Harecroft Horses - Tales from the Body Box - CollectA batch two!

Thanks, everyone! I enjoy these tiny moulds, both Mini Whinnies and the Mini Collecta models from tubes have been fun to paint - I'm not sure what scales they're sold as but I find the Breyer stand a little bit smaller than the CollectA, even when comparing similar breeds, so they don't quite work as a mixed herd

The next custom painted horse is a little bit bigger, but not by much, I've done another Stablemate model but I'm waiting for a dry day to get his photos, it's been either raining or dark for all my time off, ever since I finished him

Here we go, the weather finally co-operated and I can introduce Harecroft Hawkeye

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He's the scaled-down 1:32 scale version of Breyer's 1:9 scale 'vanner' mould, a frolicking cob stallion with a lot of feather and flying mane and tail. I've already painted the resin version, but this is my first plastic one, it's been quite a difficult mould to get hold of so far, only appearing in blind bags (or as very exclusive special runs, too rare to repaint!)

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I tend to paint very few piebald (black-and-white pinto) horses, because the temptation is always to go for a brighter more colourful coat colour for the patches, so I do a lot of bay or chestnut or dun pinto patterns, and neglect what is easily the commonest colour on real life cobs.

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This mould really is nice, capturing the lively way stallions and colts play, half-rearing and kicking out with their front legs, enjoying how strong and fit and happy they feel out in the field. It's also a really nice depiction of the traditional cob type horse, much better than when draft moulds are painted pinto, they've captured the lighter build which shows in the less barrelly body and longer limbs of a cob. Of course there ARE some which are huge and bulky draft crosses, just like there's some which are pony sized, and some which are crossed with trotters, so all kinds of feathery-legged model can pass for different kinds of cob when painted up coloured, but it's nice to see one which reflects the typical average type.

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The sun came out much nicer this afternoon, so he went back out for a second photoshoot!

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I'll choose one of these sunny bright ones as his website picture, but thought I may as well put them all here, cos I don't think there's any such thing as too many model photos on this forum

This is what I would call a "stunner"! What a handsome model! Really great work, your pattern makes the model even more lively!

Such an incredible repaint for such a rare to find sculpt, it turned out amazing.

No, never too many photos, especially not of such a fabulous repaint. The nose is especially beautifully done. I wasn't so keen on this sculpt, as it seemed overdone, but the way you describe it, it isn't such an uncommon pose. I should probably revise my opinion. The lively way you have painted the patches matches the playful pose perfectly.

Stunning repaint!!!
Its strange how popular that these cobs/Vanners have become.When I was growing up in Ireland I used to see loads of these type of horses but the only people that used to keep them were Gypsies/travellers and nobody else was anyway interested in them because of the colouring!

Such a precious custom and your photos are wonderful. There isn't such a thing like many pohtos here.

Saarlooswolfhound wrote:

Really great work, your pattern makes the model even more lively!

I really enjoy making up patterns, it's a lot harder to copy patches from a real horse so I tend to improvise based on likely places the colour would be!

Burgerenby wrote:

Such an incredible repaint for such a rare to find sculpt, it turned out amazing.

That's the slightly stressful thing with these difficult-to-get moulds, I have to be really selective and know exactly what I most want to paint on them, and be confident I can get it right first time, cos I don't get multiple tries and unlimited options - it might be a couple of years before another of these ends up coming my way!

rogerpgvg wrote:

I wasn't so keen on this sculpt, as it seemed overdone, but the way you describe it, it isn't such an uncommon pose

There's currently three young entire colts at the place I rent my field, I see a LOT of this kind of behaviour, especially when they get too close to each other or a mare

Taos wrote:

Its strange how popular that these cobs/Vanners have become.When I was growing up in Ireland I used to see loads of these type of horses but the only people that used to keep them were Gypsies/travellers and nobody else was anyway interested in them because of the colouring!

