TSC special runs!

 Good news, everyone! The TSC special runs have been revealed! Two of them were previewed in the Collector Club tent, but now they're all available for viewing on the TSC website. Behold: 

This is the black Shannondell that was previewed in the Collector Club tent. I don't need him, but he sure looks good in black! 

This is the other one that was previewed - a pretty FFA blue appaloosa Latigo. I don't need him either, but I love that color! Maybe someday they'll put it on something I want. 

Ooh, a liver chestnut True North! He's handsome. Nothing I need, though. 

A pretty palomino pinto Zafirah! She reminds me of Studebaker. Still nothing I need, though. 

And lastly, the Classic family! Nothing I need there, either. Wow! It's a Christmas miracle! The models can't be ordered yet, but hopefully they'll be in stock soon. Good luck to everyone wanting to purchase! 

Holy smokes!

 Well, readers, we have our next Breyerfest special run reveal - say hello to Wells! 

Well, that knocks Shannondell out of contention for the surprise. Oh well. I like his smoky color, though I'm not a fan of the mold. I wonder if he'll be the matte/glossy split? He would look amazing in gloss. And I just saw a post by Sommer Prosser on Facebook that she designed his color - looks like she knocked it out of the park again. 

There's supposed to be another reveal tomorrow, so I'll be anxiously awaiting tomorrow!

Gawain is now available, and some other stuff

 Attention, Vintage Club members: Gawain is finally available for purchase! 

If it seems like this release is really close to Breyerfest, it is - but fear not! Members have until 11:59pm July 28 to purchase him, so you'll have...well, a little time to recover. Hopefully. 

In other news, there was an exciting post on the Breyerfest Blog today about the beer garden at Breyerfest! Okay, I'm not a beer drinker at all, so I'm not sure why I'm so excited about this, but I'm definitely going to have to check it out while we're there. I'm curious to try some of that cider! 

Also, we got a sneak peek of the virtual Breyerfest dashboard that'll go live next week! 

The excitement is growing - a week from today, we'll be in Kentucky waiting for Breyerfest to get started! It's almost here! 

The Breyerfest Live Auction has been announced!

 Good news, everyone - the Breyerfest Live Auction is coming back for 2022 (not that we thought it was gone) and check out the two amazing auction models we got in the announcement! 

What a wild color on Shannondell! He'll go pretty high, and this knocks him out of the list of surprise horse contenders (trying not to think about some of the remaining possibilities). 

This Moody Andalusian has a stunning amount of shading. Look at him! What a beauty. I want to take him home! 

They're going to allow online bidders in the auction this year, but my feelings about that basically amount to, "first world problems," so I'm not going to say too much about it. Grumble grumble. Anyway, I'm excited to see what we get to see next! 

The next Vintage Club release!

 Exciting news, everyone - the next release in the 2022 Vintage Club has been revealed! Say hello to Gawain!

He’s the flocky model that was teased in the welcome letter from earlier this year. I’m not gonna lie…I’ve always found flocky models pretty tacky, and this one is no exception. But at the same time…I kinda like him! What a conundrum. Fortunately I’m not in the VC this year, so it’s not that big of a deal. I can’t say I expected Shannondell to make another appearance in the VC, either, so now I’m figuring the Breyerfest surprise isn’t on him. Maybe it’s still Brishen after all? Or failing that, the Cleveland Bay? Or something else entirely? Good thing we only have to wait a few more weeks to find out.

Cardinal selections have been made!

 Well, if you entered for the Cardinal web special, check your email! Selections have gone out and soon these chestnut beauties will be winging their way to their new owners. It doesn't look like I was drawn, but I'm not too upset about it because he would have been trade fodder anyway. Congratulations! 

Birds of a Feather flock together!

 Well well, it looks like the Birds of a Feather web special theme is going to continue this year. I always thought it was a shame they kept stopping after four releases with some of the earlier themes - after the success of America the Beautiful and the second edition of the Berries Ponies, Breyer must have decided there isn't any harm in continuing a theme through multiple years. Anyway, here's the first web special for 2022 - Cardinal! 

