2021 Vintage Club Second Release: Nonoma

I keep staring at that blue eye-love the eyeliner around it! Here’s a photo of a real blue eyed horse with eyeliner. 

Lolololol, y’all remember in the post before the last one the discussion on the Foundation Stallion #869 Lakota Pony having five variations of symbols? Nonoma, the VC FS release, will have four variations:

So, Nonoma will be the third VC model to have a Gambler’s Choice this year. Interestingly, it seems one version will have no symbols. Breyer’s blurb seems to be indicating there will be a total of five versions of Nonoma. In addition to the symbol free one, it states that “symbols, if present, will vary in this release! Four different variations.”  

Here is Breyer’s full body promo picture of Nonoma:

The inspiration for Nonoma’s pinto pattern is from the #175 chestnut tobiano Indian Pony. She was produced with warpaint from 1970-1973, and produced without warpaint from 1973-1976. Breyer choosing to have warpaint/no warpaint versions of Nonoma is a nice nod to #175’s run.

Cannot wait to see what I get, and what all of the variations will be. I won’t be ordering Nonoma instantly as I think the second release of the Stablemates Club is due to be released soon. Hopefully I can order them together and have a dual pony day!

*Nonoma photos from Breyer’s website*

*Blue eyed horse with eyeliner photo from Pinterest*

*Breyer Indian Pony #175 from Identify Your Breyer website*

Nostalgia Corner: A Childhood Horse

Somewhere back in the midsts of time (the 1970s, haha!), one of my cousins gave me a horse she was no longer interested in keeping. It wasn’t a Breyer, but nonetheless I was thrilled to have it. It was a plastic, pseudo-woodgrain finish grazing mare. She bears no marking from a manufacturer, so her origin is unknown. I played with that mare often and she was the pony who tagged along with my Breyer Classics. I paired her with her own stallion-a stylized horse carved from wood with a removable tail. He was named Boomerang due to that tail, even though it didn’t really look like a boomerang at all. Eventually one of the mare’s legs snapped off, but I couldn’t discard her. I may still have her somewhere, and I am pretty sure that I have my old friend Boomerang tucked away. 

While zipping through eBay listings, I spied an old familiar shape which gave me pause. I scrolled back up to see my old grazing pony mare’s twin. I put her on my watch list, and a short time later received one of those automated seller discounts for showing interest in the item. I bought her, and she arrived a few days later. This particular mare is a bit darker than my original, who was a few shades lighter. I never thought I’d ever see one like her again, and interestingly she came from Michigan. I believe that my cousin acquired hers in Michigan or Wisconsin. 

She’s an endearing little mare, even though her eyes and ears are roughly the same size and shape, her legs lack definition, and her woodgrain coat has streaks and drips. She reminds me of the pony you spot in an old pasture while driving down a country road. Not the fancy show pony with the picture perfect conformation and flashy coat, but the ubiquitous country pony everyone wants to hug. 

Here’s the little mare:

She even has the same strange line across her front left leg by the elbow. I thought someone was trying to destroy the leg on my original:

Close up of her same shaped eyes and ears:

A few more pictures from various angles:

Ruuuuuuuuuuuuuun!!! More Birds and 2021 Vintage Club Reveals!

 Here we go again:

Scene from Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, 1963. Or people running to their computers to enter for Goldfinch.

Breyer has released the second model in their Birds of a Feather series.  It is Goldfinch, a shaded glossy buckskin on the ever popular Silver mold, limited to 380 pieces. The opportunity to purchase a Goldfinch will be via lottery as usual, with one entry per Collector’s Club account instead of daily entries. I would usually enter once anyway as I’d get busy and forget to enter every day. This time Breyer is also requiring entrants to list their home address in addition to their name and Collector’s Club email. I glanced over the conditions of sale but didn’t see any limitations on how many winners per household Breyer will allow. I know there have been instances where collectors have won the same Web Special on multiple accounts. It has happened, but it is rare. Perhaps Breyer will now be checking addresses to help spread the winners around.

I quite like Goldfinch’s promo pictures. The chocolately brown on his legs and the grey/brown mane and tail meld better with the light coat than a straight black. It looks like there may be black tips on the mane and tail, but it is hard to tell from the photo. Either way, it is a gradual darkening and not a stark, demarcated color change. Good luck to all who are entering!

