Breyer Horse Collecting: All About Decorators

Many collectors have heard the term “Decorator”, but do you know what it means?

Decorators have long been a part of Breyer’s history, even as far back to the earliest Breyers but the name came to popularity in the 1960′s when Breyer produced a series of blue and gold horses meant to be used ad home decoration. These colors, Wedgewood; a solid matte powder blue, Copenhagen; a glossy dappled blue, Gold Charm; a glossy solid gold and Florentine; a glossy dappled gold, would go on to become the most recognizable of all the decorators. The word decorator has gone on to mean any horse that is painted in an unrealistic pattern. The first real Decorators by that definition would be the Woodgrains which were produced from the 1950′s until the late 1960′s. Some other colors from that time period also include a glossy dappled black and a charcoal coloration. Both of these are often considered to be decorators but sometimes not.

In recent years Breyer has brought back the love of decorators. In 1991 Breyer brought back the decorator with an Arabian painted in a bronze finish which was wildly popular with collectors. Since then Breyer has produced everything you can think of! Some of the more interesting ones are clear horses of all different colors, horses painted with logos, color changing paint, and more! They have brought back the decorator in a big way for collectors and they are popular as ever! The “original” four decorator colors even make an appearance from time to time and are always met with great popularity!

This year Breyer has two decorators which not only are exciting collectors but also help in a big way! The Traditional and Stablemate Breast Cancer Awareness horses are both created out of clear plastic with a gorgeous pink tone. They each feature the iconic pink ribbon design in a whimsical and beautiful pattern. While they are beautiful as can be, the best part is that Breyer is donating a portion of the profits from each sale to the fight Breast Cancer!

Decorators old and new are exciting and fun to collect, but with Golden Oak Stables you can collect a gorgeous decorator and help fight Breast Cancer too!

~Stacy

Email Stacy: Stacy@GoldenOakStables.com

2010 Breyer Horses’ 60th Anniversary Celebration!

From their humble beginnings as a plastic manufacturer in Chicago Illinois, Breyer has always been one step ahead of the game. This year marks their 60th anniversary creating model horses, which is a worthy celebration for any company, Breyer’s long and sometimes fascinating history makes this celebration even sweeter!

In 1950, Sam Stone was the owner of the Breyer Molding Company, a plastics company that created parts for everything from airplanes to home goods, like clocks. Sam Stone was asked to create a horse for a clock by the company Mastercrafters, a frequent customer of Breyer, and the western horse was born. The Western Horse resembled another popular model horse of the 1950′s: Hartland’s Champ. It is still unclear which came first, something highly debated to this day! Western Horse was mounted over a Mastercrafter’s clock and marketed at Woolworths to a huge success! People began asking for more, and many asking for just the horse!

Breyer began to mold horses on their own, apart from Mastercrafters’ clocks. These became some of the very first Breyer models, from the Western Horse and the Western Pony (its smaller counterpart), to the Proud Arabian Mare and Clydesdale Stallion, these first horses ranged the world with the variety of breeds and spanned beyond horses. Breyer also created dogs which were popular at the time; a poodle and boxer were some of the favorites!

In the 1960′s Breyer expanded into unthinkable heights with dozens of new different molds. Some of the most popular were the Fighting Stallion and the Family Arabians. Breyer was using a glossy paint during this time that gave many of the horses the look of porcelain. These horses are highly collectible today due to their scarcity.

The next decade brought an oil crisis which greatly effected Breyer as well as the growth of the model horse hobby where live showing became popular and clubs and groups began to form.

The 80′s and 90′s were truly the explosion of the model horse hobby and Breyer. During this time, Breyer was purchased by the company “Reeves International” and the offices and production was moved to New Jersey. Breyerfest was born in 1990 and the model horse hobby exploded through events such as this and the wide spread usage of the internet.

Today in the 21st centrury we are lucky to have dozens upon dozens of Breyer’s to choose from, including a special one for 2010, Golden Oak Stables is proud to offer, Diamond Jubilee, a silver filigree American Saddlebred Stallion! This model symbolizes 60 years of innovation and beauty created by Breyer!

So grab Diamond Jubilee today, and celebrate 60 years with America’ favorite model horse creator!

~Stacy

Email Stacy: Stacy@GoldenOakStables.com

All About: Breyer Classic Models

The Breyer Classic Models are some of the easiest to collect and sometimes the easiest to forget about. Breyer classic models are approximately 1:12th scale and about 6 inches tall. They are made of the same plastic as the traditional models and are hand detailed just like all Breyer models are. In recent years there have been new sculptures each year making many new models for collecting.

In 1975 and 1976 Breyer commissioned the use of five Thoroughbred sculptures, three Arabian sculptures, three Quarter horse sculptures, and three Mustang sculptures from the Hagen Renaker company. The Hagen Renaker company was a porcelain figure producer that created mostly animals. They gained popularity in the 1950-60′s for their beauty, their horses were sculpted by Maureen Love Calvert who is often hailed as one of the most talented horse sculptors in Breyer’s line up making her models very collectible. The Arabian, Quarter Horse, and Mustang sculptures were all released as family sets. The Thoroughbreds were released induvidually as famous race horses along with one addition, Ruffian sculpted Chris Hess in 1977.

These models gained in popularity and new molds were introduced in the 80′s including an Andalusian family and famous book series horses including The Black Stallion and Black Beauty. These were sculpted by Chris Hess who sculpted many Breyer models. In 1992 Breyer introduced yet more Classic models. This time is was the Mesteno series. The Mesteno series was sculpted by Rowland Cheney and began a series of famous mustangs. Over the next five years Breyer released a new sculpture each year in the Mesteno series for all to collect. These models are fanciful and very artistic. The last installment for the classic series in the 1990′s was a series of famous western working horses sculpted by Carol Herden.These models are high energy and dynamic sculptures that are popular mounts for performance lover.

The new millennium brought a whole new life for the classic models. 2002 brought a favorite for many, a Shire Sculpture created by the ever popular Kathleen Moody. Breyer then introduced a second set of Kathleen Moody’s sculptures into the line in 2006, the American Quarter Horses. This same year Breyer’s rights to the Hagen Renaker molds expired and we lost some of the most favorite classics. This has created some desirability for the models and they are becoming very popular. Breyer has continuted to release new sculputres into the classics line including a Morgan family and a Warmblood family. In 2008 they created the first series of haired models available through the Breyer line.

Breyer’s classic models have become popular again and easy to collect. With variety and value they are an easy choice. Take a look at all the variety that the classics offer on GoldenOakStables.com. You might just find they not only allow more shelf space but they also are full of life and just a blast to collect!

~Stacy

Email Stacy: Stacy@GoldenOakStables.com