Featured JAH - 9/30/2023, Winter 1994

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured JAH! This week's issue is Winter 1994, so let's jump right in! 

On the front cover, a guy brings in some horses during a snowstorm. On the back cover, the Ideal American Quarter Horse mold makes his debut...or an early version of it, at least. I'm not sure of the full story behind this prototype and why it looks so different from the final product, but it's kind of ironic that the not-so-popular Ideal AQH actually looks better than the prototype - usually it's the other way around. Check out those weird-looking hooves, especially. 

On the inside cover, Gem Twist debuts a braid change and Goliath, the American Cream Draft makes his first appearance along with a buckskin Western Pony. I wouldn't mind seeing another American Cream release someday on a newer mold. 

On page 4 we have an article about American Quarter Horses, and page 5 contains the article about the AQHA Foundation Sire Series along with a short bio of Wimpy, the first horse in the series. 

Page 8 has a nice little article by a German collector, detailing her history of collecting Breyer models in Europe (slightly more difficult than in the USA), and page 9's "Who Am I?" appears to feature a Running Stallion of some type. 

I cropped out page 14 because it was the end of an article about customizing models. Page 15 features a unicornized, flocky version of Smoky, and the Just About...Breyer Animals features the Guernsey Cow and Calf.

Page 20 has a sneak preview of High Flyer on the old TWH and Pug the Boxer, as well as the retired list for 1995 (items circled by a previous reader). 

On page 30 we have an article about footpads by Andrea Gurdon (Breyer History Diva), and page 31's Vintage Point features the popular Lady Phase! 

I must have forgotten that the real Lady Phase was only two years old when her portrait model was sculpted, or that she died shortly after the model was released. I guess these old magazines really do have something to teach! 

That's all I have for this week's issue, and we've completed 1994! Check back next week for Jan/Feb 1995. 

September Collector Club Newsletter!

 Good news, readers! The September Collector Club newsletter is here! If you're a Collector Club member, check your email for more. Interestingly, the feature story covers an old Breyer promotional video called "The World of Breyer Horses", which was actually quite informative in the glimpse it gives of the model production process. It's from 1988, so a bit dated, but still worth watching. Aside from the video, the newsletter also features a Halloween-themed giveaway and a new sneak peek! 

Looks pretty! I don't know what it could be, other than something on an older mold, judging by the textured surface. I guess we'll find out soon! 

Featured JAH - 9/23/2023, Fall 1994

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured JAH! This week's issue is Fall 1994, so grab your favorite fuzzy sweater and pumpkin spice refreshment of choice and get ready for another trip down memory lane. 

On the front cover, Hackney mare Native Donna Beverly struts her stuff. On the back cover, the 1994 JAH special run Moon Shadows also struts his stuff, and probably sold out really fast. 

On the inside cover, feel free to drool over the handsome Winchester, the 1994 Breyerfest Raffle Model. At this time there was still only one raffle model despite the event now being three days long. We also see the first special runs created especially for Breyerfest to be purchased at the event - a precursor to the special run line items we have now.

 

Stephanie recaps Breyerfest in the Editor's Desk article - apparently the 1994 event drew 15,000 people, which is pretty impressive. In Dear JAH, we see some valuable information about materials the various Breyer products are molded from. Also, apparently Peter Stone, Breyer Man's favorite Breyer model is/was Sham. 

On page 6 we have a Who Am I? that looks like a PAM, or maybe a CAM. On page 7 we have the start of the Breyerfest recap. 

The recap continues on page 8-9, complete with a photo of Peter Stone, Breyer Man. One of the top items at the live auction was a "rosy rabicano roan Sham" which sold for $1,200, equivalent to $2,482 now. There were a lot more auction lots then compared to now - they must have really been cleaning out the archive room in those days. 

On the centerfold we have some photos from that year, including the live auction (models outdoors, where anyone could grab them?), the raffle (also outdoors in the hot sun, perfect for July in Kentucky), someone shopping in a vendor tent (those had all been in the covered arena in recent years, but are starting to show up back in tents outside the arena in the last couple of years) and a Collector's Class entry (no indication of how it placed). 