I think there is still a divide between 'cob people' and people who wouldn't dream of considering anything pinto and hairy as a proper worthwhile horse, let alone as an option to buy. And it's mostly background, with posh/horsey people from nice riding schools wanting tb/partbred types, and travellers being way more interested in cobs to ride or drive or breed.
I was taught to ride by a settled traveller, mostly on his black and white cobs, and I've been around them ever since. I'm steeped in cob culture through and through, cos most of the other horse owners I know now have cobs too (there's one warmblood and 13 cobs living at the yard where I rent my field!), so I like painting them cos they're kind of home territory to me.
And it does amuse me that a lot of model horse people have latched on to the recent hype, mostly in America, about these being this special long-official-pedigreed pure breed, when they're just cobs and you can make them by crossing whatever you want

George wrote:

Thank you, to each of you who's commented! I've been painting a long time, but have large gaps in between, stretching to years when I don't even consider dusting off the bodies or picking up the paintbrush. Your feedback and positive comments really help, in making me feel good about my painting, and keep me eager to do more and more, rather than let it fizzle out and go dormant again. I think this community feeling of looking at other people's custom work really helps, I've missed it since all the model horse forums I was on went offline in favour of Facebook groups, so thank you, to all of you, for encouraging me to keep painting, and keep on making ideas happen, so I have more to show to appreciative model fans :)

It's amazing how inspiring it can be for creative work (of any kind) to have an appreciative audience. I really think most of us create at all, in whatever way we do, to share it. I mean of course it is for US mostly, we paint and write and photograph what we personally like, but really I think we all do it in order to experience it on some level with someone else. That's been my experience, anyway. I always find myself more productive when I know there's at least one more person out there interested in what I will produce. I love that this forum has so many artists willing to share what they create!

Those mini whinnies, goodness! SUCH a tiny canvas, you've made them so dignified and detailed. I had no idea there was a tiny Sherman Morgan (I learn new Breyer things from your threads all the time!), and now I desperately need one. I love the colors you chose for them both. I know you say dappling is easier on these tiny horses, but I think it can't be easy on ANY size, so well done!

Really incredible cob, too! Love the mapping texture along the edges of the white and black. You've taken a "simple" color and given it the qualities that make it so appealing in a real horse, and not flat like it comes off on so many models. His pink speckly muzzle is also a wonderful detail.

This is so beautiful, such a lively pose!
You have painted this model so realistically, and those lovely delicate pinto markings really capture the prancing energetic nature of this horse!

I totally agree, Jill, the choices I make in combining moulds and colours are purely for my own satisfaction, to fill gaps in my collection, create breeds I'm interested in, or portraits of real horses I like. But I always see photographing and sharing the picture as being as important as the painting stage in the creative process. A custom doesn't really fully 'exist' til it's been recorded, and shared. Even before I joined here, when that was just to a couple of painter friends and then my blog with hardly any readers, just putting it somewhere public where it could be seen made me feel like I'd finished it (and could start planning the next one )

Unfortunately, those Mini Whinnies can only be got in blind bags right now, so you can't just order the mould you want! One bag is about £5 ($6.50) plus postage, so it's a stupidly risky and expensive way to try tracking down any particular horse (which is why I haven't painted many Mini Whinnies, just any which came to me as more-or-less freebies in mixed lots with Stablemates, and one that I won!)

Pinto is one of those colours which can be as easy or as difficult as you want to make it, you can start out with simplified sharp markings and they'll still look great provided as you get the pattern shapes realistic, or you can spend ages with a selection of tiny brushes and play around with hair detailing for as long as it takes til you've had enough and call it done

A beautiful repaint on a lovely mold Wonderful!

George wrote:

Unfortunately, those Mini Whinnies can only be got in blind bags right now, so you can't just order the mould you want! One bag is about £5 ($6.50) plus postage, so it's a stupidly risky and expensive way to try tracking down any particular horse (which is why I haven't painted many Mini Whinnies, just any which came to me as more-or-less freebies in mixed lots with Stablemates, and one that I won!)

Oh man, I'll have to keep an eye out on the Breyer groups . . . someday they'll hopefully be easy enough to find second hand, like all the blind bag stablemates. I do love this thing they've started with miniaturizing the vintage molds. I'd happily just duplicate my enter collection in tiny form, if they produced them.

Today's introduction comes from a Breyer paint-by-numbers kit, wilfully mis-used!

In the original boxed set, you got a set of acrylic paints, a brush, and a blank white resin model which is, rather than printed like traditional paint-by-numbers boards, actuallycast covered in grooves which mark the colour outlines and numbers. I can't find a photo of the exact same sculpt as I have, but this one is the mould which replaced it when they updated the sets - you can see the deep lines in the resin.

