2025 releases and Breyerfest 2025 Stablemates!

 Good news, everyone! The new releases for 2025 have finally been (officially) revealed! Here's the full catalog. Too many things to list, but here are some highlights! 

That's right, the one that started it all - the Western Horse! He's part of the 75th Anniversary assortment that was hinted at previously. I like the color, and the horses hidden in his pattern are a nice touch. Part of me kinda wants to start collecting the Western Horse, but I just don't have the space. 

Another 75th Anniversary model - the Esprit! I like him, too. But unlike the Western Horse, this one I definitely want to add to the collection. 

And the third 75th Anniversary model - the Lonesome Glory! This one is making me wish I hadn't sold off my Lonesome Glory models - oh well. 

Let's not forget that there are still two more 75th Anniversary models to be revealed. The hobby had narrowed the hints down to be SCO and the Moody ASB - let's hope we don't have to wait too many months for them to be revealed. 

This year's Holiday Horse - on Flash this year! So, another Holiday Horse I don't need to acquire. A penny saved is a penny earned, or something like that. 

Cloud the Wild Stallion is getting an update in honor of his 30th anniversary! That's a pretty color on Desatado. Another mold I shouldn't have sold off. C'est la vie. 

Say hello to Ophelia, this year's flagship model! Huzzah! What a beauty. I have one on order from Triple Mountain, so hopefully she doesn't take too long to get here. 

Here's the Brilliance Gift Set, the only other thing I preordered (I'll get the rest of the things I want when the KHP gets them in stock). This is probably the release I'm most excited for! Not sure why, but it might have something to do with the blue Othello. And the pearly white Fireheart. I hope they come soon! We needs them, precious. 

Honorable mention: the Big Lex model. Now there's a big Big Lex to go with the little one! Too bad I sold off my Emersons. He does make a decent Lexington, though (presumably the, uh, overweight one in the above image is from later in Lexington's stud career). 

Anyway, that's it for the new releases! But that wasn't the only reveal today. We also got to see the single-day Stablemate models for Breyerfest 2025! From now on I'm going to try to remember to refer to them as General Admission Stablemates. 

Look at their cute little bags! I'm trying to figure out what they're made of. Cardstock, probably? And they're tied with little ribbons. I may have to hang on to these. Anyway, I like three of the four! Well, the color on the Indian Pony is nice, but I don't collect that mold. Like many other people, my favorite is the black appaloosa Augustus, but the bay Mirado is probably my second favorite. 

And even more excitingly, we're getting a Special Run reveal tomorrow! Woohoo! I suppose the reveals will be coming fast and furious now that tickets will be going on sale soon. I'm excited to see tomorrow's reveal! 

Featured Model - 7/23/2022, Trigger

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured Model, the weekly blog event where I pick a model I don't own but has an interesting story behind it, give some stats on it and provide commentary about it. This week's model is...Trigger! 

This model was item #758, a regular run produced on the Western Horse sculpted by Chris Hess. He was produced from 2000-2006 and came with a VHS tape of a Roy Rogers movie. 

Hearing "Happy Trails to You" played at Breyerfest on Sunday afternoon inspired me to do a little light reading about Roy Rogers and Trigger, which led me to decide to feature the Trigger Breyer model for today. I do technically own one of these guys, but his saddle is missing and he stays at my parents' house. I don't remember how I came to own him - he may have been in a body lot I purchased for resale a number of years ago and I held onto him because, well, he was Trigger. I should probably reclaim him from my parents at some point. I may be a bit too young to remember Roy Rogers in his heyday, but I do remember watching Under California Stars a lot when I was a kid. I don't remember watching anything else Roy Rogers-related, though - as far as I know, Under California Stars was the only Roy Rogers videotape we had. I remember being sad when he died in 1998, though. 

Anyway, the Western Horse is pretty much the perfect model for Breyer to use as Trigger (the black tack with silver accents is almost as recognizable as he is) - the only question is why it took as long as it did. Maybe they couldn't get permission until after Rogers' death, though that seems unlikely, considering the amount of other Roy Rogers merchandise out there. In any case, he makes a great Breyer model. 

The Western Horse has had his share of releases over the years - as Breyer's first model horse, it's only fitting that he get a new release every once in a while. While I'm most partial to this auction model from 2010, I was also intrigued by this one - he has the same pattern as the SJW Connoisseur Inconspicuous. When it comes to more attainable models, I did like the Gossamer release from 2014, though I never did obtain one. Maybe someday I'll have enough room in my collection to pick up a couple of these guys to keep Trigger company. It's hard to say where he'll pop up next - he appeared with a grooming kit in 2020 for the Vintage Club, but I almost expect him to show up there again as a nightlight or something! 

Trailblazer is now available!

Attention, Vintage Club members - Trailblazer, this year's first release, is now available for purchase!



So it turns out he comes with the saddle and the reproduction grooming kit!

I'm not a member of the Vintage Club this year (or probably ever again), but he sure is pretty - and it definitely took long enough for the Western Horse to show up! I hope he's as nice as person as he looks in the photographs!

Stop the world, I want to get off

The reveals are coming fast and furious - almost too many reveals for me to handle! Where do I start? The full Vintage Club lineup for 2020, minus the bonus model, has been revealed:



So we've got the Western Horse, the In-Between Mare (!), the Bubble-Butt Belgian (making his second appearance in the club), and Yasmin. Wait - taking a closer look at the photo, the two mares next to the IBM look like FAMS, not IBMs...I wonder if the gambler's choice will mostly be between the two FAMs, with the IBM an extremely rare variant? One of 70, perhaps? That would help keep the original handful of IBMs' value from plummeting.

