Wrapping Up BreyerFest 2025

First Post of the Day

The 2025 BreyerFest was the oddest one I've ever had and I still feel somewhat disconnected from it. 

A lot of that was due to the fact that we were in the middle of a family gathering and I only got to watch a little of the live stream. I shopped, but I never watched the evening show, the live auction, or any seminars or workshops. (Including my own! I started it but was interrupted by a family activity.) I may watch some this weekend before Breyer takes it down permanently on July 31.

Having said that, my BreyerFest models arrived yesterday and I got my most wanted models - the Silver and the Old Timer!

To the Ties that Bind Us (blue version)

He's very dark for a true wedgewood color, but he does have the whitish shading that early wedgewoods had.

Hats Off to You, the Old Timer mold.

The paint job on mine is really nice

and the "75" on his face is very readable.

I'll probably open the black hat and put it on him but keep the party hat safe in its plastic wrapper.

The Equestral Crystalworks line only produces one piece a year and it is always sold at BreyerFest.

Standing Ovation is gorgeous. I love the crystal line and have often wished that Breyer produced more than one piece a year. (Christmas would be perfect!) I'd buy them!

The Mystery Surprise Horse was a let down for me. I had so hoped for a Proud Arabian Mare and honestly feel it was a missed opportunity that she (or another iconic mold) was not used. 

Totilas is a lovely mold, but in my opinion, there are other molds that represent Breyer's 75th Anniversary much, much better and are considered iconic molds for the company. (See Note below.)

I opened my first Totilas and found the matte flaxen liver chestnut.

The pearly mane and tail are especially nice.

My second Totilas turned out to be the exact same model. (Reminding me of the Christmas Blanket Debacle of 2024.)

This one is for sale or trade - $80 (I paid $90) plus shipping if you want to buy it; contact me if you have a trade in mind. 

Today's project is to get them all tagged and shelved, and then 2025 BreyerFest will be well and truly over for me.

Note: I am aware that there are myriad reasons behind the choices Breyer makes for its BreyerFest models (including the surprise pieces) most of which we collectors are not privy to. Many of those decisions have to do with sales as well as making collectors happy. And I do think that Breyer listens to its customer base.

Last day to enter the July Give Away! Comment to enter before 11:59 EDT tonight!

(G)nashing My Teeth

 We have a new family member. He's big, he's handsome, he's friendly, and there is still a lot of puppy in him.

Meet Nash! He's a two year old German Shepherd/Labrador Retriever rescue who Teacher Daughter Lisa got so that Molly had a companion. Since Millie's death, Molly's been lonely and needs the reassurance another dog can give her.

Millie and Molly snuggled up together a year ago.

We were surprised at how quickly and well Molly took to Nash but she was snuggling next to him the day after he arrived. (Long story, Molly was a breeder in a puppy mill until she was rescued at age 5. She has serious anxieties and fears, but she is a very sweet tempered dog. Having another dog with her helps her relax.)

Nash is very playful,

rather nosy (the bathroom door is closed for a reason, Nash!),

and likes to know where we are at all times. (He's been upstairs to check on Craig; now he's peeking between the rails to check on me.)

Currently Lisa brings her dogs over every day when she goes to school - she wants to be sure that Molly and Nash are okay together before she leaves them alone at home.

He was very well behaved and I was starting to relax and even let him come see me in my office. And then I heard that sound that all collectors dread.

The sound of plastic horses scooting on wood and bumping into each other.

No damage, just the hat from an Old Timer knocked off as Nash brushed past the shelf.

This sweet girl is glad to have some company and is relaxed, happy, and sleeping well again.

And while we will always miss our Millie terribly, Nash is a welcome addition to our family.

Even if he does make me (g)nash my teeth once in a while.

 

Holiday Horsiness: A Fancy, Festive Hat

 Aside from a small group of collectors, the Old Timer doesn't get a lot of attention in the hobby. Count me in as one of those collectors who values him.

The mold portrays a steady, older horse who is resting peacefully at the end of the day. He's the kind of horse you'd like to give an apple or carrot to and then spend time giving a good scratch.

Most releases of the Old Timer have come with hats, and over time those hats get separated from the model and then lost. I've seen many Old Timers in antique stores, but almost always they are sans hat.

Luckily, you can have a replacement hat made for him.

