The Muncie Swap Meet

Yesterday's swap meet in Muncie was a huge success! Twenty two collectors were in attendance from Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky.

 And they say the hobby is aging - just look at these girls playing around!

Allison Pareis hosts this get together three times a year, and it is held in the banquet room of the local Pizza King, an Indiana hotspot. All the restaurant asks is that we not bring in any food and if we are hungry, that we order from them. Otherwise, the room is free of charge!

I arrived ten minutes early to find all the tables already taken and people already shopping and swapping. Luckily there is an overflow area that the restaurant opened up, and I ended up with a very good spot for selling.

I quickly unpacked and set out my sales items - I had brought all my old Just About Horses, some BreyerFest programs from 2003 - 2011, and dealers' catalogs from 1985, 1990 - 2013 along with some horses. People swooped down and snapped up all of the magazines, catalogs, and BreyerFest programs, leaving three dealer catalogs that were duplicates behind. (I didn't even have a chance to get a photo of my sales table with all its goodies!) I also sold four models. 

Suddenly, I had a mostly empty table and some unexpected spending money. (I figured I would sell a few things, but I never dreamed I would nearly sell out!) I walked around the room and took a look at what was on the tables for sale or trade.

Sue Kaiser (in red shirt) and me (navy, back to camera) chatting. (Photo credit to Allison Pareis.)

It was like being in a flea market that only has things for model horse lovers - no old tools, no glassware, no furniture, just items that would appeal to collectors. It was terrific!

I ate lunch with my friends Michelle Evans and Pat Reed who had come up from Indianapolis.

 While we ate, Maggie Lump presented about horse anatomy. 

She did an excellent job teaching us about good conformation.

 Next, Kay Callahan put what Maggie had said to practical use on some Breyer models.

Here she is showing us a way to tell if the head and legs are in proportion by using a pen to get some rough measurements.

And after that, those who wished could bring up a stock horse model and we had a little judging clinic where everyone ranked the models, including Maggie and Kay, and then compared our results against theirs.

 Michelle Evans and Alicia Strayer-Mangun chat about a Hagen Renaker Terrang that Alicia had brought.

 Just prior to packing up at the end of the meet, I happened to notice a piece that I have long wanted. Using the cash from my sales I was able to buy it (I sort of feel like it was free as a result!)

Can you guess which one it is? Tomorrow's entry will reveal it!