The first batch of auction models!

Exciting news today, readers - the first batch of auction model photos has been posted on the blog! Behold:

Be still, my heart. I’m sure this one will be out of my price range, but it’s nice to dream. I’m not planning on bidding on any auction models this year, anyway. 

Ooh, a handsome black splash (I think?) Wyatt! Nothing I need, though. 

Interesting color on this one, but still nothing I need. It kind of reminds me of the roan pinto Stagecoach Surprise, actually.

I’m pretty meh on this one, honestly, but I’ve never been a fan of True North. Needs more white, I think. Or a coat of gloss. This group is sadly lacking in the gloss department.

That’s it for this week - dare I hope we get more auction models this week? I wish they still did the one-model-per-day countdown, though - I feel like it helped build excitement way better. 

The new reveals are coming fast and furious!

 Sheesh, it's like Breyer noticed they hadn't released anything new lately and needed to catch up! The next Vintage Club release was announced today! 

Their names are Admiral and Wings. Cute! Nothing I need, but I do like blue. They're a similar color to Josiah from a few years ago. From the Facebook post: 

Sculpted by Chris Hess and Marvin Morin respectively, the models represent two phases of a show horse’s life - that of a mature horse in the prime of its career, and that of a youngster just starting out in the show ring. Wedgewood blue is always a fan-favorite, and we hope you'll adore them!

And that's it for today. Will something else exciting be announced tomorrow? I hope so!  

A veritable avalanche of news!

 Wow, so many things to report on today! Okay, I'll admit I kinda forgot about updating some new reveals on the blog yesterday, so I'll start with those. Firstly, the special run for next year's Breyerwest has been revealed! 

That's right - it's a glossy version of Chardonnay from this year's Breyerfest! I wondered if we were going to ever get glossy store specials. I believe they'll need to be preordered in advance, one per customer, and ID will be checked at the door - they're really serious about people only getting one of these. So if you want one, good luck! I don't need one, fortunately. 

Next, here's my first Atli model! 

Not gonna lie, I was hoping to get one of the other colors, since the chestnut doesn't seem to be very popular so far. I have another one coming at some point, though, so let's hope that one is a more exciting color than this one. Quality-wise he's fine - I didn't see any issues with him, except that the chestnut color on his legs doesn't go quite far enough to cover up the gold underneath, so it looks a bit like he has gold mapping. No biggie. 

Okay, on to the news from today! I'll start with the Black Friday sale (not sure why they opened it, uh, checks notes two weeks before Black Friday, but whatevs). Lots of cool stuff there for Collector Club members, so if you got anything, congrats! I didn't see the sale in time to buy anything, but wouldn't have gotten anything if I had, so I'm cool with it. 

It'll be interesting to see if anyone gets a matte Claude - I'm surprised they had any left over to start with. Same with Midas, honestly. 

And lastly, the Ponies & Palm Trees event is going on as we speak, and the special runs for the event have been revealed! Behold: 

Ugh...very sad I didn't get drawn to go. I need that Duende and Bouncer for the conga! Secondhand prices will be through the roof, but maybe I can trade for one someday or something. Anyways, congrats if you are there and get to buy some of these beauties! I hope attendees are able to get the models they want. Kind of a weird mix of molds for something that was supposed to be based on polo, but I guess that's Breyer for you. I guess the Strapless fits, but not the rest of them. 

That's all I have for today - I'm excited to see the centerpiece raffle model for Ponies & Palm Trees, though! Good luck to the attendees! 

Another test model!

Wow, exciting news today - Breyer posted another test model for sale! Check him out!





From the website:

Chris Hess’s iconic Five Gaiter (mold #52) comes to life in a shaded fiery chestnut with detailed eyes and a healthy coat of gloss! This striking Saddlebred was likely created sometime in the early 2000s. His coat is solid with no white markings, and his ribbon is unpainted. This model was created on older whiteware, as designated by the U.S.A. stamp alongside the Breyer Molding Co. logo on his inside right leg.

