Friday, May 29, 2026

It's Friday, I'm a Judge! Breed: Carriage Breeds

Happy Friday and welcome back to the Friday judging clinic! We're back in mini breed land today, and I've got a fun little class today.

As always, my personal judging history and credentials can be found on my About Me page.

This week, I wanted to depart a little from using three different molds in the class. Instead, I made a class I've been affectionately calling "Oops! All Djangos!" This scenario is something you're likely to find in a class, as most OF showers tend to gravitate toward the same models. We have a really fun case of how to evaluate breed assignments when all models are on the same playing field ABCs wise. Without further ado, let's take a look at our class!

Friesian stallion

Friesian:

Horse that is harmoniously built and properly proportioned
Noble head with small alert ears, lightly arched neck, and a strong back joining a croup of good length
Long and sloping shoulder, body with good depth and well sprung ribs
Feathering on the lower legs, long mane and tail. Preferred color is black.

Standard courtesy the Friesian Horse Society (https://friesianhorsesociety.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/2018_Updated_FHS_BBR.pdf)

Horse A: Friesian

Georgian Grande stallion

Georgian Grande

Well-proportioned and built uphill
Feathering is acceptable but not required
Acceptable heights: 14.2-17 hands
Acceptable colors: Black, bay, chestnut, gray, palomino, buckskin, pinto, champagne, dun, silver, cremello, perlino

Standard courtesy International Georgian Grande Horse Registry (https://georgiangrande.com/Fun_Photos/Breed%20Standard.html)

Horse B: Friesian Cross

Georgian Grande stallion

Georgian Grande

Well-proportioned and built uphill
Feathering is acceptable but not required
Acceptable heights: 14.2-17 hands
Acceptable colors: Black, bay, chestnut, gray, palomino, buckskin, pinto, champagne, dun, silver, cremello, perlino

Standard courtesy International Georgian Grande Horse Registry (https://georgiangrande.com/Fun_Photos/Breed%20Standard.html)

Horse C: Django

Think about how you would place this class when the ABCs are on a level playing field. Are you looking at condition? Shading? Their breed assignments? When you're ready, my placings are below the jump. ↓

You're Just Like Me! Jazz Fusion and Scotty

It's been a long stretch of Wednesdays without a post looking at my collection, or talking about things other than the shows I've attended and what I added to the collection! In honor of that, I'm introducing a new segment I've been thinking about for a while - I'm calling it "You're Just Like Me!"

My thought process is to highlight models that are similar to each other - the same pattern or masking on different models, variations in a run - basically models that look like other models!

We're starting this series like I do most series - with one of my favorites! Well, two - the Cleveland Bay mold and a Maureen Love sculpt. I think we're all well aware of my affection for both by this point.

Jazz Fusion was a JAH Connoisseur model in 2007, done on the Cleveland Bay mold. The color and pattern both were designed by Karen Gerhardt, who sculpted the mold.

Jazz Fusion is a lovely day bay pinto with mapping done in a glossy finish. As typical for the Connoisseur series, there were 350 made of him.

There is not a single part of his pattern that is left unmapped - even his stripe has mapping!

The second model we're looking at today is Scotty. Scotty was a Collector's Club Gambler's Choice model on the Classic scale Swaps mold in 2017. Collector's Club members were given the choice to vote on which colors they wanted to see in production, with all colors being reflective of other models. In addition to Jazz Fusion, the other options were Uncalled For (silver bay), Burbank (bay roan blanket) and Fandango (dun). Of the options, only the dun did not make it into production.

The three voted colors were split into runs of 500 each. At this time, I've only added this one, though at some point I'd like to add the rest. They just aren't a priority for me right now, and my pinto is still a relatively recent addition to the herd.

One thing about the Cleveland Bay and Swaps molds is they both have the sweetest faces!

So let's look at the two together now! The pattern is pretty much spot on, as you would expect. The exception here is the mapping - despite there only being 150 more made of Scotty compared to Jazz Fusion, the mapping on the pinto markings did not make the transition.

Another difference between the two is the depth of color - while Jazz Fusion is still beautifully shaded, Scotty's bay base is slightly lighter toned, giving the effect of more dramatic shading against his darker tones. Scotty additionally has a thicker, more even gloss.

Who do you prefer? It's a hard choice for me, but I think original Jazz Fusion did it better! You just can't beat the mapping, and it just wasn't feasible for a Classic scale web special.

Friday, May 22, 2026

It's Friday, I'm a Guest Judge! Breyer Collectability by Amanda Reed

This month, our guest judge is friend and fellow blogger Amanda Reed! She asked me to curate a class for her, and as I know her to be a Breyer collectability expert, I created a fun little all scales collectability class.

Breyer Collectability

by Amanda Reed

Hello everyone! My name is Amanda and I’ve been in the live show community since 2003! I began as an entrant during my teenage and early college years, then got into judging in 2012 and hosted my first show in 2014. My favorite division is collectibility! I strongly believe that every model is collectible to some degree and I love seeing mid-level and “common” tier collectibility class offerings in addition to all the love the big rarities get. That makes it so much more accessible and less intimidating to the average entrant, and I’d love for nothing more than lots of people appreciating collectibility just as much as I do! I am also very involved in Novice/Intermediate level events in my region, including my own show where I offer all divisions individually rather than double-judged to help promote learning for newcomers.