From the website:

Perhaps everyone’s favorite winter bird, the cardinal is a welcome splash of color against a snowy landscape. While the cardinal can be found year-round in the eastern United States, its bright coloring makes it stand out in the fall and winter. A cheerful bird with a whistling song, cardinals are thought by many to be a sign from a loved one.

The cardinal may be some people's favorite winter bird, but I'm more partial to Snowbird myself.  Or maybe I've just watched way too much Family Guy in my lifetime...but anyways. They're making a whopping 500 of these guys, but Shannondell is a pretty popular guy, so I'm sure he'll sell well despite his resemblance to Acadia. He's...really almost identical. 

This one isn't something I need in my collection, especially since I already have an Acadia, but I did enter for him to use for trade fodder. When in Rome...I guess.

In other news, we also have...a sneak peek instead of the reveal I hoped we were going to get today. Ugh! Here it is:

Looks like some type of black splash, or maybe a cow? I've...got nothing. Guess we'll have to wait until Monday! 


Coda: Maybe I have watched too much Family Guy. While looking up songs on Youtube for this post I realized I apparently thought Anne Murray and Helen Reddy were the same person - I thought Helen Reddy sang Snowbird but of course it was Anne Murray, and she had a whole episode about Snowbird. Helen Reddy was also on Family Guy (a voice cameo and later sang the theme song for the updated Channel 5 News). D'oh! Wait...maybe this means I need to watch Family Guy more! Hmm, food for thought. 

I'm so relieved!

So we got a reveal earlier than Friday after all! Take a look at this show-stopper store special:



Gasp! He's beautiful. Too bad I'm not a Shannondell collector, because he'll be a hot commodity this year! From the blog:

Benelli, a blue roan Clydesdale gelding, is a versatile asset for the Hawkes Ranch hitch as he can be driven in any position, but he truly shines out front as the leader of this hitch that pulls an unmistakable purple cart. 

Ooh, I love draft hitch teams! And the blog says they'll be at Breyerfest! Our local draft horse show recently went kaput, so I'll take a hitch sighting wherever I can get it! This year's Breyerfest is looking to be a doozy (and I mean that in a good way)! 

My wallet just breathed a huge sigh of relief!

More exciting reveals today, everyone - I'll just keep the goodness coming! Let's start with the 2020 Holiday Horse!



Shannondell, eh? The outfit is interesting, but I've never been a fan of mealy bays. I'm sure he's pretty under all that greenery, though! Next, more holiday items:



I'm not sure who decided the not-terribly-popular Rising Sun resin should be converted into a Stablemate, but it saves me money, so I guess I'm okay with it. I like that 70th anniversary ornament! None of the rest of it catches my eye though. Hmm, I'm sensing a pattern!



The Mini Whinny advent calendar is a super-cute idea, but again - nothing I need. Maybe for my kids? I'll have to think about it.

Next, say hello to the 2020 flagship model!



Lionel certainly is a handsome one, especially in palomino Appaloosa, but I'll pass. Looks like 2020 might be a fairly light year for me!

Now these have me excited. The Stablemate mystery foal sets return, now with unicorns?! Sign me up! I'll need all of those. That Warmblood Mare sure is a bright shade of pink, though. She looks like sherbet or something. Am I really surprised that there's yet another unicorn Alborozo and Magnolia? No. At least they won't be hard to get ahold of.



Now, these are interesting. Are they different combinations of the various horses, or are they in certain pairs, as the photo shows? I see they're randomly shipped, which is another way to say "blind bag garbage," so it could be hard to get them all...but I need almost all of them, so if I order four of them, I have a decent chance of getting all the ones I want...right? I'm glad to see a realistic color on the Warmblood Mare and the Walking Thoroughbred. Breyer is certainly getting plenty of use out of their new Stablemate molds, huh?



These are the last, for now. Are those Mini Whinny versions of Rising Sun, Firebird and the porcelain Cleveland Bay? Say it ain't so! None of those are molds I'm into, so I can resist these...for now. I guess Breyer figured out a way to sell just about anything - slap a horn on it and paint it purple and you're good!