The trouble with this is that the outlines and numbers would still be extremely visible after the painting was completed, which would bother me. Clearly, it also bothered whoever had this body before I bought it - they've been filled and smoothed over with what looks like Apoxie Sculpt!
I can't remember where this one came from, whether it was bought from a friend, from ebay, or a sales table - at any rate, somebody who gave up on trying to fix it, and passed it along to sit in someone else's body box instead

I found the poor thing a few weeks ago when digging through the dustiest corner of long-neglected resin bodies, which have been there around a decade, while my painting habit switched on and off intermittently in chunks of years, but never ventured toward tackling those bigger models.
At first I thought 'Hmm, I remember getting that', then 'It's actually really nice', and decided to move it to a slightly more prominent if I keep seeing this I'll feel guilty enough about the delay to paint it kind of place
And it worked! One evening last week, I was feeling in a painty kind of mood, none of the Stablemates I picked up seemed to inspire me, then my eye settled on the old paint-by-numbers pony. With a bit of sanding, it was ready to finally get a coat of colour.

I don't know what breed the sculpt was originally intended as - the lines in the mould and the box design to copy showed a bay leopard-spotted appaloosa - but to me it read as either a rather chunky arabian, or a pony with a lot of arabian influence, like the welsh. The head especially looks ponylike, so I decided to go for a welshie, and that's what she became...

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I chose a relatively simple colour, typical of the breed, and plenty of white markings to lift it with some flashy brightness. Some sabino roaning or body markings were a possibility, but as I went along she just seemed to feel right staying relatively plain.

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I really do like this sculpt, there's a lot of energy in the pose and it matches the lively character of the welsh breeds, even if that wasn't what Breyer meant us to do with it I wonder if perhaps the reason I'm enjoying it so much is cos it's so little seen - the plastic moulds are released over and over again in different colours and there's customs too, we get familiar with them and they stop being fresh and exciting to look at once you've owned one or seen plenty.
But I've never seen one of these paint-by-numbers kits before, either completed as per the instructions, or by another hobbyist going off-piste and doing their own thing with it. Probably because of those carved lines - small children getting creative painting toy sets might not care about them, but in the model hobby they'd be a deal-breaker - we wouldn't want to photograph and display or show a horse with that much spoiling it's looks and ruining it's realism. But once they're gone, it's a very pretty little thing indeed!

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This one reminds me of all those ponies who run away when their owner wants to catch them, high-tailing it off down the field as if to say 'I know I'm faster than you!'

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I've named her Harecroft Aderyn Tân, Welsh for 'firebird' (using just the 'bird' part, Aderyn, for short)

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Has anyone else tried the Breyer painting kits? They do produce quite a few using standard sculpts without the lines and numbering, and a lot of Stablemates in packs or singly, so there's a lot which can be painted without all the prep work this one had to go through to look decent.
I have had a few of the SM kits, mostly unicorns to snip the horns off and turn back into horses in moulds which are otherwise hard to get hold of - but I always use my own paints, cos I can't get on with other brands (not to mention some of the hideous pastel colour choices they pack them with! )

Oh my goodness, this one has a truly sweet face, I love it! This little Firebird has been done so well, great work!

I agree with Paige, such a sweet face, and beautifully painted to look almost fluffy- especially the blaze on the head!

I really really like this sculpt, and the bright chestnut with chrome works- beautiful job! Glad you rescued her.

What a weird thing, that they would carve the lines and numbers into the models. You've done a great job with her, she's lovely. I have to agree that her head and face are really wonderful. Great color choice for her, I think it works perfectly!

I have one of the resin paint your own horses, but it's the sort without a mane or tail (you're meant to give them the soft hair), and so I never did anything with it because I haven't got the right material, nor do I particularly care for the soft manes and tails customs. Never saw the paint by number ones though!

I reckon I made the right choice, going for a welsh pony breed, then! I do wish I could find out more about the sculpt, especially what they intended it to be, but as I doubt it'll ever get remade into plastic, I suspect this release is the only time we'll see it. And the Paint By Numbers kit has moved on to a different model now, so I couldn't easily get another one even if I wanted to (and frankly, with that amount of work needed to get rid of the lines, I don't think I'm up for starting from scratch with one! )

Jill, perhaps you could give it a sculpted mane and tail instead? Depends how you feel about sculpting, if you were a plasticine or play-doh kid it'd be a less scary venture than if you've never touched the stuff
The best thing to add parts to models is a two-part epoxy putty, that sticks on firmly and doesn't crack or come away from the plastic/resin like air-drying clay would. I use old fashioned Milliput (sold mostly to plumbers as watertight putty!) just cos I'm used to it, it's cheap, and it's made and sold in the UK, but worldwide Apoxie Sculpt seems to be the popular choice for resculpting so maybe that's easier for you to get hold of?
There's loads of mane/tail sculpting tutorials for beginners online, one of the good things about the model horse hobby is how willing everyone is to share their tips and tricks of the trade!

