Spotted Dreams Studio: February 2023

Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Flash Fun Photo Show Entries (Best Friends Come in All Shapes and Sizes)

Entries closed last night, so I guess that means it's time for me to post the photos! I will decide on the winner tomorrow, but I'll post the gallery today.

AJ entered four photos:

"Rescued by Rover" AJ says: Mouse, a senior Percheron mare enjoys a cuddle with her buddy Austin in the snow. Mouse was rescued from a neglect case and was withdrawn from humans until the friendly Austin taught her trust again. They are now the best of friends and will live out their days together.

"Guidance" AJ says: Willow, a warmblood mare helps guide her blind pony friend, Magic. Willow was orphaned when she was just hours old, and was raised alongside Magic to provide her with company and teach her manners. As time went on Magic began to develop cataracts, eventually going blind. One day, their owner noticed the Willow seemed to be helping Magic find her way around the paddock. They continue this act of trust to this day.

"Romeo and Starlet" AJ says: Romeo and his mare Starlet share a sweet moment. The Morgan and Appaloosa pair are very bonded and with any luck will have a foal by next spring. Starlet has been a great mom in the past and their owner can't wait for her foal!

"Spring Snow" AJ says: Two young foals, Ember (the bay) and Phoenix (the chestnut) try out their new legs. Both were born only a few weeks ago, the first foals of the season at this farm. Ember and Phoenix were bred with great expectations in mind, perhaps one day becoming high level show horses. But for now they are content to play chase and kick up their heels as they explore the world.

Lynn (HorsieMama) entered one:

"Mighty Mouse" Lynn says: Mighty Mouse (named after the REAL Superhero, Mighty Mouse) joins the herd at Windsong Stables. Originally skeptical of his so-called superpowers, Grandie becomes a believer after a brief demonstration and soon a fast friendship blooms between the two. Could Grandie become Mighty Mouse's equine version of Polly Pureheart? Tune in Friday at 7!

(Reference of the "real" Mighty Mouse, submitted by Lynn)

Em entered two photos:

Em says: What’s a better friendship than a girl and her pony?

Em says: Cats! Love ‘em or hate ‘em, they aren’t much help when it comes to redecorating.

NancyK entered one:

NancyK says: What better friendship bond than between mother and daughter?

Equiden entered four:

Equiden says: The gargantuan beast looks over her newly found friend, keeping it from danger. It is in her blood, after all, to be a guardian.

*Description pending, will be updated later*

Equiden says: Playing hide-and-seek ;)

What a great turn-out! You've made judging really hard for me lol! I'll try to have the "results" in by tomorrow or the next day. :)

I want to give a big thank you to everyone who helped to spread the word! I know three of you by name:

Thank you to Equiden, for sharing on Discord!

Thank you to HorsieMama, for re-posting it on her blog!

Thank you to AC, for posting it in the comments of Braymere's blog!

If you helped to spread the word, but I somehow missed you, please lmk! You can post a comment and I will be sure to catch it and add you to the list. :)

Sunday, February 26, 2023

Done

Before I start tonight's post, I would like to give a BIG thank you to everyone who advertised for the photo show! Especially HorsieMama, who was kind enough to give it a whole blog post on her blog! I've got lots of entries, and I'm hoping to see some more tomorrow before it closes (deadline is Midnight EST tomorrow, Feb. 27!)

DONE! The resins are completed! I finished the last brush of gloss around noon today. They will be mailed off to their owner, AJ, later this week after I'm sure the sealant is thoroughly cured.

What do you think of them? Let me know in the comments!

Friday, February 24, 2023

4,000

I opened this blog to the public on August 9, 2022. That means that it has been 199 days. Late last night, WE CROSSED 4,000 BLOG VIEWS!!! Thank you! I consider that a fantastic accomplishment.

You people are the best. I am so so grateful to be in a hobby like this with so many wonderful people. Thank you.

Thursday, February 23, 2023

Flash Fun Photo Show! 2/23/23 - 2/27/23

I've been wanting to host one of these since I opened the blog, but the Breyer news was pelting so rapidly this winter that I hadn't had a chance.

The title says it, I am hosting a ONE CLASS FUN SHOW from right now through midnight EST on the 27th.

