Enesco/TPP, Fjord

A while back, Karen Crossley (aka Pawprint) wrote about Kathleen Moody sculpts on her blog Dust Ponies: Musings about the Model Horse Hobby. (One of my favorite blogs.) In the blog entry, she wrote about a Moody Norwegian Fjord that was produced and marketed by Enesco/Trail of the Painted Ponies.

I followed a link that she'd provided, and soon I was doing an online search of my own so that I could add one to my collection.

Little Big Horse, Trail of the Painted Ponies, Enesco, #4053765LE, 2016, sculpted by Kathleen Moody

Meet Afjordable! Isn't he nice? His scale is somewhere in-between traditional and classic.

 He came in a beautiful styrofoam lined box to prevent breakage,

 along with a collector's card

 with information about the piece as well as the breed.

 There was also a 2016 catalog in there with ornaments as well as other pieces.

Even though I prefer realistic models for the most part (Candy Cane Zebras aside, haha) I do have two Trail of the Painted Ponies in my collection.

Since I grew up on an apple orchard and my favorite breed is the Appaloosa, I have one of the earliest models done by the company, Apple-loosa. (Photo retrieved from Google Images.)

And then a former student who is horsey herself (she's all grown up now and an eventer!) gave me the Christmas ornament, Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. (Photo also from Google Images.)

When Karen posted that link to the Fjord, I began wondering what else I might have missed that would be a nice addition to my collection. I plan to keep my eye out for new releases from Trail of the Painted Ponies.

In the meantime, I am enjoying having Afjordable (and his nice sparkly base) on my desk where I can see him.

Thanks for the tip, Karen!

Stone Mesa Believer

I got a Stone horse from MHSales that Liz LaRose is hosting on Facebook. She's selling Mry Mudget's pieces for her. It's rare for me to buy a Stone; I have 1,000+ models, but only eight of them are Stones. This makes my ninth. And it's an early one.

 (Photo by seller and taken from sales ad on Facebook.)
Mesa Believer, #9619, Stone WPH 1996-1997, First Edition, 2500 made, 5/2020

 It's a Stone Mesa Believer, and was made in 1996-1997.  Arriving with its original box and hang tag was a pleasant surprise.

So was the fact that it had been signed by Peter Stone.

While I like many of the Stone models, they are generally too pricey for what I want to pay. I'm really happy that I found this piece at such a good price.

Fabio

Like many other hobbyists and collectors, the pandemic has given me some extra time to shop for pieces for my collection. One that recently arrived was Fabio.

 Fabio, #712345, $75, Breyer Collectors Club Web Special, 4/2020, Breyer.

I have a real fondness for Spanish horses and their big noses. (Lippizaners are my favorite breed after Appaloosas.) This boy is a welcome addition to my collection.

Nayati

When a box from Breyer arrives like this, you close your eyes and hope for the best.

The whole top has been shoved down! That's never good. But I was lucky - my Nayati was fine.

Nayati, #712344, $35, 5/2020, 2020 Web Special, Breyer

I got the dunalino and am really happy with it. I was sort of on the fence when I ordered it - I don't collect too many Classic/Freedom Series models, and I had told a friend that if she wanted the color I'd gotten, then she could have it. Lucky for me she got a dunalino, too, because the more I look at this model, the more I like it.

He has a flaw or two, including this white spot on the right ear, but I don't mind. He's lovely and he's staying!

HR Tennessee's Platinum Jubilee

Kristina Lucas Francis at Hagen Renaker Tennessee has released a model to celebrate Hagen Renaker's 75th anniversary and she is gorgeous.

 Her name is Platinum Jubilee and she is on Maureen Love's Stablemate sized Arabian Mare. (A-106, $187, 4/2020. Kristina Lucas Francis)

 The finish is called San Dimas Nostalgia Steel/Ash Grey and I think she looks stunning in it. 

 A Certificate of Authenticity coms with her

and she is being made only during 2020 and is only available to members of the Hagen Renaker Collectors Club.

I generally don't collect Stablemates, but I do like the HR minis and am happy to add this one to my collection.

A Case for Bridle Rosettes

Ever since I began collecting bridle rosettes, I have been looking for a way to display them. Shadow boxes didn't work well - the rosettes have a raised bar on the back so that they can be used on a bridle, and that made them roll around in the little cubbies.

Sorry for the photo quality - the sun isn't up yet as I write and there is glass in the cover of the box.

That bar on the back made it so that anything I tried for displaying them simply didn't work. Finally, I just put my rosettes into a box and set them on the shelf. I was resigned that I was going to have to have to go down to the frame shop and see what they could figure out.

Then, a friend posted on social media that she had bought a ring case to display her horsey jewelry and rings. Since I have a lot of horsey jewelry, I clicked on her photos to see if it might work for me. And in doing so, I solved my own problem.

Photo by Myla Pearce. Don't her things look great displayed like that? And how easy to find what she wants to wear!

I hopped onto Amazon, found a similar one, and ordered it. It arrived this weekend and I began inserting my bridle rosettes. Looks pretty good thus far!

I also included a photo of my father with his circus pony, Oh Boy. I have Oh Boy's bridle and there is one rosette remaining on it, so I plan to pop that one into the case, too. The plain silver one is from my first horse, Amy's bridle. 

Thanks, Myla, for the wonderful idea!

A Blue Ribbon Elephant

I remember getting a new Breyer as a child and peeling off the blue ribbon sticker that used to come with Breyer's early pieces. I'd play with those blue ribbons just as much as I played with the models they accompanied. And now all those blue ribbons are gone. I did not save a single one.

Once in a while I purchase a vintage piece just because it still has its blue ribbon sticker, so when this elephant was listed on an online sales site, I snagged it. 

Along with having its sticker, the price was good and the piece was in great shape.

But when I actually had the elephant in hand and could take a good look at it, I could tell right away that it was different from my other elephants.

It was a grayer color, but then color variations among Breyer are very normal. Was it a chalky? The paint did not feel thick, but just in case, I shone a flashlight through it. The light was blocked. Excitedly, I shone the light through the other two elephants, just to compare, and it shone through as expected.

So, the elephant blocked light like a chalky would, but it did not have the thick base coat of paint under its grey coloring. I then flipped it on its side to check its feet.

There was my answer - the feet were a solid grey color - the elephant had been made with grey plastic. This happened during the oil crisis of the early 1970s when Breyer had difficulty getting the right materials to manufacture models.

You can see the difference between its feet and my other two elephants. (They have drain board patterns on their feet which is also pretty cool.) And if you look at its tusks, you can see that they are unpainted grey plastic while the other two have white tusks.

Super thrilled to have gotten the double bonus of a blue ribbon sticker and grey plastic to add to my vintage collection!