New Chevals

Cheval is a small company owned by Johnny and Diana DeBeer in Botha's Hill, South Africa. In the mid 1990s they had US distributors, but those were discontinued a long time ago. Chevals were still being produced, but you could not order them if you did not live in South Africa. Or so a Facebook post said on a site devoted to collecting Chevals.

After Christmas, I decided to go to the company's site and see what they were making now. After all, they are not seen often at shows or online and I had no idea what they were producing. Was I in for a treat - the horses were gorgeous! And, there was an order form, a shopping cart, and a way to pay. I decided to take a chance and place an order, just in case the information posted on the Cheval collectors' page was incorrect.

It was.

I got an email from owner and sculptor Johnny DeBeer in response, cautioning me that the postage to the US would be prohibitive and saying that it might be a while before I got my order as they would have to make two of the pieces. But he did not refuse my order, so I told him to go ahead with the deal.

This box arrived Wednesday.

 It seemed a little small, so I was a bit worried about how the horses might have been packed. But inside was lots and lots of shredded paper, and the models were in bubble wrap inside individual boxes.

 One box had somehow taken some damage - again, I felt worried as to what I would find inside.

 But the Gypsy Horse in Skewbald was in perfect shape, and oh so beautiful!

The Friesian appears lighter in the photograph than he really is. This is my second Friesian; I sold my first to a hobby friend who really wanted him. (That one was named Darth Vader. This one is now named Vader Too.) I never dreamed I would have the opportunity to get him again!

Lastly, the Quarter Horse done in a pretty Appaloosa.

After these arrived, I went back to the Cheval site (go here) to perhaps order some more. Sadly, the smaller versions are all sold out, and they only have the larger pieces for sale. While those are pretty, I have not yet seen anything that I really wanted to add to my collection.

Of course, that can always change...