On page 20 we have an article on blue ribbon stickers by Andrea Gurdon (Breyer History Diva). 

On page 27 we have the remainder of the Breyerfest recap article. I cropped out the other page that had some classified ads on it. 

This article's Vintage Point covers the Five Gaiter, with photos of all its releases up to that point (not including Moon Shadows - refer to the back cover for him). Interestingly, CH Imperator (regular run from 1994-1995) isn't pictured here for some reason, though he's mentioned in the article. I wanted CH Imperator back in the day. I don't remember if there were other Five Gaiters I wanted.

That brings us to the end of the fall 1994 issue. Check back next week for Winter 1994!  

The Fabulous Thunderbirds

 Good news, everyone! Or, well, bad news if you're a Silver collector and don't have multiple Vintage Club memberships. Behold, the gambler's choice release for 2023!

Oh boy. Four new Silvers? In four vintage paint jobs? Well, now I'm kinda regretting not joining the VC this year. Hmm...well...nah, still not worth it. But ouch! Four new Silvers, when I just got finished putting all my models on shelves and figured I wouldn't be getting any new Silvers anytime soon? I guess I do have room for more, but it's going to be hard to get all of these - I presume there are 250 of each color since the VC is up to 1,000 memberships this year. Sheesh! Sure hope I can find one or four for a decent price down the line, but I'm not enthusiastic about my chances.

Also, apparently this year's VC free Stablemate will ship with these as well! Here he is, if you're like me and forgot who he was:

At least we're finally getting Darwin in a Lipizzaner color! Just one more thing for me to find later - though it'll probably be easier than getting any Thunderbirds. Anyway, I hope lucky VC members will get the colors they like! I think I like the palomino the best, followed by the bay, the Appaloosa and the pinto. 

Leif is here!

 Good news, readers! My Leif is here - behold: 

My apologies for cutting off the tops of his ears - whoops. In my defense, I saw it had happened and took another photo, but that one ended up being slightly out of focus and I don't feel like going upstairs to take another one. Oh well.

What a handsome boy! I like the green highlights on his hooves and the tip of his tail, and he also has a pinkish interference on his mane and tail. 

I'm not crazy about the tips of his ears (slightly smushed) but he's not too bad otherwise. 

He looks good on the shelf with my other Vermeers, too. Speaking of shelves - I finally got the rest of my models unpacked! My husband had to build three more shelves for me (for a total of seven), but everyone is now on a shelf! And nothing got broken, although I had another bubble wrap casualty - one of my (matte) G3 Friesians wound up with paint damage from the bubbles, which is...weird, but whatever. As soon as I get the giant pile of bubble wrap cleaned up I'll try to get some photos! It's nice to see them all back on the shelves along with all the models I've bought in the last year. 

Yellowstone selections are out!

Just a quick update today - the selections for Yellowstone have gone out! If you entered for him, check your email and/or your Club Home page and see if you were drawn. Congratulations to the winners! 

Featured JAH: 9/16/2023, Summer II 1994

Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured JAH! This week we're covering the Summer II 1994 issue, so strap in and get ready! 

 













On the front cover, the beautiful Domino trots across a field. I believe this image was also used on the box catalogs for 1994? Or somewhere - I know I've seen it before. Anyway, on the back cover, Domino's portrait model (a mid-year release for 1994) shows off the Breyer dressage saddle and saddle pad. 

On the inside cover, a sneak preview of the Porcelain Arabian Mare, and the reveal of the Hackney Pony, Kitty Cantrell's first sculpt for Breyer. 

In the Editor's Desk, Stephanie talks about the survey results from a previous issue, and there's an announcement of a special offer model coming up in the next issue. On the opposite page, Sno Jax Specialty is all grown up (but not done appearing in the pages of JAH in the future); the Breyer Tour kicked off in Milwaukee with Peter Stone, Breyer Man in attendance; and Misty's Twilight produced a pinto filly named Marguerite's Misty Morning after being bred to Art Deco. 

On page 8-9 we have an article about Domino. At the end of the article is a factoid informing us that Domino shared a sire with Art Deco, another Breyer portrait horse (and member of my original carpet herd!). I remember when Art Deco died (10 years ago already); they were both beautiful. 