Or, a festive holiday hat if you are so inclined! (Am I ever!)

He looks quite ready for the holidays, and maybe even prepared to help pull Santa's sleigh! 

Because, don't you know, that's the kind of horse the Old Timer is.

Fall in Indiana

Second post of the day.

Western Indiana is having one of the most beautiful falls on record. The weather conditions are perfect for beautiful leaves and while it has gotten cooler, it has still been warm enough to get outside and enjoy the days.

And, it's time for one of my girl's favorite treats. October isn't a time for peppermints;

it's candy corn season! Thanks to a challenge that Jennifer Buxton did back in 2018, Abby now gets them every fall.

And I just had Lisa Haley (founder of the Old Timer Model Fans Group on Facebook) make me a candy corn hat for my carpet herd Old Timer.

Now he gets to be part of the Halloween decor I have around the house.

When you live out in the country, finding a place to walk can be difficult. The woman who owns Jax and Fancy next door  has been hiking around the hay field to get her exercise.

Across the road from the north pastures, the farmers are combining the corn and soybeans and taking it to grain storage facilities. It has been perfect harvest weather, too.

Coming up - a throwback to one of my favorite blog posts ever.

Comment to enter the fourth giveaway and win a Horsiemama haversack with your stable name embroidered on it! (I can also do a model's name, your name, etc.)

An Old Timer Hat Trick

 From Merriam-Webster:

Hat Trick: the scoring of three goals in one game; three successes of the same kind especially in a limited period of time.How do you like my hat trick? I am thrilled!

Lisa Haley, who runs The Breyer Old Timer Fans Group, makes replacement hats and blinkers for Breyer's Old Timer. I had seen a few that belonged to Liz Cory the last time I went to a Great Lakes Congress show, and they were really nice, so I decided I would outfit my no-hat three with new hats.  

I asked that the hatband not be colored as I wanted to be sure that I knew which hats had been issued by Breyer and which had been made by Lisa.

But I needn't have worried because Lisa puts her initials in the hats. 

In my sewing notions I had some flowers that I'd used when I'd played with my carpet herd as a child. (Along with two earrings and the key to my 6th grade diary. So that's where I put it! Haha!)

I decided to gussy up the hats for the horses, just for fun, using those ancient flowers. 

I didn't glue them on, at least not yet. I simply stuck them through the hole for the ears.

They turned out to be a nice touch, and when I sent Lisa some photos, she told me that these old flowers are collectible and that there have been bidding wars on eBay over them. Who'd have thought?

I'm really happy with my new hats, and I think the Old Timers are pleased, too.

After all, they match their siblings on the shelf AND they have flowers to boot!

Variations: Alabaster Old Timers

The Old Timer mold was first introduced in 1966 and was sculpted by Chris Hess. I have two in the early color of alabaster and thought it would be fun to look at variations between the two pieces..

The first is very yellowed.

 He has really nice grey shading on his body - someone took some time with him in the factory!

He does have a hat (yellow with a green hatband, typical for these early pieces) although I took it off for the photos.

The bottom of his hooves have a heavy drainboard pattern  and even a bit of matter (it looks and feels like a wood splinter) under his off right front hoof.

 No USA stamp, so that identifies him as a very early piece. (Pre 1970.)

 The second one is much whiter.

 He, too, has nice grey shading, although not quite as extensive as his counterpart.

His hooves have a fainter drainboard pattern on the two off hooves, and he has a "belly button" on his tummy where the grey paint has pooled a bit.

He is from the USA stamp era, but it is very hard to see as it is squished high in the groin above the round Breyer stamp.

  When they are side by side, you can really see the difference in their coloration.

 And the tack - the second Old Timer's is black while the yellowed one has brown tack. The whiter one is missing his off blinker.

Both have pinking in their ears and on their noses, but it is harder to see on the first due to its yellowing.

 Another view of the harnesses and their differences in coloration.

And look at the bridles - the newer piece has the bridle correctly painted.

Whereas the older piece has the triangle filled in. (I see this variation on the other pieces in my Old Timer conga and I wonder if it was lazy or rushed painters, a direct instruction from whomever was in charge of painting that day, or a lack of knowledge about horses and tack.)

As I wrote this post and did some research, I became intrigued with the mold's origins. I've done some research and will post some of what I have learned as well as some speculations on my part about it tomorrow.