Outside of live shows, I also enjoy photo shows, creating art for myself, hobby predictions & statistics, and learning more about hobby history and model collectibility. I have a personal blog, but I have not been posting as much this year due to my work on Stone’s Tribute and History blog series for their 30th anniversary!

All that said, let’s take a look at our class today! We’ll call this one “Special Run – Editions of 500”. It encompasses three different scales, as well as a couple of different Breyer eras.

If you have not read past blogs in this series, here is a quick synopsis of the judging standards I use to evaluate (in no particular order of importance):

Age
Rarity (not only how many were made, but also original source – how difficult was it to get one new, was it made available towards a collector audience or a general one, did the original purchaser have to shop at a certain retailer, be part of a club, or attend a certain event)
Desirability/Popularity (of mold, scale, color, and release in general)
Condition
Overall impression/presentation (at a live show, this is where I would consider the accuracy of documentation. This step is also where I consider a model’s color/shading – especially nice examples may get a nod in rare cases where I need a tie-breaker)

Horse A: Horse A is “Scotty”, a 2017 Gambler’s Choice Web Exclusive for the Collector’s Club. While many of these Gamblers Choice runs do not have stated run counts, Scotty does and 500 were made of each color.

Horse B: Horse B was released in 1988, as one of three different color Clydesdale Foals sold through Horses International. 500 were made of each color.

Horse C: Horse C is Mini Gladwin Lucky Grey Lady, sold at BreyerFest 2009 in a set with minis of the other 19 BreyerFest Celebration models up until that point (20th Anniversary Commemorative Set). 500 sets were made.

This might be a little more challenging than some other collectibility judge posts, but think about the details of each model, and place the class yourself! See my rankings and thoughts below the skip.

Show Report: Rainbow Rave Live 2026

🌈 Rainbow Rave Live 2026 🌈

Another Rainbow Rave is in the books. It's hard to believe this is the fifth Rainbow Rave! I've been friends with the host Sarah long enough that I remember when it was still just a thought in her brain. It's incredible to see how far it has come! I believe I mentioned last year that this show fundraises for The Trevor Project, which becomes more and more necessary in the current climate. RRL is a show with the best vibes supporting a great cause, and I'm so fortunate to be able to attend.

Because the show is so close to me (30 minutes away!) I always make sure to help set up the night before. Setting up the tables is no easy task, and it helps the show host so much to even have one extra set of hands. This year, Sarah had a whole crew to help set up (and it still took about five hours - set up is NO JOKE.) Seriously, if you're close enough to a show hall or if you get into town early, definitely ask your show host if they need any help with set up - they'll appreciate it so much. That being said, the extra hands meant the show hall was nearly completely set up the night before - the only things left to do in the morning were setting up the breakfast bar and putting together the raffle.

The benefit of the show hall for Rainbow Rave is the size. Not only are there callback tables for every division, but OF Breyer is able to double load classes from the top of the day, which makes the whole division run so much faster. Each ring is also color coded for ease of knowing which division is which, and the OF Breyer Mini and CM/AR Mini are additionally on risers. With all of this, the show moves quickly - the show hall was broken down and the doors were locked by 7pm - a major feat for a show of this size! A huge shoutout to the table break down crew, who began breaking down tables as soon as they could while the last few divisions were finishing up.

When you and your friend sweep 3/4 of the OF Breyer Mini Overalls

My string did phenomenally. I brought home a stack of NAN cards, multiple sectional champions and reserves, and overall in both OF Breyer Breed and OF Breyer Mini Collectability. This is especially exciting since this is the first time I've brought home an overall in collectability at RRL. The past couple of years there's always been something just a tad more rare than what I have. The OF Breyer Breed Champ was also especially sweet, as it was the pony I bought myself for my birthday last year.

After the show, a group of us went to a local Amish restaurant for dinner. We had a fun time eating and chatting. You know your party has good vibes when the servers say "these pies are too small for us to sell - do you guys want them? We won't charge you." The desserts were delicious, by the way! The food was delicious too - most of the table opted for the buffet, but I needed a burger after being on my feet all day.

Fisticuffs in the Amish restaurant parking lot! (all in good fun!)

My favorite thing about RRL, like most shows, is the people. The group that attends truly has the best, most welcoming vibes. Maybe it's the knowledge that the environment is safe, as this is an openly LGBTQ-friendly, affirming, and supportive show. Either way, there's a good group of people that returns annually (like myself) as well as people new to showing. Every year, I get to see old friends, meet new friends, and see friends I've only ever interacted with online. This year, my mom stopped by for about ten minutes at lunch, which is the first model horse event she's attended aside from Spokes and Spurs in 2024. She was immediately welcomed by my friends. It's such a friendly show environment, and I heartily recommend RRL to all showers!