More exciting news!

Lots of exciting things to report today! I'll start with the last release for the Vintage Club this year. Claude is finally available to order!



Good luck to everyone that orders! 30 of these guys will be matte rather than glossy - I wonder how many will pop up for sale after the fact? Makes me glad I don't collect Shannondell.

Next, the 2020 Stablemates Club has had its first reveal: Klaus, on the Darwin mold!



Ooh, I like him. You could probably get away with calling this one a Knabstrupper, right? Just as long as he doesn't turn orange and live in a fishbowl...but anyway. I wonder if this means he'll get a RR release as a Lipizzaner? I hope so. In any case, I'll definitely be rejoining the club.

And lastly, the final Premier Club model of the year has been revealed! Say hello to Georg!



I really want to like him...in fact, I like most of him, except the banged tail. Gah!



I'm pretty conflicted about this guy. It's not that I don't like drafts, but most of Breyer's drafts haven't made it into my collection. But, Othello is my favorite mold...so I'm just confused. Maybe when I get him in hand I'll like him better? Hopefully we don't have too long to wait - he'll be available next month.

Also, apparently there might be an In-Between Mare making an appearance in next year's Vintage Club? That's cool! I don't have a photo yet, but evidently it'll be revealed soon. Exciting!

Another 2019 Vintage Club release revealed!

In today's other exciting news, the optional release in next year's Vintage Club was revealed today! Meet Claude:




Ooh, a new Shannondell! Exciting. And there'll be 30 matte models scattered randomly amongst the other 470 models in the run.

I don't collect Shannondell, but that random smattering of matte models is almost tempting me to rejoin the Vintage Club anyway. And the color looks really nice on him! Maybe they'll show us more of next year's VC releases in the next few days? I don't know how close the club is to selling out, but hopefully it can wait a little longer.

Hopefully Breyer comes to their senses and shows us the rest of next year's releases - I know I'm not the only one who doesn't want to commit to spending so much money mostly-sight-unseen!

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!

The Saturday Raffle model is...

Woodford! (Heh. They didn't name him Flash like I thought they would, but at least they used it in his description.) Check this guy out!



He's definitely pretty, despite (insert griping about mold not fitting the theme here).

Okay. Now that I got that out of the way, he's definitely the nicest release I've seen yet on the Shannondell mold. That doesn't mean I'd keep him if I won - there are plenty of other raffle models I'd love to own, and I don't collect Shannondell. Maybe someday they'll put this color on a more attainable model? He does look really similar to Kaibab, but I don't collect the Stretch Morgan either. I'll just have to hope they use this color again on a mold I do collect!

2017 Brick-and-Mortar special run and Fall Releases revealed!

Just when I thought we weren't going to get anything new today...

 

...it's a loose mane/tail Shannondell! Interesting color, too. Not something I need to buy, thankfully - the mold has never appealed to me and since our local model horse store closed, I don't even know where I'd get one. Better luck next year, Breyer! Good luck to everyone out there who'll be searching for one. 

Editing to add this year's fall releases! Behold!

 

Two new Classics horse and rider sets! Neither of which I need.

 

Sugarmaple, who we already saw a few weeks back! I hope my preorder with Back in the Saddle is still valid.

And finally...


 

New Spirit stuff! Nothing I need there either, fortunately.

Kinda slim pickings this year for fall releases...I guess the mid-years must have taken up all their production space. But the less I need to spend, the better! Bring on Sugarmaple!

Live Auction Lot 28 - Curiously Meh

The wait is almost over, people! Breyerfest 2017 is almost upon us! In a mere 13 or so hours, the gates at the Kentucky Horse Park will be opened and the ravening hordes will descend. In the meantime, though, we have one more auction lot to get through - and it's on Shannondell!

 

It's the non-plaited version of the mold! What a shock! He makes an excellent final entry in the live auction lots, though I'm personally rather ambivalent about him. I wasn't all that impressed by the mold when it came out, mostly because of his weird-looking hind leg, and the color doesn't really help. He looks super-detailed, though! I'm sure he'll be another high seller.

