Bandalero is finally ready to order!

 Good news, readers! If you're a Premier Club member, this year's club has reached its conclusion - Bandalero is ready to order! 

We have until 12/29 to complete our orders, so don't feel rushed. I did manage to sell my Bandalero, so he'll be on his way to his new owner soon. Don't forget that Enya, the new Stablemate for this year, will be included with Bandalero! 

Interestingly, the email says all of the Enya models will be matte. This year's JAH said they would be a 50/50 split between matte and glossy. Wonder what happened there? What are the odds the factory messed up and didn't gloss half of them like they were supposed to? Stranger things have happened, I guess. Still, the fewer gambler's choice releases, the better. My Enya is staying with the buyer of my Bandalero, so I'll have to satisfy myself with other people's photos of her, but I don't think I'm missing out on anything by selling her. 

Breyer is also doing a sweepstakes! 

Six lucky winners will receive one Freshly Baked blind bag and a plush Jingle. Sheesh, the Freshly Baked models must not have sold very well, or they made a ton of them. In any case, enter the sweepstakes here! Entries must be in by 12/15. 

In other other news, today was also the opening day for registrations for BreyerMidWest! Looks like the live show will be pretty popular - all tables sold out in about 11 minutes, including one half table to yours truly! I also snagged a glossy Marc of Charm and applied to volunteer at the event. Now I just have to decide if I'm going to drive or fly! I'm leaning toward driving at this stage, but who knows. 

Lots of things to post about today!

 Well, we had a little bit of a dry spell the last few days- but it was definitely broken today! First off: 2024 Stablemates Club members can now order Augustus, the last release in the club: 

I'm excited for this little fellow! The optional release, the Hadley and Holden set, is also available:

I'll be ordering both of these releases, though I only want the Standing Foal version of Holden. Let's hope my luck is in with that one. 

In other news, we got another reveal for the 2025 Stablemates Club today! Behold, Spencer:

Pretty color, but I'm not interested in the mold, so he'll be for sale. 

Lastly, registrations for various BreyerMidWest activities will go on sale this Wednesday at 1pm EST! I'm tentatively considering attending this year so I can get a glossy Marc of Charm, so I may end up reporting from the event just like Breyerfest! We'll see. 

That's it for today - let's hope we get more exciting reveals soon! And the last Premier Club release! 

Featured JAH - 12/7/2024, Jan/Feb 2005

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured JAH! We're starting another new year with 2005 this week, so let's get started! 

On the front cover, a horse gallops through a field, and JAH celebrates its 30th anniversary. Goodness, does that mean JAH is 50 next year? I wonder if Breyer is planning anything to celebrate that? The magazine is mostly-defunct, but who knows (and they're probably busy with 75th Anniversary stuff). 

In the Editor's Desk, Natasha previews the magazine and talks about JAH's 30th anniversary. 

On page 3 we have Letters to the Editor, with some fan art and sneak "peaks" (oh boy) of some new cats coming out in 2005. 

On page 4 is the first page of an article about the now-extinct Abaco Barb breed of horses. 

The Abaco Barb article concludes on page 5 with a photo of the Capella model. 

On page 6 we have a full-page photo of Impress Me Shannon, another Breyer portrait horse. 

The entire Impress Me Shannon article appears on page 7, complete with a reveal of his Breyer model. I couldn't find any further information about Impress Me Shannon or a date of death (with a birth year of 1991, he's presumably passed on by now). 

After skipping an article about making a collar for your model dog, on page 10 we have an article about JAH's 30th Anniversary! The magazine has certainly changed a lot since its introduction. And 2025 will indeed be the 50th anniversary for the magazine, so I wonder if it'll get any recognition.

On page 11 we have an article about Uncalled For, the first release in the Collector's Choice series. I wish that would make a comeback! Imagine the cool models we could be getting. I don't remember if Breyer ever gave a reason for the Collector's Choice model going away (aside from presumably poor sales). 

On page 12 is the handsome Tempest Connoisseur Model on Smarty Jones! I had one of these guys before I sold my Smarty conga, but I don't regret selling him. He's a handsome boy! 

After skipping Breyer jr., Collector's Corner, CollectiBull art contest winners, an article about keeping track of your show models and a pastels how-to article, on page 22 is another article about model horse show judging ethics. 

The ethics article concludes on page 23. 

After skipping Horse Trader (slowly shrinking) and a book review, on page 26 we have the first page of this week's Vintage Point, featuring Legionario III! 

The Vintage Point article concludes on page 27. Like many older molds, I once had a few Legionarios, but sold them off for shelf space. Part of me wishes I hadn't sold my Grane, but what's done is done. I don't display my silver filigree models together anymore anyways, so it's not that big of a deal. 

After skipping photos from a couple of Breyer events and the event calendar, on the back cover of the magazine we find two new Gallery reveals - the porcelain Afire Atnight and resin Obvious Flair. And that brings us to the end of this week's issue! Check back next week for March/Apr 2005! 

Whuh? 4 days of Breyerfest?

 Well, today's earth-shaking Breyerfest announcement was so cataclysmic, they had to make two announcements! First, this blog post revealed that Breyerfest would officially be taking place over four days next year, with details promised tomorrow. Naturally, people started to panic about having to change their hotel/airfare/rental car reservations, and the uproar was such that Breyer moved up this blog post to today. In said blog post, it was revealed that all that's really changing about Thursday is part of the Breyerfest Live show being moved to Thursday, along with some workshops. So there's no need to panic, unless you're planning on showing in the performance division at Breyerfest Live and also Resin Renaissance, in which case you'll have to pick which one you want to show in. 