The Grapevine has stated that some members of the Vintage Club have received their official welcome letter, and it included info on the 2021 models. I haven’t received my VC letter yet, but here is the rest of the 2021 VC lineup:

-The Foundation Stallion done as an Indian Pony

-Brighty as the Gambler’s Choice

-Terrang painted a glossy bay and plopped on a Presentation base

-The optional model is a mare and foal set (Marabella and Amber) 

-The bonus Stablemate will be Yellow Mount on the miniaturized Smart Chic Olena mold

I am intrigued by the FS done as an IP. Does that mean an actual color done on the IP, or is it a general statement? People are guessing the FS will be in vintage IP colors, but he’s been done in buckskin twice as Fugir Cacador and as Buried Treasure. He also appeared as a bay blanket Appaloosa in the 1993 JC Penny Wild Horses of America set, which resembles the #174 IP. The FS turned up in alabaster as a Special Run in 1985. Here’s my guy whom I purchased from Horses International decades ago:

The FS has previously been used as First Nations horses-seven times! He was seen as the #710 American Indian Pony, a red roan-ish color. Next he was released in white with cream shading as a Lakota Pony (#869). There were *five* versions of 869; each version had different symbols painted on, predominantly in blue. Some of the models had minimal red symbols on them. In 2010 he appeared as Thunderbolt, a grey Appaloosa bearing symbols in red and blue (and possibly black). Since Thunderbolt was in grabbing distance, here are photos of him:

Maybe we’ll see an IP #175 chestnut tobiano on the FS as we did with 2014’s VC Kiowa? Or maybe Breyer will trick us by putting a more modern IP paint job on a vintage mold. Excited to find out!

Brighty is the Gambler’s Choice which was slightly surprising, but I am happy. I was trying to guess which model would be the GC, and I never thought of Brighty. 

Terrang on a Presentation base is going to be interesting. It makes a lot of sense to use a Classic instead of a Traditional for this, but I’m really curious to see how big the base is going to be and if the horse will be removable. I’m betting it will be removable, and am wondering if the base will be rectangular like the vintage ones. Maybe it will be given a modern spin by being an oval like the bases used for the Ethereal Series or for Cherokee, a black semi-leopard done on the Cody/Ranch Horse mold.

The optional purchase mare and foal set will be done in glossy charcoal. I’m not sure how popular Marabella and Amber are these days, but being a mommy/baby set plus glossy charcoal may make them quite desirable.   

The Bonus SM Yellow Mount is a GC..two GCs for the VC this year! Early models of the traditional Yellow Mount had a white spot present on the off foreleg which disappeared during his seventeen year run (1970-1987). The SM GC will have the foreleg spot present or absent. A tiny difference, and I don’t care which one I get honestly. I’m trying to picture Yellow Mount on the SCO mold, but cannot quite get there. 

That’s all folks, and hopefully we’ll get some photos of the VC offerings at some point...

*Movie still from The Birds, 1963*

*Goldfinch photos taken from Breyer’s website*

New Horse Alert: Meet One of the Lafayettes

At long last, after relentlessly stalking Breyer’s website in anticipation of Lafayette’s release and purchasing two of him, they arrived one week ago. Not bothering to read the info on Lafayette’s page when he was released, I went for two in the event a collector I knew who really wanted one would get one at cost if he sold out. Happily, Breyer accommodated everyone in the Collector’s Club with the backorder option. Lafayettes for all! Hurray! Certainly not the inky black beauty of Breyer’s promotional pictures, the silver basecoat glows from beneath the black topcoat and the silver shines...like silver where there is no black topcoat. I absolutely love how these guys look, minus the weird crappling. Well okay, even with the weird crappling I love this color. What I would love to see is this color on Georg, but dapple free. I unwrapped one Laffy but have kept the bubble wrapping on Laffy #2’s head and tail. Both of my Laffys (Laffies?) look to be about the same color wise, but Laffy #2’s right side has more prominent crapples. Neither one has the heavy gloss you expect on a glossy, but rather a thin gloss coat. Overall, I’m very happy with the Lafayettes, and hope that someday we will get a solid, thickly glossed coal black on this mold. Something like the Coal Christmas Zebra:

I tried to take some outdoor photos of Laffy #1 (Laffy #2 has been shoved back in his box). However, the wind was super wild and kept blowing him down. He tumbled over twice and landed in the grass. I should have just stuck him in the flower bed. The mud would have held him still, haha. Here he is outdoors in full sun standing on an upside down Home Depot bucket (‘cause we’re all about professionalism here):

Here are some more outdoor pictures on the shaded porch, taken on the oh-so-classy grill. And if you look carefully, on the left side in the first picture you can see a tiny Lafayette reflecting in the glass:

Notice in the photos below how much of the silver basecoat is showing on his chest and neck when compared with his head, especially in the third photo. I had to anchor him with one hand as the wind just would not let up. I was lucky to get his left and right sides (see above) before the wind went wild again.

I also took a few indoor photos:

The silver seen here is the basecoat, not straight up glare:

This is a color I would love to see Breyer use again, but without the dapples. I prefer the models to be dapple free, as more often than not the dapples end up looking weird. 

*Coal Christmas Zebra photos from Breyer’s website.*

Gold Charm Secretariats, No Charm Peter Stone

Holy Batman Boots, we’re taking the time machine back to last century, and I’m not just talking about the retro packaging of the Vintage Club Stablemate. Native Dancer is the 2020 VC SM wearing the gold charm decorator color. He is a mini-me of the 1990 Signing Party model, which was (you guessed it!) the Secretariat mold in gold charm. At the time it was exciting because he was a gold charm model-a color from the 1960s, man. These models were available at the 1990 Breyer Signing Parties. Signing Parties were a thing (okay, promotional event) where Peter Stone met with collectors at places where Breyers were sold and signed their models. This was, of course, before he and Breyer parted ways and started his own model horse company. The signing parties went on from about 1983 (maybe 1984?) to 1990. Models specific to signing parties were made only for the last three years of these events, starting in 1988. The first was a Classic set called the Foal’s First Day featuring Johar and the Classic Arabian foal. 1989 saw a red roan-flea bitten grey Lady Phase, and 1990 was the gold charm Secretariat. 

Here is the 1990 gold charm Secretariat glinting in the sun. I am fortunate that he hasn’t tarnished over the decades as some have.

I decided that I had to have a gold charm Secretariat since he had passed away the previous year (October 1989). One of the planned signing parties was in Shipshewana, Indiana, which was the closest one to Detroit. My sister and I made plans to go. We went, and meeting Peter Stone was not what I’d call a charming experience. I cannot remember the name of the store where the signing was held (it has been almost 31 years), but I do remember the meeting. We bought our horses and moved toward the crowd gathered around Peter Stone. He was quite loud while chatting with them, and some lady kept exclaiming, “Oh Pee-tar!” like Wendy from the Disney version of Peter Pan. Since he was occupied by his admirers and Wendy, my sister and I were looking through a large bin filled with Stablemates, roughly five feet from the crowd. To my surprise, I found a solid black Seabiscuit, and held it up to show my sister. The crowd had thinned some, and I said “Look! A black Seabiscuit!” to her. Peter Stone, now on the edge of the crowd closest to us, hollered out, “Those are arbitrary colors! NOT special runs!” Okay, cool, we didn’t ask about the run status, but thanks for the info. We went back to the register, and bought two of the black Seabiscuits along with a few other Stablemates. We returned to the sign line which had dwindled to a few people wanting their models signed. The group of admirers and Wendy were still loitering about trying to talk to Peter Stone. Finally it was our turn to get our models signed. We didn’t want everything signed, so I handed one Secretariat over to get signed, then the second one. Peter Stone sees we have other models, and rudely demands, “Give those models here, girls! Let’s go!” and tries to swipe my sister’s model bag. Fortunately my sister had lightning fast reflexes and dodged him. I said, “Thanks, but we don’t want anything else signed.” Apparently that was somewhat insulting to him; he squawk-shrieked “You DON’T want my signature?!” We both like nope, bye, see ya. Wendy clearly felt it was her duty to be insulted along with Peter Stone. As we were leaving she was roaring about us “being rude to not get our models signed because it was a privilege to get Pee-tar’s signature.” Ummm yeah lady, just because you’ve elevated him to demigod rock star status doesn’t mean everyone feels that way. Of course, we laughed like hyenas all the way back to Detroit, and kept screeching “Oh Pee-tar!” just like the Wendy we encountered.