The theme/prompt for the class is "Best Friends Come in All Shapes and Sizes". I know it is an old, worn-out theme, but I want some entries and I'm hoping a generic theme will bring that in.

No entry limit! Enter as many times as you wish. No physical prizes or ribbons, however, the winner will receive a digital certificate. This is kind of a test show, to see how many entries I can get. If it goes well, I'm hoping to host more (maybe even with prizes) over the summer.

Since this is a super informal, unconventional, ridiculously relaxed show, I will just be using the "judges choice" style of judging. I do not care about your model's anatomy, color, or biomechanics. I do not care if the backdrop is a stunning diorama or if it is a messy kitchen table. I do not care if your model has more scratches and rubs than he has paint. I don't even really care about the quality and clarity of the photo. 1st place goes to the photo I personally like best.

Please remember, my blog is youth friendly. No vulgarity, foul language, or otherwise tasteless entries. Thank you.

You are welcome to add a paragraph (or more/less) explaining your entry when you enter. It will help me make my decisions.

All entries (in good taste) will be posted to my blog (unless the owner wishes to keep it private).

You can enter by emailing me your images (no videos) to SpottedDreamsStudio.mail.com. I will answer every email, so if I don't get back to you in 24hrs, email again. I probably didn't get it. Please include a title for your entry, as well as the name you would like me to use for you when I post your entry on the blog. Initials are perfectly fine. :)

Please share this post with your friends, on your blogs, on your social media, anywhere you can! Remember, the more entries I get for this "test run", the more photo shows I will host. 🙂

I'm so so excited to see what you have! Please don't hold back, I want to see all of them!

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Resins: There's a Light at the End of the Tunnel!

Switchback and Turnpike are nearly completed! This post has some photos of both of them. I took these on Saturday morning (I think it was right before I climbed into my closet lol).

Switchback, AKA "Banner" is the leopard. In the pics he still needs hoof color, eye touch-ups, and general touch-ups. As of Monday night, he has his hooves painted, and I am working on the final touch-ups today. Sorry that the pics are a little outdated!

Banner

Turnpike, AKA "Knight" is the blanket appaloosa. In the pictures he only needed touch-ups in this pic, and they are done as of Tuesday morning. Once again, sorry I don't have a more current update pic! He really doesn't look that different, other than his eyes are a bit less spooked looking.

Knight

Yay! Just sealant and glossing the details to go. I'm so excited to send these off to AJ! I think she will be really pleased with them.

So, what do you guys think of them? Let me know in the comments below!

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

A Floppy Penguin Kind of Week

Penguin GIF Credit to Matt Tarpley, Cat's Café Comics

It's been one of those weeks. You know, the kind where you run your legs off but nothing ever seems to get finished? On Friday afternoon/evening, I had the bright idea of cleaning out my closet and donating a mess of stuff. I am not a "clothes person", so my closet is mainly storage for the impulse yard sale and thrift store buys, with a handful of nice clothes in the back (which I only wear for holidays, funerals, or weddings). The majority of my clothes are in my dresser. I have a walk-in closet (very spacious). You can imagine how much junk has been shoved in there since the last big purge 5+ years ago.

Well what was supposed to be a 24hr job turned into a Friday afternoon-Monday night effort. I am exhausted. The KIA Carnival in my garage (see link [pic is from kia.com] to get an idea of how huge the storage in that is) has all the last row of seats folded down and the cargo is spreading all the way up til it is pressing the driver's side chair. Granted, a lot of it is from my basement and attic as well, but still.

I'm really hoping to get back to normal blogging this week. It feels like life has just left me spinning round in circles all month. So sorry to be absent so much. I will do better. I have some model horsey news to catch up on, and the resins (so excited to share about those!).

Sorry for the boring post, but I didn't want you guys thinking I gave up on you! Thank you for reading. :)

Friday, February 17, 2023

Leprechauns and Glossy Jig-Dancers (Plus a couple other bits of Breyer news)

Yesterday, Breyer dropped two new models on the website yesterday, Bolero and Go Figure, plus a St. Patty's Day plush.

I think all the world's flippers were expecting Bolero to be an under an hour sell-out, but I think he was in stock until late last night. He is sold out now. For curious parties, his retail price was set at $75 (+shipping and taxes).

