these beautiful horses. Though I've had a few with damaged boxes (not due to Breyer's fault but the fault of UPS) I've thankfully not had too many horses show up with flaws, and the few I did have, I customized. It's been a good first year as a Breyer dealer, and I'm looking forward to many more years with their company :) One of my favorite things about being a dealer is seeing all the different variations of horses Breyer sends me. A good example were a couple that showed up in my order today. The grey Shire, who is normally plain (at least in my world of color though a lot of people like him) had some outstanding dappling. I've never had a Shire with such bold dapples from all the horses I've purchased, and I've had at least a half dozen so far that people have ordered from me. I even went through my first shipment of Shires looking for some difference between them... darker shading, dappling, etc. and found none. Well this time, I finally did end up with a variation. Look at him: Another one that I've purchased a couple before was EZ to Spot. The ones I got with my first order were bare plastic under the spots. The one I received with my order has some lovely dark grey shading on the upper half of his body and legs, almost making him look like a roan semi leopard rather than a leopard appaloosa. I saw a few people get glossies that had the grey shading during the CCA event but this is the first time I've seen it on a regular run... and I like it! I love to see Breyer up their game, as more times than not when regular runs are first released, they don't look the same as right before they're retired (both the Shire and EZ to Spot are retiring this year which is why I've received a cluster of people wanting them lately) because Breyer changes them slightly. Take Lil Ricky Rocker, for example. When he was first released, he was bare plastic as well. Recent ones have been pearly over the white areas. I saw on social media that there have been lighter colored, semi-glossy Winx floating around. They make so many variations of regular runs and they're so cheap that it's hard not to have several of the same horse.
While some are reserved for customers who have pre-ordered back in September (I apologize greatly for the delay and appreciate your patience) everything else is available in my web store. I wasn't sure if Breyer, like so many other companies this year (because 2020 has been completely unpredictable) would do their Black Friday sale early this year so I thought that last week's Black Friday preview for Collector Club members was the actual sale coming a week early. Well, that was sneaky of Breyer to do because I almost missed the sale thinking it was going to be all regular runs and they weren't going to offer anything good this year. I had an alarm set on my phone to go off on what I was predicting to be Breyer's Black Friday sale, as it's always a week early for Collector Club members. I thought "but they did their sale last week" however something deep inside of me decided to check anyways, and this is what I found: With how quickly Bristol sold out, this is why when people ask me if the Collector Club membership is worth the price, and I always tell them yes. Even if you don't join the specialty clubs, you still get access to these previously released club models for very close to the original price during their Black Friday sale, and sometimes their New Year sale (hint hint for those not familiar with the lay of the club) because, even if you joined the specialty clubs year after year, there are often lottery models available that you weren't drawn for. Acadia and Ruben are good examples of those. Yes, this was a good Black Friday lineup. Another lottery draw is in progress, a glossy grey vintage Belgian. He isn't my cup of tea but he is a one of a kind, so if you want him, be sure to put your name in for him (another perk of being in the Collector Club as he is only available to members) and one lucky person will win him for $1000 price tag. Finally, I'd like to introduce the new Breyer Farms stables to y'all. They're made of the same material as the unicorns but are painted pretty simply. They don't have much shading to their coats, which gives them kind of a vintage look, especially the palomino Saddlebred and alabaster Quarter Horse. The buckskin has kind of a metallic tinge to their coats. Until my web store is set up, I still have quite a few available for sale on eBay if you'd like to purchase one for yourself or to gift. They are durable enough that they won't break easily if they fall off your shelf, unlike regular stablemates, making them good for play. The stable could also be used as a storage shelf for your stablemates. This little set has lots of potential.
I apologize for this late review, but I ended up having a busier than usual weekend and so had to postpone my post about Troubadour that I promised to write for you guys. Anyways, I'm in love with him! I've honestly looked this guy over several times and can't find a single flaw on him. He's that amazing. Kylee Parks did a fantastic job on him. What I didn't know until I had him in hand is that he is chalky, so his white areas are painted white and not bare plastic. His mapping is crisp and his facial expression is soft. The dappling is very subtle to the point of being realistic and the pearling in the mane/tail. I freaked out a bit when I saw he was going to be on a trotting pose (bring back horrendous memories of tippy horses) but actually he stands pretty solidly. Honestly, I can't wait to see what they use on this guy in future. The Premier Club is now open for membership! You have until December 31st to sign up - this club is not limited unlike the Vintage Club. You do, however, have to be a Collector Club member, either regular or Deluxe in order to be able to get into the Premier Club. A $100 deposit is required to hold your spot in the club. Each horse costs $175 plus shipping but your deposit is deducted from the cost of each horse - $100 divided by three horses is $33.33 per horse which you minus from $175 so each horse is $141.67 plus shipping (shipping is $17.50 per horse for US residents) when released. I have decided to rejoin the Premier Club for next year, as Fireheart is definitely on my must-have list being a sooty palomino. Finally, word has been getting around about possible sneak peeks of future regular runs. In the new mini catalog that Breyer sends with just about everything, there are a couple horses that cropped up that nobody has seen before. The Arabian has the exact same pattern as Natasha from Breyerfest, the palomino Saddlebred was from the 70th anniversary set this year, then Ash from Breyerfest and Klaus from the Stablemates Club. However, the bat Morgan (Fairfax mold) and the chestnut Croi are new. Will they be 2021 RRs? It's not out of the realm of possibility with most RRs being common colors. It won't be too much longer before we find out!
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