Gold charm Secretariat and his mini-me Stablemate:

Side note: In regard to the solid black Seabiscuits, they were officially released in 1991 (per the Identify Your Breyer website). I’m not sure why they were available at the Signing Party. Perhaps it was a perk to have it available before the official release or maybe it was by accident. 

*Black Seabiscuit photo from the Identify Your Breyer website.*

New Horse Alert: Premier Club Stablemate Lyric!

 Breyer’s Premier Club comes with a bonus Stablemate, which is a mini-me of one of the Premier Club models which debuted that year. The 2020 PC SM is Lyric, a new Norwegian Fjord stallion mold. He is painted a silver bay splash white to match the PC Morgan stallion, Troubadour. I am really loving this Fjord-he’s so cute and tiny! He is already scheduled to make another appearance as Avant Garde, a purple dun Event Model for Breyerfest 2021’s Horse of a Different Color theme. Yay for purple ponies!

Size comparison with the G3 Standing Thoroughbred:

And because I love him in purple, here’s Avant Garde: 

I am looking forward to the day we have him as a regular run and have one that looks just like this:

Until next time, Fjord Friends!

*Avant Garde photo from Breyer’s website *

*Harnessed Fjord photo from Pinterest *

Test Run Jeans and Lafayette Woes

Okay, test run jeans sounds much more amusing than Denim. At least to me, anyway. The first Test Model of 2021 is a beautiful glossy light denim blue Lady Phase. She has a pattern of warp and weft threads to mimic the weave of fabric. This Lady Phase was the test run for Twill, a 2013 Breyerfest Special Run. Twill differs from Denim in that she is a pinto, has white facial and leg markings, and isn’t glossy. The thread pattern on Twill was retained from the test run model. Denim will be sold via lottery draw, and is priced at $1,100. This is the highest of any test run offered so far. Breyer had initially priced the test runs at $800, and the prices began to increase. I wish Breyer had kept the test pieces in the $800 range to keep them affordable for more collectors. The higher prices have cut many out of the chance to purchase a Breyer test run.

Here is Twill, the 2013 Breyerfest Special Run for comparison:

Personally, I prefer the test model over Twill. Maybe Breyer was going for a ripped jeans look when they decided to add the white pinto markings to Twill? Presenting the latest fashion trend-Pinto Pants! Wear them to any Breyer Event!

If you have entered the lottery for Denim, good luck to you!

Moving on to the much anticipated CC Lafayette model...when Lafayette was finally available to members of the Collector’s Club, he was available in two batches. One was the in stock group, and the other was the backorder group for those who missed the in stock Lafayettes. Breyer allowed the option to backorder a Lafayette model which would be delivered in September 2021, and gave a generous time allotment for the ordering period (February 26-March 18), which I thought was fantastic. However, it seems that Breyer’s Wild Warehouse People began filling the orders randomly. Some people who had ordered Lafayette when he was in stock have been pushed to the September backorder group, and some people who had backordered Lafayette have received shipping notices with delivery dates for the model. The Wild Warehouse People have in recent weeks been mailing horses in bubble mailers, and shipping items from multi-item orders individually. 

Onward with more about Lafayette. The Breyer promotional pictures show Lafayette to be inky black with subtle silver dapples. Those who have received their Lafayettes have noted that he is not the inky black color-he is actually a dark gray, with varying degrees of the silver undercoat peering through. There seem to be variations in the darkness of the black topcoat, with some looking to be more of a smoky silver. I would have preferred the jet black myself, but I’m still loving the color on this guy. I should have mine next week, barring any disasters than may wreak havoc on the shipping route. 

*Test Run Denim photos from the Breyer website*

*BF SR Twill photos from Identify Your Breyer website*

*Pinto pants/ripped jeans from Pinterest*