Also, the four hidden auction lots showed up on Instagram today, now that they're on display at the KHP's visitor center (thanks to whoever did that...I thought about skulking through the visitor center myself, but decided to stay at the hotel and sell instead). They are a dapple gray Yasmin, blue tiger Ruffian i.e. Padma, glossy black or dark bay PAM, and a chestnut (I think) pinto Roxy. Of those three, only Ruffian would have been in the running to be the surprise, so nothing's really changed in that department. But the mystery will be solved in about 14 hours - we just have to be patient!

I spoke too soon! Vahana is revealed!

Wow, I'm amazed that they actually posted the SR today instead of making us all wait until tomorrow! Here's Vahana!



Let's hope he actually is a tent SR - he almost looks too pretty to be in the special run line! Very nicely done. I won't be buying him, as the mold has never appealed to me very much, but he's pretty all the same.


 

I figured Shannondell would show up at Breyerfest - this is the first time we've seen him since his debut last year. In my prediction, I thought he would be "bay with more sabino than Shannondell." This guy is bay roan...tobiano? So I wasn't terribly far off the mark. And I'm surprised that this wasn't the animal mold! That darn Breyer, always being unpredictable.

At least we didn't have to wait until tomorrow to see this one! I can't stand the waiting.

Breyerfest 2017 Special Run Predictions

Now that we're starting to see Breyerfest 2017 special runs, it's time for me to make some (probably incorrect) predictions about what models we'll end up seeing as Breyerfest SRs. This post will cover special run line items; I'll save other stuff for a later date so this post isn't a mile long.

Firstly,  we can discount any mold that was used last year. So Make a Wish, Silver, Wyatt, Bobby Jo, Forever Saige, Esprit, Hermosa/Corazon and the Brahma Bull are all out. It's probably safe to discount any molds from the 2015 special run line as well, so Huck, Lonesome Glory, Wixom, Croi, Ashquar, the Spanish Fighting Bull, Totilas and the Marwari are out as well (not that anyone thought Marwari or the bulls would be in this year's special run line).

From yesterday's sneak peek, we know that one of the SRs will be on Geronimo. Breyer has established a pattern of using a previous year's Premier mold for at least one Breyerfest SR, and he fulfills that pattern. However, I and a lot of others assumed Yasmin would be used for Breyerfest. Last year's special run line had all three of the previous year's Premier molds in the lineup, so it's still safe to assume Yasmin will also show up in the special run line. As for the animal mold, prevailing opinion says they will use the Elephant, and I have no reason to doubt that.

Last year's Breyerfest had a total of four Premier Club molds in the lineup, including all three of 2015's, so I think it's completely possible we could see a third Premier mold show up. I think Shannondell would be the obvious choice, because he hasn't been used for anything else yet - it's been a while since we've had a mold debut in the Premier Club and then not go into the regular run lineup the following year or be used as a Breyerfest special run (I believe Ashquar would be the most recent example, and even he languished unused until the fall of 2014).

So that's four possibilities, out of a presumed total of eight. Another would be Smarty Jones, using the polo pony configuration; India has a strong connection with polo (apparently modern polo comes from India - thanks, Wikipedia!). The last time Smarty Jones appeared in the Breyerfest lineup was 2007's Rushmore (excluding the 2012 raffle and 2016 Early Bird, both as polo ponies, interestingly enough), so I think he'd be a safe choice.

I'm not sure if we'll get a mare and foal set or not - we don't see one every year. Here's a quick list of the past few years:

2010 - Stage Mom and Child Star
2011 - Hansel and Gretel
2012 - none
2013 - Naomi and Wynonna
2014 - Kodiak and Denali (bears)
2015 - none
2016 - Mamacita and Chico

So it might be safe to assume we won't get a mare and foal set. Which molds would they use, anyway? The most likely candidates would be Giselle and Gilen, unless they Frankenstein together a random mare and random foal. Marabella and Amber, perhaps? The number of foal molds likely to actually get used is fairly small. Bluegrass Bandit and Gilen, maybe? I mean, they might use the Thoroughbred Mare and Nursing Foal, which I wouldn't be opposed to, but it doesn't seem likely. There are Thoroughbred horses in India, though (legacy of its history as a British colony?), so it might be doable.

