At the top of the miscellaneous list is a hobbyist-discovered blooper regarding Cooper, the Vintage Club release on the Appaloosa Performance Horse. Someone received their Cooper, and he bears an unveiled Birds of a Feather Series Kingfisher belly stamp. The stamp says Kingfisher 2022 and has a Kingfisher bird outline. Since that initial finding, other Kingfisher Coopers have surfaced, which has led to speculation about how many Kingfisher Coopers there are. Has the entire 750 piece run been misstamped, or just a portion of the run? I received a shipping notice from Breyer for Cooper, but the tracking is still showing label created (and no movement). I am really hoping I get a Kingfisher Cooper - I find it to be a neat blunder. I will not be posting the photos of the Kingfisher Coopers as I do not know to whom they belong and thus cannot ask permission to use their photos. Anyway, the Kingfisher Mysteries continue with a Sneak Peek Square which was published in the February 2022 Collectors Club Newsletter:
So, is this Sneak Peek Square of an upcoming Birds of a Feather model, or something else? Most Kingfishers tend to be brightly colored, although there are some with a less vivid appearance (here is a fun uninteresting fact: kookaburras are part of the tree Kingfisher family). This model may still be part of the Birds of a Feather series, but it may not be Kingfisher. It’s just a simple wait and see situation to discover if there are any more belly stamp blunders. There probably won’t be, but speculation can be entertaining. I know I would be highly amused with more wrong stamps on wrong tummies. Turning now to the rest of the content of the February 2022 Collectors Club Newsletter, the main feature was about custom barns (I haven’t read it yet), reminders that the Winter Coloring Contest and February Photo Contest entries were due on February 28th, the Sneak Peak Square, the monthly giveaway (Ideal Series Palomino), and a reminder about the changes for Breyerfest 2022 (which I shall mention in a moment). Absent again was the feature on collectors in the hobby, which is actually my favorite part of the entire newsletter. I can’t remember if there was one in the January edition, but it was wasn’t in the 2021 November or December newsletters either. Hopefully the collector stories will make a comeback soon.
Okay, at this point everyone and their Grandmother’s dog’s cousin’s goldfish’s pet cricket has heard about the upcoming changes for Breyerfest 2022. Due to the lengthy discussions that have been ongoing on social media about the changes, I have decided to not write extensively about them, but will give the highlights:
- There are three types of in person Breyerfest tickets, the VIP, All-Access, and General Admission. Only the VIP and All-Access tickets are eligible for the Special Run models. The General Admission ticket comes with a random Event Stablemate and the ability to purchase Limited Edition models.
- VIP ticket holders will purchase their tickets, choose and pay for their SR and LE models (two from each model group) when they check out.
- All-Access ticket holders will purchase their tickets online, and at a later date Breyer will send electronic preference forms for AA tickets holders, where they will rank their SR model preferences in order of most desirable. Remember that you may not get your top model choices with this method. Yes, this also eliminates AA ticket holders the ability to make last minute changes at Breyerfest, such as seeing the Surprise model and then deciding to buy a different SR instead. Breyer is encouraging participants to buy the models selected for them even if they don’t like them and then trade for the models they do want.
- All-Access ticket holders will need to pay for their SR models in advance. They do not need to pay for their models at the time of the ticket purchase as the VIP ticket holders do, but will need to pay for them before Breyerfest once ticket sales are done (sales for all tickets end on May 2, 2022 or while supplies last) and the preference lists have been generated. Note that if you do not like the models selected for you, you are not obligated to buy them.
- All-Access ticket holders will have two ticket books, whereas VIPs will have one ticket book mailed to them which includes everything needed for Breyerfest. AA ticket holders will have one ticket book mailed to them which will contain the admission wristbands, redemption tickets for the Celebration model, parking pass if purchased, and the evening show. However, the redemption tickets for the Special Run models need to be picked up at Breyerfest. Not understanding why Breyer chose to split the AA into two ticket books; since they are already mailing stuff to AA ticket holders, why not include everything? It seems like it would be simpler to do so, instead of having people pick up their SR tickets at the KHP. After all, before the elimination of the hourly time slots the SR tickets were mailed to the purchasers…
- General Admission ticket holders will get a randomly selected Event Stablemate and will have the ability to purchase the Limited Edition models.
- There are two types of online only tickets. There is the Online Traditional Access and the Online Stablemate Access. No Breyerfest SRs are included with either of these, but the ability to purchase the Limited Editions is.
- The Online Traditional Access ticket includes the Celebration model, whereas the Online Stablemate Access ticket includes one randomly selected Event Stablemate model.
- No free shipping this year for online Breyerfest purchases.
I probably have forgotten to put in other information, but that’s it in a nutshell. And what a nutshell it is! I probably won’t be able to make it to Breyerfest, but I did check this morning and VIP tickets are still available for purchase. I have not decided if I should find a pickup person or just purchase on the secondary market…decisions, decisions. My number one want is the LE Rhenish Draft, who I can obtain with either of the online ticket options. I love the Candy Cubs, and do want them, but I need to make a decision. *Twiddles thumbs while thinks about BF SRs*
As for The Land of Milk and Honey, or rather, The Land of Honeybear, Breyer did an excellent job managing the quantities of this guy. He did not sell out in under 12 minutes, and has been available for days. As of this posting I do not think Honeybear has sold out, so there was an abundance of them made. Happily it seems everyone who wanted one was able to buy one directly from Breyer. That is how the Collectors Club Web Specials should be - available to all members. Regarding the lottery draw web specials, I feel that due to the growth the CC has seen over the last few years, I am in favor of increasing the lottery draw run numbers to match the growth (which I know isn’t the most popular of opinions). I think a few micro runs sprinkled in throughout the year would be nice too.
Hmmmmmm, oh yeah. I never received a COA with my PC Hawkeye and Firefly, and I still don’t have it, which means I have to follow up and keep bugging Breyer for it. I have also just realized that Breyer owes me an Arctic Grandeur as well. A couple of weeks ago I finally got the five unicorn Mini Whinnie blind bags I ordered in October 2021:
Duplicates galore, y’all:
Hahahahaha, I got a slight variation in that one of the blue MWs is a bit darker than the others, though it is kind of hard to see in the photos:
This one has a nice, rich, jewel purple color. I prefer this to a misty watercolor purple blush:
I think that about wraps up this odds n’ ends post. I have been feeling a little better, but am still spending more time than usual sleeping/resting. I am hoping to be able to update this blog more frequently and get back on a regular schedule. Until next time!
*Sneak Peek Square photo is from Breyer’s February 2022 Collectors Club Newsletter.*
*Breyerfest Big Announcement photo is from Breyer’s website.*
*Honeybear photo is from Breyer’s website and the image has been reversed by me.*