On page 10-11 we have the survey results. There's a long list of new mold suggestions, all of which we ended up getting; some of them took longer than others. 

On the centerfold we have the steps to painting a Bright Zip model, an early example of those stages of painting a Cigar or Smarty Jones that Breyer likes to pull out now. I wonder whatever happened to this set of models. They were still being painted in the USA at this point, so I suppose they probably went back to the production line and got finished.

This issue's Vintage Point covers the Stock Horse Stallion. That last inside has a nice ombre effect to it to match the other inside cover and the painfully '90s design scheme in this issue. 

Other things not covered in this issue: How-To by Laura Rock-Smith, still active in the hobby today; Breyer Trivia, an article about collecting Breyer history by Andrea Gurdon (I didn't scan this one because it was spread across three pages), Western Alphabet, about reading livestock brands; judging four models in a Western trail class; building a trail-style teeter-totter in Newcomer's Corner, and Craftsman's Corner, again featuring Laura Rock-Smith. 

Yellowstone!

 Aha, we have a resolution to the sneak peek from last month's newsletter! Behold - Yellowstone! 

He's the newest entry in the Wild Animal series - a pronghorn antelope! Uh, without the horns. 

Nothing I need, fortunately. I'm trying to cut back on my spending (as usual) so I'll take any opportunity. 

They also made 750 of these things, so even if I did decide I wanted one, I don't think it'll be hard to get one. So good luck to everyone entering! The deadline for entry is 9/17. Three days to enter? Sheesh, I remember the bad old days when they'd show a sneak peek, then show us the model a week later, then the entry period was a week long, THEN models would be drawn. We've come a long way, huh? Of course, the models were $135 in those days. Win some, lose some. 

A new test model!

 Exciting news, everyone! There's a new test model for Collector Club member to enter for! Check him out - he's a beauty! 

He's so pretty! And what a detailed paint job. Though I notice he doesn't have mapping on his markings. His price is somewhat of an increase, but this doesn't appear to be one of those older tests that was pulled off a shelf somewhere, so I'd expect a price jump. He's just so pretty! It almost makes me regret selling my Desatado models. 

As has been noted elsewhere on the Internets...this guy's eyes look like he's seen some things, man. Terrible things! I suppose someone could do a diorama and put a mountain lion in front of him or something - his eyes are perfect! 

Anyways, good luck to everyone entering - I entered myself. If I won I'd try to trade him for something else - it's worth a shot, anyway! Good luck, everybody! 

TSC finds!

 Good news, readers! After weeks of periodically dropping by various TSC locations around here, I finally found the rest of the stuff I wanted! It only took visiting three locations today (one of them twice), but I did it! Behold! 

And more! 

Not sure if I mentioned it before, but I'm irritated that some of the models were repeated across sets - the gray Vanner, for instance, is also one of the TSC blind bag models (I already got one a while ago), and the palomino G2 Morgan appears in the 8-horse set as well as one of the Horse Foal Surprise sets (same for the gray Cassidy and the buckskin Indian Pony). At least none of the foals are repeats, I guess. The palomino color on the draft foal made me realize how much I like the mold! It's much less blobby than the prancing foal that was introduced at the same time. 

Anyway, here are the ones I'm keeping, out of their boxes! 

I really like the roan color on the standing foal, and the G2 Andalusian has a nice color too, if you can get past the word on his side. I like the Warmblood Mare as well. 

So, now that I finally have the TSC stuff squared away, I can go through my sales stuff and figure out how much I have to sell, price things and get them listed! Fun stuff. I may also look through my Breyerfest purchases and unpack a few things and get them ready for photographing. They've been packed away long enough! 

More Spooky Stablemates!

 Good news, everyone! My second Spooky Stablemates order arrived - behold the results! 

Score! I got the mini Apparition, the only one of the three I wanted! 

And another Cornelius! I do like the little guy, but don't need two or them, or one of them. I'll figure out what to do with them later.

What a handsome guy. I don't have the full-size version of him, so it took a minute to realize exactly what the markings were supposed to look like. Looks like they did a pretty good job miniaturizing the design. 