Exciting stuff! I do think it's long past the time Breyerfest was expanded to four days, but more notice would be preferable. Like, you know, at the end of Breyerfest when the next year's dates are announced. I was pretty excited about this announcement at first, because I've thought Breyerfest should start on Thursday for a long time (more-spread-out events! No more mad dashing from place to place! Maybe I could do the live show and volunteer!  Maybe they'll add a Friday raffle!), until Breyer had to clarify that the changes are live show and workshop-related. Maybe someday we'll get a dedicated Breyerfest Thursday...

Featured JAH - 11/30/2023, Nov/Dec 2004

 Hello and welcome to another edition of Featured JAH! We're finishing up 2004 with Nov/Dec this week (fittingly, for the date), so let's get started! 

On the front cover we have the winner of that year's JAH cover contest in a very wintry, Christmasy scene. 

In the Editor's Desk, Natasha talks about some philosophical stuff and sums up the magazine. There's also a reveal of Goin' for Gold! I always thought he was one of the prettier Lonesome Glory releases.

On page 3 we have Letters to the Editor! 

On page 4 is the first part of the article about Smarty Jones, 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner. 

The article concludes on page 5 with a reveal of the Smarty Jones mold/model! Also his Christmas tree ornament. 

On page 6 is the first page of an article about my favorite sculptor, Kathleen Moody! Huzzah! 

The Kathleen Moody article continues on page 7. 

After skipping an article about MEPSA and the 2004 Retired List, on page 10 we have an article about the equestrian portion of the 2004 Olympics! 

The Olympics article concludes on page 11. 

On page 12, the fabulous Tortuga makes his debut! Maybe someday I'll find one to add to my herd. 

After skipping Breyer jr., Collector's Corner and a reveal of JC Penney Breyers for 2004, on page 19 we find the conclusion of the Kathleen Moody article and winners of the Bull Art Contest that I don't remembering being announced before. Maybe I missed that. Anyway, I still hope we get a new Moody sculpture someday - I want one so bad it's almost physically painful. Here's hoping, I guess! 

On page 22 we find an article about ethics in live show judging - always a timely subject. 

The ethics article concludes on page 23. 

After skipping most of Horse Trader (still hanging in there at 1.25 pages), on page 25 is the Holiday Cover Contest results. 

On page 26 is the first page of this issue's Vintage Point, this time focusing on the G2 American Saddlebred. 

The Vintage Point article concludes on page 27. 

On page 28 we have the reveal of Capella, the benefit model for the (sadly now-extinct) Abaco Barb breed of horse. 

After skipping the Calendar of Events, we've reached the back cover, featuring the 2004 Holiday Collection! And with that, we've reached the end of both this issue and 2004. Check back next week for Jan/Feb 2005! 

November Collector Club Newsletter!

 Good news, readers and Collector Club members! The 2024 Collector Club newsletter is out in the wild! If you're a Collector Club member, check your email to read it. Firstly, the feature story is "A Closer Look at 2025 Specialty Clubs," which offers, among other things, a turntable video of Winnifred, the first Premier Club release of 2025. Here's the thumbnail:

Ehh...I'm thinking, "Nah," on this one. I like her head from certain angles, but that's about it. The rest of her doesn't really appeal to me, nor does the mealy/pangare coloring. Better luck with the next one, I guess. 

Excitingly, there's also a turntable video of Madonna, the PAM/Zara release in the 2025 Stablemates Club! Here's a more-different angle of her: 

I'm toying with the idea of keeping her just for the novelty - and really, she's one Stablemate, so it's not like I don't have room for her. I'm somewhat irritated that it turns out she's the "new sculpture" for 2025's club - I thought she was the first release! So we won't even get her for another year. Happily, there's a reveal of another 2025 Stablemates Club model! 

Cute! He's almost like a mini version of Churchill, though the whites are different. I was already planning on joining the club, but this guy definitely makes it easier! 

That's about it for the feature story, but there's also a giveaway of a Hot Cocoa and this sneak peek: 

At first I thought it was something 75th Anniversary related, because of the blue and gold, but then someone pointed out it appears to be some sort of color-shift paint (see the red/purple in the bottom left). So, I have no idea what this is. Hopefully we don't have to wait too long to find out! It's probably the winter decorator web special, but who knows. 

Black Friday Sale Pt. 2

 Well, the second part of Breyer’s Black Friday sale went live this morning - and what a sale it was! Lots of exciting stuff this time:

Julius was probably the hottest item of the sale - I actually remembered to check it this time and I saw everything appear on the page precisely at noon. I’m pretty sure Julius sold out first (within a few seconds) but it could have been something farther down the page…

Yep, there was at least one Peregrine, too! 

I’m a little mystified that things like Go Figure, Guinevere and Raleigh sold out so quickly, since they weren’t terribly popular on release and Go Figure can be had for under $100, but maybe people just wanted to get something? Like the previous sale, inventory was low on most of this stuff and there was a lot of cart-snatching happening. I didn’t need anything from this sale, fortunately, so it was interesting to watch everything sell out. Congratulations to everyone that managed to snag something! I suspect more may be added for the actual Black Friday and/or Cyber Monday, so stay tuned!