Pairs o' Ponies

The chestnut Designer's Workshop Head Up and Head Down Ponies came in one other color.

Matte or gloss white.

My Head Down Pony is the matte version and he has bi-eyes.

Both the chestnut and the white versions were produced 1981 - 1984.

This pony has some very light grey shading that is difficult to photograph but you can see a bit of it here.

This pair has been in my collection since the 1990s.

The Head Up Pony in my collection is the gloss white version.

No bi-eyes for this boy. 

His eyes are a simple but very luminous shade of black.

I like glossies, both in Breyer and Hagen Renaker pieces, but in the case of these two ponies, I much prefer the matte.

Both colors of the Head Down Ponies have bi-eyes. 

The Head Up Ponies' eyes differ. I'd love to see a picture of the white version with bi-eyes and in matte. And I'd love to see its Head Down counterpart with the luminous eye and gloss. (This is how variation collecting gets started.)

I may do some searching for those variations but I am in no rush.

I'm happy with what I have. Although I am still looking for the Stablemate sized mini ponies in the chestnut color (1956 - 1957) and the Head Up mini in calico. (2010 - 2021)

Oh, and the Head Up Circus Pony in blue and yellow harnesses and the Head Down Circus Pony in maroon and lime green harnesses. And don't forget the variations on the harnesses with the scalloped or smooth harnesses, the red dot on the bit in the white and black versions, the variation in the shades of the maroon harnesses, and...

More Pairs o' Ponies tomorrow. Stay 'tooned!

The San Marcos Head Up & Head Down Ponies

Here is the story about those Hagen Renaker ponies that Cowpoke Lukie set the red, white and blue Breyers by the other day.

Liz Cory is helping Nancy Falzone sell some of her extensive Hagen Renaker collection. The day before Midwest Mini Mayhem, Liz posted some photos on Facebook of what she was bringing to the show to sell and these two lovely pieces were included.

Lucky enough to see the post as it dropped, and having been looking for this pair in Stablemate size for years, I looked at their prices, and immediately responded that if no one else had already bought them, then I would.

I was expecting the mini Head Up and Head Down ponies; I was not expecting the Designer Workshop pieces! The stickers should have been a clue, but the prices were so good, I assumed they were the smaller version.

I don't have a single one of the smaller, non-circus Head Up and Head Down ponies; every time I find one, it is snapped up before I can get it.

As a result, I acted fast and contacted Liz. The ponies were mine and it wasn't until I opened their box later that I realized I'd gotten the Designer Workshop pieces, not the Stablemate sized ones. 

Immediately I contacted Liz - there had to be a mistake because the price was what I expect to pay for the mini versions, certainly not the Designer Workshop ones.

Liz assured me that the price was not an error and that what I'd paid was what Nancy wanted for them.

Honestly, I could not believe my luck. While I did not get the chestnut pair in the Stablemate size that I have been looking for, I was still very, very happy to have the chestnut Designer Workshop set, especially at such a reasonable price and, more importantly, pieces that came from Nancy's collection.

Include with each one was a file photo and a card on which Nancy had written information about the piece.

I have had the ponies on my photography shelf since I got home. I've taken pictures of them, but I need to make room in the china cabinet where I keep my large Hagen Renakers. There is always a breakage risk when rearranging chinas, so I have been putting off that task.

I have been enjoying having them in my office and out where I can see them. But clearly it is time to put them in a safer place.

There is more to this story. Stay 'tooned!