Is it the same mould as this Appaloosa in this picture I borrowed from somewhere?
If it is, your version is 700 times more beautiful, but i doubt it is because the hairy parts of your models feel like they are real. That's such a dynamic pose and your ppainting couldn't be better.

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Yes, that's the one!
I'm glad you like what I did with her, but part of the credit has to go to whoever did the labour-intensive prep work in the first place - I just polished her up and coloured her in!

George wrote:

Yes, that's the one!
I'm glad you like what I did with her, but part of the credit has to go to whoever did the labour-intensive prep work in the first place - I just polished her up and coloured her in!

You're welcome and I can credit whoever did it. I just don't understand why you are talking Polish with me.

George wrote:

Jill, perhaps you could give it a sculpted mane and tail instead? Depends how you feel about sculpting, if you were a plasticine or play-doh kid it'd be a less scary venture than if you've never touched the stuff
The best thing to add parts to models is a two-part epoxy putty, that sticks on firmly and doesn't crack or come away from the plastic/resin like air-drying clay would. I use old fashioned Milliput (sold mostly to plumbers as watertight putty!) just cos I'm used to it, it's cheap, and it's made and sold in the UK, but worldwide Apoxie Sculpt seems to be the popular choice for resculpting so maybe that's easier for you to get hold of?
There's loads of mane/tail sculpting tutorials for beginners online, one of the good things about the model horse hobby is how willing everyone is to share their tips and tricks of the trade!

Oof, sculpting! The third dimension really throws me for a loop. I do have some sculpey, but it's the bake in the oven kind, so I don't think that would work. I'd happily send it on to you, since I feel like you'd get a lot more mileage out of a blank body than I would, but I bet postage to get it there safely would be absurd . . . .

Oh, what a beautiful custom! I think it's a perfect Welsh pony! I love the rich chestnut color, beautifully painted eyes, and lovely white markings

And I don't think I've seen this mold before. The paint-by-numbers idea doesn't seem too great in the case of model horses, the carved lines look annoying unless someone would paint a decorator type of pattern on it.
I have one or two stablemates from "paint your own" sets. They were sold as unicorns but as you mentioned it's relatively easy to just get rid of the horn. I've never used the paints from the sets though

As for the art materials from those sets (usually 3 paints + 1 brush), I've seen a comparison video by a Polish artist on her youtube canal. She painted one of the horses only with the paints and brush from the set, and the other horse with her own art materials. The video is here it's in Polish but I think you can still see which materials were used for which horse.

It's been a while since I painted anything, about a month, but the Olympics got me inspired to make a portrait model of one of the British team horses.
The logical thing to have done would be wait a couple of days, til the final round's jumping gave us the individual gold medallist, and then paint whoever that turned out to be. Or, if you prefer a bit of national bias, then I should've waited and gone for whichever was the highest placed British horse.
But I go to watch a lot of horses competing cross-country in person, and over the years I've seen the speckly grey, Ballaghmor Class, so many more times than the others in the team (or even any competing at these games for another nation) so he was the one which I was the most keen to paint in miniature.

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There's the real one. My own photo from Burghley 2017

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His lovely bay speckling was quite nerve-wracking to flick on with a thumb across a toothbrush, as you have to dilute the paint to make it spray finely enough, but thin watery wet paint will blob together making the flecks look big and too 'painty'. So I layered it on thinly and with plenty of drying time in between, til I'd got to the point where it looked dark enough to give the right impression of heavy speckling, but without overdoing it so he ended up more pink than grey!

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I think this mould is probably the best choice for him, the dressage-style warmblood moulds would be fine as eventers are necessarily great all-rounders, but I've never watched his dressage in person - I catch him in action as he comes flying by on the XC!

Spoilers incase you're watching the Olympics coverage delayed cos of time zones and don't want to know results til you've had chance to see it :

Spoiler:

And there's more photos of the real horse and rider, and the others in the GB team, on my blog post here, but again, beware spoilers if you don't want to know the result yet.