Yeah, ok, I bought her.
She's lighter (in weight) than I expected. She's also second hand, so she's got the usual small rubs and marks that you can expect with a model that's had at least one other owner. Unlike the official promotional photos from Breyer she doesn't have any dapples, but she's a lovely silvery grey.
Now that I can actually see her with my own eyes and turn her around in my own hands I can get a better picture of her conformation. She still looks a bit...off, to me. Her near (left) shoulder seems a bit disconnected from her leg, and she's definitely much more attractive from her off (right) side. In addition, from this side it looks like her neck is a little too long.
On my girl the charcoal airbrushing on her forelegs doesn't extend all the way round, so the backs of her forelegs are awkwardly blank. But that's a painting issue, not sculpting.
I've read another collector's comment that she looks like she's coming to a halt from a trot. I personally think she'd look lovely under harness, perhaps pulling a light trap (cart).
She has one ear flicked forward and one flicked to the side: I absolutely love this! I feel it gives her real character. Her near (left) side ear seems weird, though. It's awkwardly sliced off at the tip, and seems weirdly connected to her head from the left side. It's not unheard of for real horses to lose the tips of their ears in accidents or fights, though.
I don't know whether it's just my girl, but her near (left) fore leg seems to bend in underneath her body, and the distance between her hooves seems very narrow.
As nicely as possible, she's got quite a big butt :) This makes her quite pear-shaped from above, as her shoulders are quite narrow. In fact, she's almost as pear shaped as a CollectA horse from above!
All four legs have sculpted chestnuts (the hard growth on the inside of the leg). This is a nice touch and not something you see on every Breyer model. I wish they'd painted her hooves better, as they're just vaguely airbrushed in.
Her mane is lovely and flowy, and I like the multi-tonal way they've painted her mane and tail.
Her head is relatively attractive. She has large, gentle eyes, although mine has a bit of overpaint on her right eye.
I can't quite tell for certain, but I keep thinking that her head is slightly too large for her body...
I like the dark tips to her ears, but does every model have a missing ear tip?
What is up with that left ear??
From the front her face seems a bit too narrow. You can really see it below, compared to the Johar (bay) and Duchess (chestnut) moulds.
So, what's my verdict? The mould still seems awkward to me, but that doesn't mean I dislike her. Whilst I don't think she'd win any awards for her looks, in my opinion she'd look quite nice under tack, either ridden or driving a small cart. She certainly doesn't have the body of a younger animal, but as an older mare or even broodmare I think she could work. And despite her flaws she does have her charm, and wouldn't look out of place in a stable set up.
Now I just have to find her a place on my shelves. Hmm, easier said than done...
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