Bolero

I really liked him, but the gloss was a bit of a turn-off for me, so I passed. It does seem like it has been a bit since we had a glossy solid bay (or I could just be forgetting our last one), so I'm glad they did it for the shiny lovers. I do not have any models on the Fireheart mold (Trad or SM), so hopefully the next run will be a nice, obtainable, matte boy. :)

Go Figure is the first Vintage club model for 2023. I thought this was supposed to be the music box Fury Prancer, but apparently he has experienced a set-back (go figure LOL). Breyer said that this is the first time in history that the Justin Morgan mold has seen anything but a solid coat. From Breyer:

"Chris Hess’s Justin Morgan (mold #65) was both the second Breyer Morgan mold, and the second model based on the work of Marguerite Henry. In spite of his runner-up status, his good looks and pleasant demeanor won him many fans, and his original Bay release was a steadfast member of the Breyer line throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Never one to steal the limelight, most of Justin Morgan’s subsequent releases have been almost as plainly dressed as the first. For his Vintage Club release Go Figure – and to celebrate his fiftieth anniversary – we’ve decided to remedy that by giving him a very modern makeover in Silver Bay Pinto."

The music box Fury Prancer

Go Figure

Interesting! I love the color, and I think it would be to die for on the Rhian mold (please Breyer!).

I almost forgot, here's Kelly O'Breyer:

Kelly O'Breyer

While Breyer's plush are certainly not my pinch of dragon dust, I can see this guy being more popular that some. I think his collar/necktie/whatever-it-is is a cute touch. :)

Last but not least, we have some excited (more true to life) photos of the Breyer SRs and LEs!

These were on the BF Blog yesterday (under the VIP post).

Yummy! Look at those little lovelies! I'm loving Wells, I'm sure it is just a prototype, but his color looks like artist pastel!

I have to wonder, I don't see Buggy in the top photo? Am I blind, or is he not here?? I was really looking forward to his first (nearly) in-hand style photo! I hope they take one with him in it soon.

That's all for today! I'm hoping to have some photos of the resins before long here, they are nearly complete! I did a ton of work on the last night, and I'm quite pleased with them. :) Maybe first of next week.

Tuesday, February 14, 2023

Fenced In

I do not show dressage. I do not judge dressage. I do not watch dressage. I do not ride dressage. I do not collect dressage. I never have. It's not that I dislike dressage, in fact, I love it. It's just that it is so complicated and specific, and I never felt it was worth my time and money. Sure, I have plenty of dressage horses, but I have them for halter showing. So how did I end up with a complete dressage fence this weekend? Maybe it was the alluring display of vintage Breyer models. Maybe it was the sun streaming through the antique shop window. Maybe it was the quiet hush of hundred year old antiques. Maybe it was. . . nah, forget it. It was the 30% off sign and $5 price tag. 😂 In all seriousness, I visited my local antique shop this weekend, and they had a lovely display of HSO (horse-shaped-objects) for 30% everything. There was a Big Ben, a SHM, SHF, Misty's Twilight, a couple Morganglanz, and at least two Rugged Larks. I think there was another as well, but I don't remember who it was. I was tempted by the SHM (she was in this release), but even at 30% off she was $35. Overpriced, for a model with as many rubs as she had. They also had a couple really funky homemade jumps (I'd date them from the 1970s).

I don't know who made it (no branding at all) but it is nice. PSQ I think. The chain is plastic, and the fence pieces are like pipe of some kind. I have no idea when I will be using it, but it is fun to have. The pictures I have are awful (I took them in the wee hours of the morning).

Happy Valentines Day!

Sunday, February 12, 2023

Judging

Part of the reason I've been so busy, is that I've taken on a new show to judge. It is just the "floater" leftover classes and I'm steadily picking my way through them. :)

The show is the Fall Fling show on OMHPS. It has been in judging for over a year, and the host was feeling overwhelmed. She requested me to clean-up the extras, which I was happy to do.

There have been a lot of very beautiful horses galloping and strutting their stuff on my laptop screen. :) I included a selection of the winners from the classes I've been working on. Please do not copy these photos. I have watermarked them all, to discourage stealing. These are not my photos. I cannot give you permission to use them. So please, just enjoy looking. :) Thank you.

Note: If any of these models belong to you, and you are uncomfortable with them being posted publicly on my blog, please PM me on OMHPS.