Anyway, there's nothing here I need to buy other than the Yasmin, unless the optional model is something I need. Here's hoping!

Next on the reveals list, the 2020 calendar has been posted on the Breyer website, and the cover photo is A DAPPLE PALOMINO HAMILTON AAAAAHHHHHH!!!



He is a must-have! Dare I hope he's a regular run for next year? Or, failing that, something obtainable in the 70th Anniversary Collection? I'll be sorely disappointed if this is a test or limited run I'll never be able to get my hands on! I'm going to continue to hope he's a RR, since this year's Dominante made his debut in the calendar about this time last year.

Speaking of the calendar, we also had this reveal inside it - a side angle of the new Premier Club Altynai:



Well, that does it - I'm going to have to add him to my collection too. Drat it all! I'd been hoping to cut back a little bit next year, but if these reveals are any indication, I don't think that's going to happen. But hey, I love all the new things being unveiled right now - it's definitely better than the news wasteland we had going at this time last year. Bring on the reveals - I'm ready to see the 2020 regular run line!

2020 Vintage Club signups...and the 2020 Breyerfest Celebration Horse!

More exciting news today - the 2020 Vintage Club is open for signups!



Although they haven't confirmed it, presumably this Western Horse is the first release of next year's club. And, in the first photo we saw of him he was wearing a regular black saddle...but the above photo has him wearing a reproduction of the old Grooming Kit? How is that going to work? At first I thought the Grooming Kit one was matte and they were going to do a gambler's choice of matte Grooming Kit and glossy regular saddle, but I think they're both glossy. So it's anyone's guess what the plan is - probably a gambler's choice of either the kit or the saddle. Either way, they fooled me once, but I won't get fooled again - I'm not joining the 2020 Vintage Club.

(Unless one of the other releases is something I have to have and I end up eating my words...)

In other news, the 2020 Breyerfest Celebration Horse (and Model) were announced today! The Celebration Horse is Ballynoe Castle RM, an Irish Sport Horse who has been quite successful in the eventing world.



I think this is the earliest we've found out the Celebration Horse in quite a long time - I remember the Brass Hat model was revealed in late October 2017, but we're not quite there yet, and Oliver wasn't revealed until November of last year.

So anyway...along with the announcement of the Celebration Horse, comes the announcement of the Celebration Model - Ballynoe Castle's portrait model is on the Show Jumping Warmblood!



My first thought was that this is the mysterious Show Jumper that was in that dumb clickbait video a while back, but I went back and checked - it isn't him. It seems really odd that Breyer would just let some random YouTuber mess around with a test model, but apparently they did, unless they have a new RR of the Show Jumper hidden up their sleeves. I guess we'll find out when we see next year's new models.

My second thought was, "Ooh! A new Show Jumper!" and then, "Drat, I'll have to come up with a costume contest idea again..." But don't get me wrong - he's an excellent choice for a Celebration Model. I was expecting it to be Croi, myself. Maybe she'll be the surprise model instead? Seems a little too obvious, though. Then again, she did show up as that spectacular glossy rainbow auction model this year...

2020 Vintage Club and Lillian and Molly!

So, Breyer snuck a brand-new reveal onto the website today - one of the models in next year's Vintage Club! Check it out:



Apparently his name is Trailblazer! From the website:

2020 marks Breyer’s 70th anniversary and we’re pulling out all the stops for this year’s Vintage Club!  Celebrate the rich history of Breyer with vintage-inspired colors and packaging on sculptures old and new, along with some fresh takes thrown in for good measure!

While I haven't had time to do a Looking to the Future post about the Vintage Club yet, I definitely would have had the Western Horse on the list to be used (though I've been expecting him to show up for years). And what a striking color! Too bad I don't collect him.  Looks like signups open in early October, so I wonder if they'll reveal anything else exciting when the signups open up.

In other news, Lillian and Molly are now available from this year's Vintage Club! My order is already placed, so hopefully they don't take too long to get here!

Another batch of auction models!

Good news, everyone! Breyer released some more auction models on the blog today. Check them out, starting with Lot 20:

Oh, my. So gloss, such shiny, etc. But he's...a bit plain, isn't he? He needs some white to set him off from the original Sham release (although that one was quite a bit redder). 

Next, lot 21:

Ooh, a test model on Forever Saige! This is the first time she's shown up in the auction, although a very nice test of her was auctioned off at Breyerfest 2015. And she's beautiful! I defnitely wouldn't mind adding her to my collection. She looks like she has a touch of pearly in her mane and tail, too. Very nice!

On to lot 22:

Well, that's definitely an interesting model. I like him a lot, especially the blue-and-gold saddle, but I feel like that saddle would be really impractical in real life. Like, every time you used it you'd have to check your pants afterwards for blue stains. Nice color on the model, though, and his blue eye tops it off nicely.

And lastly, lot 23:



From the blog: "This model is a Glossy Rich Liver Chestnut but still looks like the Olympic dressage champion Hanoverian stallion, Keltic [sic] Salinero." Yes, it does still look like Salinero (who is a gelding, by the way), and it's spelled Keltec, not Keltic. You could at least have someone do some fact-checking before things get published, guys. And like you said, this one still looks like the original Salinero...so why would anyone want to spend big bucks on it if that were the case? I'm sure someone will, but still. Maybe he looks more different in person.

And that's all I have for today. I did get a notification that my Prism has shipped (!!!), so hopefully he arrives before we leave for Breyerfest. If not, he'll just have to wait until we get back!