Here's the other side:

 

While this model would normally be a pass for me, I'm not going to lie. I haven't been able to recover my post-Breyerfest finances as well as I'd like, so I'm entering for him in hopes to sell him. Similar to the glossy Semi-Rearing Mustang sold earlier this year, I can see this guy going pretty high...even if he's technically not a OOAK (according to a thread on Facebook earlier today). He's definitely handsome, though! Personally, I'd like to see more white, but that's a minor quibble. I'm also wondering why they didn't bother to paint his ribbons, but I suppose those kinds of details don't really matter on something that isn't going to see production.

Anyway, entries close on the 22nd, so make sure to enter early and often! Good luck, everyone!

More auction models!

Greetings, readers! Exciting news - more auction models were posted on the Breyerfest Blog today! I was hoping we'd get some more this week. So, without further ado - here they are!

Lot 5 is the palomino Live Show prize Yasmin:

Not much to say about her that I haven't already said, except I'm still not really into the mane and tail. Next, let's take a look at Lot 6!

Wow, a stallion and foal set! You don't really see that very often. And they're so different from each other! I like the blue bobs on the stallion - they go with his color pretty well. And I like the white tail on the foal! Not enough to want to bid on them, but they're definitely unique!

Next, Lot 8 (they won't show us Lot 7, grr):

That's an amazing paintjob for the Five Gaiter, though the nitpicky part of me is wondering why Flaxen Liver Chestnut is in the auction twice. The crazy extended blanket and peacock spots make up for it, though - he's excellent!

And lastly, Lot 9:



Ruffian! I'm surprisingly meh about her, though...I'm not sure I like that shade of palomino. The blog says her mane and tail are pearly, but you can barely tell. Maybe it'll be more visible in person? I hope so.

That's all for now - I hope we get to see more auction models soon!

The last group of auction models!

Wow, I'm kind of surprised...I would have thought Breyer would have saved some of the auction reveals for Breyerfest week, but I guess not. The last batch of models - well, most of them - was posted on the blog today. Behold, lot 24!

Otherwise knows as Woodford, the Saturday raffle.  I hope I win this guy just so I can trade him for a raffle model I do want.

And we don't get to see lot 25. Since I have to be at the Horse Park on Thursday afternoon for a meeting anyway, I'm definitely planning on swinging through the Visitor Center and seeing this mystery lots for myself.

So, on to lot 26!

This one really reminds me of Silver Fox, the raffle model from 2001, but in glossy! That said, I'm not the Five Gaiter's biggest fan, but I bet this one will go high.

Next, lot 27!



Excuse me for a moment while I play armchair grammarian with this sentence from the blog:

Originally sculpted as a portrait of the Morgan gelding Flash, the United States Pony Clubs [sic] 50th Anniversary Horse and this version of Flash has a Connemara Mare Tail and is a Sooty Dapple Buckskin Overo Pinto.

That's a giant run-on sentence, and adding some periods doesn't even fix it. Interestingly, the IDYB page for Flash has the same missing apostrophe in "Clubs," that appeared in the above run-on sentence. Copy and paste much, interns? Though I admit there aren't a lot of different ways to write about the horse being the USPC 50th Anniversary Horse. Here's how I would have written that paragraph:

"Originally sculpted as a portrait of the Morgan gelding Flash, the United States Pony Club's 50th Anniversary Horse, this version of Flash is a sooty dapple buckskin overo pinto and has a custom Connemara Mare tail."

Much better. There's no reason to capitalize any of the words in the model's color and it flows better to have the color come first. Let's hope somebody gives the interns some grammar lessons, because the previous blog posts about these models haven't been much better than this.

Anyway, let's move on to the final auction lot, which we've also already seen. Say hello (again!) to Jackpot:



Mmm, this guy is yummy. I hope I win him too! I wouldn't trade him away, though.

So that's all of this year's auction models. I kinda have to say...I'm not terribly impressed by this year's group. There are a few gems in there, but nothing really spectacular like last year. I'm surprised there wasn't an auction lot on Carina and Selene, for instance, considering last year's other two Premier Club models did.

In other thoughts, we still haven't seen a Smarty Jones auction model. Unless he's one of the four hidden lots, I'd say it's very likely he's the surprise, or the volunteer model. We won't know more until we see them in the Visitor Center - can't wait until next Thursday!