They were both pretty good quality as well, no major flaws that I noticed. I hope everybody else managed to get what they wanted as well, or is able to trade for what they want. 

In other news, my Traditional and Classics models are now all unpacked (except my Breyerfest purchases), though not all are on the shelves, because I ran out of shelf space (again) despite my husband building two new shelves. Fortunately, there's room for another shelf in the room, so we'll have to get that taken care of this weekend. I haven't unpacked any Stablemates yet because I want to wait until I have all the bigger models arranged on the shelves the way I want before I start putting Stablemates up there. But I like the way things are looking so far! It's good to see the models I bought over the past year on the shelves with their buddies, though. So I'm excited to get that last shelf built so I can finish unpacking and also get my Breyerfest purchases unpacked! I'm looking forward to seeing all those Stagecoach Surprise models with the rest of my Hamiltons! 

Featured JAH: 9/9/2023, Summer I 1994

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured JAH! This week we'll be covering the Summer I 1994 issue. Let's jump in, shall we? 

On the cover, legendary hunter Grand Central takes a fence with Jessica Fleischmann Aronson (sister of Breyer/Reeves head honcho Tony Fleischmann). On the back cover is the 1994 Breyer Show Special, Silver Comet on the Polo Pony. How timely, since the new Polo Pony gambler's choice release is arriving in people's mailboxes now. Note that despite getting a four-page article in this issue, Grand Central never got his own Breyer model. 

On the inside cover, three Breyer portrait horses strut their stuff (but aren't accompanied by photos of their corresponding models for some reason). On the insert page, we find the official Breyerfest ticket order form for 1994. Tickets for adults were $45 each and kids were $32.50, and that ticket price got you admission to the KHP, a souvenir bandanna, hayrides (after 5pm), the dinner/dancing/dinner model (Bright Zip) and entry to the live auction. We also have the menu for that dinner! Turkey, the perfect choice for those hot, sweaty Kentucky nights! 

In the Editor's Desk, Stephanie reports that the Steel Dust model from the previous issue sold out in a pretty big way (as the JAH special runs usually did in those days) - so big that "we received hundreds of requests over the limit of 1,500" - sound familiar? And nowadays we don't even get to find out how many they made of the various Collector Club special runs. In the EquiNews, we find an announcement about Breyer on TV via Horseworld (I did a search on YouTube to see if any of these old segments were on there, but no dice), Gem Twist winning another show jumping competition, and an announcement of the now-defunct West Coast Model Horse Collector's Jamboree. 

On page 6 is an article about pedigree assignment, and page 7 holds a wealth of information about the upcoming Breyerfest 1994! The format has changed a little bit over the years, but is still mostly the same, other than taking place a couple of weeks earlier. 

The centerfold of the magazine features Bright Zip, the aforementioned Celebration Horse/Dinner Model for Breyerfest 1994! He certainly was handsome, wasn't he? 

On page 20 we have a poem about Paul Revere's Ride, and on page 21 is a salute to Julie Krone, first female winner of a Triple Crown race, and Blythe Miller, rider of Lonesome Glory. 

Here's the rest of the salute to Blythe Miller (with classifieds cropped out of the scan). Interesting that Lonesome Glory got a call-out in this issue, but it would take another 6 years for him to become a Breyer model. 

Lastly for this issue, Vintage Point covered the Running Stallion and all his releases up to this point (Breyerfest Live '94 ticket order form cropped out). I didn't scan the first two parts of the article because they were split over two other pages and it would have just been too many scans. 

Other things in this article that I didn't cover: a Dear JAH response suggesting bleaching yellowed models to whiten them (don't do it! it makes the plastic break down years later!); Breyer Tour events for 1994, featuring Ofir on the Traditional Black Stallion; the Grand Central article (too many scans, again), an article about sidesaddles; Blast from the Past, featuring the G1 Standing and Lying Foals, the only Stablemate foal molds at the time; sneak peeks of the Mesteno "The Progeny" mold and Chinook, the 1994 Export Model; and the debut of Breyer jr., the section of the magazine aimed at younger kids. Whew! Lots of stuff in this issue, but I couldn't cover everything or the post would have been super long. 

That's all I have for today, but check back next week for Summer II 1994!