The last few auction models have been revealed!

 Happy Friday, everyone! In just one week, it'll be Breyerfest time in Kentucky for the first time in three years! I'm so excited to leave on Tuesday night - just four more days, and only two more work days! Breyer unveiled the online auction platform today, along with the last few auction lots we hadn't seen yet! I thought we'd have to wait until next Friday to see them, but looks like Breyer decided to be merciful for once. Anyway, here they are! You can view them by clicking on the link to BidSpirit's website in the Breyerfest Blog post and then viewing the auction catalog. 

First off, it's a glossy color-shift-paint version of Dani! Very nice. 

Next, a glossy smutty buckskin Hamilton! Oh, he'll go high. Personally, I'd prefer if this one had a little white, but to each their own. 

Next, a beautiful Astrid in red roan pintaloosa, and with a new mane option we haven't seen yet! I wonder if we'll see this mane in the special run line as well? I hope so! 

Next, an amazing pegasus on Silver that's very reminiscent of this auction Esprit from 2014. Is he a test of a test? It's turtles tests all the way down! Ahhhhh! 

And lastly, an In-Between Mare (!) and PAF who clearly takes after her sire! I kid, I kid...but these two would make a great family for that Ukraine benefit piece that was auctioned off a few months ago. 

These reveals also remove True North, Hamilton and Silver from contention as the surprise model. I think I had been saying the Cleveland Bay, since my original guess of Brishen is out, but I think I'm going to go with Goffert. Othello would be the other obvious choice, but he's already been done in just about every color and was a treasure hunt model, so I don't think it'll be him. There's a suspicious lack of draft models in this year's lineup, and Goffert is close enough to make me think it's probably him. 

This year's raffle models are also in the auction, as per usual, so there are photos of them as well. Check out the Zafirah/Dirndl model: 

I just...I want to like her, but I can't get over her front end. It's like her entire shoulder area should be twice as wide (long?), and her front legs are super-skinny. It's too bad, because I like her head and neck, and the hind end isn't so bad (though I'd rather she be standing squarely). It's just the front legs and shoulder area that bother me so much. Oh well. Her color is nice, at least.

I don't think this color is doing Troubadour any favors, honestly. But if I won him, I wouldn't turn him down, I guess. I may be toying with the idea of selling off my Troubadours, though, so we'll see what happens with that.

I'm also wondering why there are only 21 lots, when there were 28 lots in the before times. I thought reducing the number of lots in the live auction was a Covid thing - I guess Covid isn't strictly over just yet, but it still seems odd to have so (comparatively) few auction lots. Spread the money around, as it were. 

Anyway, that's all I have for today. Not sure how much more posting I'll be doing until we arrive in Kentucky, but never fear - if all goes well, I'll be reporting from each day of Breyerfest as it happens, like I usually do! Safe travels, everyone! 

Featured Model - 3/12/2022, Bay Rabicano Auction PAS/PAF

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured Model, the weekly blog event where I pick a model that I don't own but has an interesting history behind it, give some stats on it and provide commentary on it. This week's model is...the 2004 Breyerfest Auction Bay Rabicano Proud Arabian Stallion! And the Foal, as well. 

These models were OOAK test models produced on the Proud Arabian Stallion and Proud Arabian Foal molds sculpted by Chris Hess.

Wow! I had no idea these two models even existed. I was perusing IDYB, looking for models to write about, and this guy jumped out at me when I clicked on the Proud Arabian Stallion's page. They're painted to match the Connoisseur Shalimar model on the Proud Arabian Mare mold. What a beautiful family they'd make! It would be amazing to have these in my collection. I hope their owner has a Shalimar so they can all be together. Here's the foal:

I guess that just goes to show that Breyer should make more family sets, since they don't seem to do that very much anymore - the only recent exception I can think of is the OOAK glossy Dominante/Fantasia Del C/Gozosa set that was sold at Breyerfest a few years ago, though I'm probably forgetting something. We get plenty of mare and foal sets, but not so many stallions (though I guess we do get plenty of  Classics/Freedom Series families, now that I think about it). Well, whatevs - we need a new Traditional family, says I! 

Not sure where we could expect to see the PAS/PAF used next - vintage molds tend to get shoved aside by newer ones, though I'll note we haven't seen the PAF in the Vintage Club yet, and we still haven't seen the full lineup for this year - maybe we'll get something there? Hmm, maybe a PAS/PAM/PAF family set in, like...Appaloosa Performance Horse paint? That's already been done on test models, but that doesn't necessarily keep Breyer from using it in a wider release. And I'm sure they'd be popular. Failing the APH colors, maybe buckskin? Probably wouldn't sell as well, though. Either way, it's definitely a possibility. They'd probably be spendier than the usual Vintage Club release, too, but I suspect collectors wouldn't mind that too much. It'd certainly be exciting to see!