...Actually, I like that. I'm going to add the Thoroughbred Mare and Nursing Foal to my list as the mare and foal set.

So that just leaves the decorator and the surprise. I have no clue what a decorator relating to India would look like - perhaps something similar to last year's surprise Esprit decorator, except with mandalas? I would think it would be something brightly colored, maybe with henna-like designs. It might be on the Brishen mold, if we think Breyer will use four Premier molds again. Or maybe a Goffert, since he hasn't been used at Breyerfest since 2014, and not in the special run line since 2010? I wouldn't mind seeing a Ruffian either, though, and she was last in the special run line in 2007. So many possibilities! I think Brishen will go on my final list, though.

As for the surprise, the precedent for most, if not all, previous surprise models has been that it's something that doesn't get used anywhere else in the lineup, not even as an auction model (excluding Ethereal, from 2011). Here's a quick listing of the previous surprise models:

2009 - Quarter Horse Gelding
2010 - none
2011 - Ethereal (the one exception)
2012 - Flash
2013 - Roxy
2014 - Nokota
2015 - Lonesome Glory
2016 - Esprit

My gut feeling for this year's surprise model is the Moody Andalusian. Not real sure why, except the lineup usually includes at least two Moody molds and I only have one so far. We'll see if the Andy shows up in some other capacity this year - until then, he's on the list. So, here's my final list:

Geronimo (already more-or-less revealed)
Yasmin
Shannondell
Elephant
Smarty Jones
Thoroughbred Mare/Nursing Foal
Brishen
Andalusian Stallion

As for what colors any of these will come in...I have no idea. Uh...here's another list.

Geronimo - dun
Yasmin - gray (glossy)
Shannondell - bay with more sabino than Shannondell?
Elephant - more-different gray? Or white? (glossy)
Smarty - Chestnut pinto
TB Mare/Foal - Black/baby bay (matte/glossy split)
Brishen - already covered (glossy)
Andy - buckskin, red dun, dapple gray frame overo, red bay tobiano, in matte/glossy finishes

Probably terribly, horribly wrong on those, but time will tell. Hopefully some of these turn out to be correct, but if not - oh well. Breyerfest is hands-down my favorite event of the year, so as long as I get to attend I'll be happy. Hopefully we get to find out more soon!

Edited 2/5/2017 to add matte/glossy finishes and the matte/glossy split to the color predictions.

Aaaand...Shannondell is now available!

Wow, I didn't expect it to happen quite this soon, but Shannondell is now ready to order!



I don't regret my decision to sell this model and his John Deere ribbons to someone else. I can't collect every new thing Breyer releases, and he just doesn't wow me enough to make me want to add him to the herd. Better to let him go to someone who really loves him (and maybe the Green Bay Packers).

I did like the loose mane/tail option a little better, but the obsessive collector in me would never be happy unless they were both in my stable (Townsend Acres?), and the prices these guys are commanding on the secondary market are insane.

So, now I'll just be wondering what we get to see next! Crossing my fingers that it's something good.

 

 

 

Shannondell winner has been announced!

The winner of the first Shannondell off the production line has been announced - it's going to Rebecca R. in Kentucky. Congrats!

This means Shannondell will most likely be ready to order soon - maybe even by the end of the week. While it's a nice sculpt, I already presold mine - he just doesn't do it for me, despite the fact that I like drafters. I think it's his left hind leg; there's just something odd-looking about it. That, and I really needed to do something that would bring some money in; I've been buying so many horses lately I can't even keep track of how many are coming in versus going out. Add that to my unofficial rule of selling at least one Premier club release each year and poor Shannondell just doesn't get to stay.

So, it could go either way with the next release; either it's something I love, that I won't sell, or hopefully it's something I don't like, but is popular with everyone else so I can sell it and at least break even. It could go either way at this point, and I'd be happy with that. I believe the next release is an Eberl, though, so most likely it will stay. We'll have to wait and see!