The Champions:

Tiniest Typhoon - OF Breyer Mini Foals Collectability Reserve

Twin Telepathy - OF Breyer Mini Foals Collectability Champion

Beauty and Grace - OF Breyer Light Breed Reserve

Make a Good Girl Bad - OF Breyer Sport Breed Champion

Spensy Prancer - OF Breyer Warmblood Collectability Champion (I forgot to get a photo with his ribbon)

Wilderness - OF Breyer Mini Sport/Carriage Collectability Champ

No Other Sadness - OF Breyer Mini Sport/Carriage Breed Reserve

Everyone's Type - OF Breyer Mini Gaited Breed Reserve

Rogi Rage - OF Breyer Mini Gaited Breed Champ

Love You Still - OF Breyer Mini Gaited Collectability Reserve

Visigoth - OF Breyer Spanish Breed Reserve

Total Eclipse - OF Breyer Mini Stock Breed Champion

Friendship is Magic - OF Breyer Mini Stock Breed Reserve and Collectability Reserve

Diamond of the Season - OF Breyer Longears/Exotics Collectability Champion

Not Mine to Lose - OF Breyer Mini Draft Breed Reserve

Join the Heist - OF Breyer Mini Longears/Exotics Collectability Champ

Zoinks - OF Breyer Mini Longears/Exotics Collectability Reserve

Sunset and Vine - OF Breyer Mini Fantasy/Decorator Reserve

Crunch Time - OF Breyer Breed Champion and Pony Breed Champion

Golden Child - OF Breyer Mini Collectability Champion and Fantasy/Decorator Champion

Thrilled to get yet another documentation award!

Friday, May 15, 2026

It's Friday, I'm a Judge! Traditional Collectability #5

Welcome back to the Friday judging clinic! It's time for another traditional scale collectability class

As always, my personal judging history and credentials can be found on my About Me page.

This week, I'm doing something I've frequently done for the mini collectability classes, but haven't yet done for the traditional scale classes. That's right, we're looking at a hypothetical double judged class today! All three of these entries could be found in a Quarter Horse class at a show. If you've been following the series as a whole, you'll know this means you can have wildly different run types in a class double judged for collectability - everything from OOAKs and prize models to regular runs.

Horse A: Glossy ATP Power - 2023 BreyerFest Prize Model - 50 made

Horse B: Seven Arts Surprise - 2021 BreyerFest Special Run - Gambler's Choice glossy flaxen chestnut roan - 325 made

Horse C: Wimpy's Little Step - 2024 Spokes and Spurs Event Model - 200 made - missing belly stamp

Take a moment, think about how you'd place this class. When you're ready, my placings can be found under the jump. ↓

Show Report: Trails and Tails 2026

🍀 Trails and Tails 2026 🍀

This weekend, I traveled to Trails and Tails, held in Greensburg, PA. This show is hosted by and benefits a local 4-H club. For those who may not know, I was a 4-H kid, and the organization is near and dear to my heart. I think it teaches valuable life skills like responsibility and sportsmanship, so I like to give back to it when I can.

This year, I judged OF Stone. The show is small but mighty, with several showers bringing fabulous competitive pieces in all divisions. The Performance ring was full all day, and the entries were incredible - I wish I had taken photos of some of them! Alas, I was busy bouncing back and forth between keeping Stone at a nice pace and getting my horses in the ring. I'm proud of myself - I only had one horse miss a class (well, two if we count the one that I straight up forgot to pack). I had just about one horse in every class for OF Breyer and OF Mini, so it's pretty impressive that I managed this while still keeping my judging at a good pace (shout out to the Breyer judge for letting my horses from the previous class sit for a few extra minutes until I had time to run them back to my table).

One thing I really like about this show is the only class specifically for unrealistic horses is a fantasy class. Since fantasy is specifically for horses with wings and horns, that means the decorators are shown in the respective breed classes for their body type. For me, a mini collector who loves rarities, this is fantastic - most of those mini rarities are decorators. At most shows with specific decorator classes, I have to try and fit all of them into one, maybe two classes, and they're all competing against each other. Here, I can spread out the decorators! The class limit was two horses, but buy-ins were allowed, so I bought in for my collectability only entries. I got a lot of my decorators qualified this weekend!

The string did well overall - I had at least one sectional champ or reserve in nearly every section, and came home with two overall reserve champions - one in OF Mini Collectability, and one in OF Breyer Breed. I was not expecting the breed champ, so I'm very happy!

My friend Christine taking a selfie with me and my hobby mascot Gay Prancer

Something about a small show is the ability to connect and chat with other hobbyists. I love large shows, but it can be hard to manage showing and chatting in an environment with so many people and so much going on. Even with showing two full strings and judging, I still had time to chat with the people around me, my fellow judges, and my friends who were at the show. The show was wrapped up by 6, so there was plenty of time for post-show dinner with the group before driving home.

I have one more show left in May (Rainbow Rave Live this weekend), and NAN entry wraps up Sunday, and then I get a nice relaxing two week break before the Big Orange Bash in June. I love showing, but I can't wait to get back to my normal routine. I've got some fun things planned on the blog for May!

The Champions: