Jill's (growing) Collection [update 3.31.24]

Beautiful lizards, snakes and fishes!

Big congratulations Jill! The Wing Mau become even MORE interesting when you realize there are significant variations of them... I have twins of nearly every lizard figure, and even triplets of others still!

One thing to keep in mind on Safari Ltd. Toobs... several tubes are very old at this point and still in production. The paintwork changes over time, as has been discussed on forum recently the quality of the paintwork seems to change... I think you said it best Jill, honestly it is just hit or miss and probably depends on the painter at the factory level(?).

Great additions, Jill. Cody has been so helpful for many of us!

Thank you everyone!

Saarlooswolfhound wrote:

Big congratulations Jill! The Wing Mau become even MORE interesting when you realize there are significant variations of them... I have twins of nearly every lizard figure, and even triplets of others still!

I actually have a variation of the blind snake and the coral snake that confused me for a while, it is good to know there are plenty more out there to find.

I believe this will be it for March, as I have certainly spent plenty . . .

The first package I got was the second huge purchase from Cody of Play Visions. Basically everything he had left that I didn't, I got in this round. Thank you so much Cody for filling so many of my Play Visions spots! Some of these are the creatures I collect less often. I usually am not drawn to invertebrates, fish, and birds as much as reptiles, amphibians, and mammals, and I wondered about getting some of those sets--especially the parasites, ha! But then I thought, they are such a good price and you will regret it if you don't get them now and then want to get them later to finish your Play Visions collection and have to pay a lot more. So I went ahead and got them, and I actually love them. The beetles and bees/wasps are especially lovely, but even the parasites are cool--and the face of the dust mite is the star of the show, really.
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My next package was from Kelly, a wonderful trade where I ended up with a beautiful vintage Breyer woodgrain family arabian stallion. She had seen me mention I'd never found a true vintage woodgrain (my oldest is from the 90's and is a stablemate) and offered this guy in trade. As far as woodgrains go, he is not the rarest, but he's really lovely and I love having him in my collection. Thank you again, Kelly!
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And then just today I got my last package, a collection of little celluloid animals. These have been for sale for a long time because they were not especially affordable, so I have been thinking on them for a while. I finally decided if they sold or were taken down, I would regret not having gotten them, and so finally caved. These are the kind of figures you don't readily see again once they go, at least not in exactly this production. The dogs were the main reason. I had never seen many of these before as sculpts, and even the familiar ones, I do not have painted. And I love their paint jobs! The wildlife are a nice bonus, though I wish they had a few more unusual species rather than the more standard fare. The mountain goat and polar bear are very cool, and the donkey is cute, and I actually really love the tiger and the way it is painted. I don't have any other tiny celluloid wildlife, so the collection begins to expand . . .
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Love the PVs; as a professional parasitologist, the ectoparasite set was a Holy Grail set for me. Luckily, it's now completed!

Congratulations Jill! I was really tempted by the parasites but have since resisted... That mite's face though would be worth it! The woodgrain breyer is lovely indeed, I have a stablemate draft I think and a Chinese New Year production from Breyer, both recent. The japanese chin, setter, and terrier are all 3 gorgeous! The tiger reminds me of a children's story I read a loooong time ago. :)

bmathison1972 wrote:

Love the PVs; as a professional parasitologist, the ectoparasite set was a Holy Grail set for me. Luckily, it's now completed!

I actually thought specifically of you when I got them! You must be their target audience. I assume as a professional you can confirm that dust mites have googly eyes.  

Saarlooswolfhound wrote:

Congratulations Jill! I was really tempted by the parasites but have since resisted... That mite's face though would be worth it!

I'm no help because I can tell you I liked them better than I expected. I never thought I would want to see a tick this size, but they are certainly unique figures and now I am kind of attached to them (pun intended   ).

Quote :

The woodgrain breyer is lovely indeed, I have a stablemate draft I think and a Chinese New Year production from Breyer, both recent. The japanese chin, setter, and terrier are all 3 gorgeous! The tiger reminds me of a children's story I read a loooong time ago. :)

The chin was the real reason I bought the set.   It's so cute! Do you remember the name of the story the tiger reminds you of?

So many wonderful additions, especially all those Play Visions and the dogs! I'm so happy for you that you had the opportunity to add all those PV models to your collection, especially seeing how hard they are to find now and what lovely little figures they are!
And I'm so glad you couldn't resist the temptation of the Celluloid dogs! They're beautiful and I love the Japanese Chin too, such a fun model and a great pose! The rough collie is beautiful too, always love models of this breed but something about this one is especially nice, I love the softly blended colours of its coat! The little terrier is gorgeous too!
The horse from Kelly is stunning as well, what a treasure to add to your herd!

You found a animal collector treasure chest????????

I love these celluloïd dogs and wild animals! They are in a perfect condition!

I don't have it but the Play Visions set of parasits is the most interesting of them all in my opinion.
Play Visions are no tscientific figures, they're just toys and adding these species to one of their sets is one of the boldest decisions I've ever witnessed in this hobby. They're very educational too. Surely for my standard collecting taste, the sets with small mammals are those I collect but this one is really special.
Very beautiful celuloid dogs too, I love especially the Japanese Spaniel and the English Setter.

GREAT ADDITIONS Jill Big congratulation

The PV pig and dust mite are INSTANT MUST WANT Poor Kiki

The Celluloid are fantastic too, the kind of things I missed and my heart is so cold now, so blue I have a big bias for the last four... INSTANT MUST WANT too

Jill wrote:

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congratulations on all your new friends Jill!
I can see exactly why you love these ones though - those eyes and faces are just beyond adorable.
It's like cuteness overload for me

Wonderful,wonderful additions!!!

Thank you so much everyone!

Bonnie wrote:

And I'm so glad you couldn't resist the temptation of the Celluloid dogs! They're beautiful and I love the Japanese Chin too, such a fun model and a great pose! The rough collie is beautiful too, always love models of this breed but something about this one is especially nice, I love the softly blended colours of its coat! The little terrier is gorgeous too!

Yes, they are painted very nice! I have an unpainted version of the same collie, both are nice but the color really brings out the detail better.

widukind wrote:

You found a animal collector treasure chest????????

It feels like it!

Roger wrote:

I don't have it but the Play Visions set of parasits is the most interesting of them all in my opinion.
Play Visions are no tscientific figures, they're just toys and adding these species to one of their sets is one of the boldest decisions I've ever witnessed in this hobby. They're very educational too. Surely for my standard collecting taste, the sets with small mammals are those I collect but this one is really special.

I agree, it was really a kind of strange idea to make a series of parasite toys but for collectors of varied species, a very good choice, I can't imagine anyone else has done it. I just wonder how well they sold when they were new. They feel at least more marketed toward children than the seashells, which are beautiful but I also struggle to understand what the marketing idea was. Shells are hard to play with.

Kikimalou wrote:

The PV pig and dust mite are INSTANT MUST WANT    Poor Kiki

The pig really is very good, I didn't mention him specifically but he is one of my favorites of this delivery.

My last April box came this morning.

My first April purchase were these three found in an antique store. They are real old Breyer Western Pony and Furies. They were $10, $8, and $1 respectively, so difficult to pass up. Obviously all missing saddles and reins, but I thought the white one looked pretty good (the dirt cleaned off), and I wasn't 100% sure if I had the black one (I knew I had A black one, but they are all so similar), and the palomino was missing a foot but it was also only $1 so . . . why not? Turns out, I DO have this exact black one and the white one has actually been customized (silver painted over the gold on the breast collar and bridle), so not quite so nice a find as hoped. At least I am not much out for it.
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Second purchase was more straightforward--three more US yowies I needed. I've been watching this ebay lot for months. It was a little high priced, but they knocked it down a bit and so I finally went for it. US series is getting difficult to complete now!
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Then I found a lot from whitelightningwolf that first caught my attention because of the quagga, and then I noticed a very interesting little cat in there. Maybe not to most people, but I have been looking for the somali from the Cats to Go collection since I started collecting again. It's the last one I needed for all those cats I was looking for, and the only time I have ever even seen a picture was also from whitelightningwolf, so I knew it existed but unlike the rest of the set, just never showed up in lots. And then here she was! A little worn and weathered, but finally!! A grail complete! She looks a lot like the other somali, to be fair, but is more of a peach than a yellow color, has green eyes, and has pink inside the ears.    Still keeping an eye out for one that has a nicer paint job, but for now, this one is perfect. The quagga of course is also an exciting find, and I'm glad to have the painted dog as well for my dingo/hunting dog/hyena shelf, haha. The toymany cats, the arctic fox, and the surprise yowie were nice extras! The birds were also part of this lot (as are several things that have been added to my trade list).
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Today's box was just two tiny little horses, and I am really excited about these as well. Like the cat, these horses are in the same molds as the ones I was looking for when I first joined. I thought I had all the sets that featured these molds, but then these two popped up, totally different, and I am on the hunt again to see if there are any more. I'll probably start a thread for them, because I love tiny horse mysteries.
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Theres a few images not showing for me, but I wanted to say congratulations! Lots of great items there!

Nice varity of additions. Any must haves again

Congratulations for your new little figures. Especially for the fact you completed the cat series.
Another little horse mistery to unfry your head.

So many amazing additions, I especially love all of the beauties from WhiteLightningWolf!

I love the old Breyer's, even if they are a bit worn out they have a great charm.
Congratulations for your new ones, especially for your Yowies and Cat's to go, I know you like to complete the series

Thanks everyone!

Little May! Spent most of my May budget on Ziti, my ball python, and updating his house. But I did save a little bit for me.

These two handsome guys! The original Swaps G1 Breyer stablemate is added to my conga of Swaps. Surprisingly, I did not have the Swaps himself, but now we're all set there. The roan Silky Sullivan is from a JC Penny set that I wanted to buy complete because it came up on ebay, but I already had several from the set, making the expensive purchase sort of silly . . . so instead, I have been looking for them individually. It features my favorite Swaps, which I wasn't able to find yet, but I did find my second favorite in that set, which is this guy. He was pretty cheap (for a special run G1) because he has some marks, which don't bother me at all. I love Breyer's roans and would add all of them if I could, haha.
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Some mix-n-match figures. The Toy Major hyena which I have always enjoyed and hoped to add, and got the chance when I found her for about $3 on ebay. I love her expression and general somewhat bizarre look. The way hyenas are interpreted is always beguiling . . . and then two more Yowies, the orange-bellied parrot and the Kihansi spray toad. I especially like the toad and his funny little expression. The brown howler monkey Play Visions is an exciting addition, but the bat eared fox was an oops! I purchased him thinking I didn't have that color variation but I was wrong, I definitely do, so if anyone is looking for a bat eared fox, he'll be in my sale/trade pile.
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And last but not least, a friend of mine knows I collect little plastic animals and that I love reptiles and amphibians, so when she saw these at a shop, she picked them up and sent them to me. These sorts of gestures from friends and family always make the models extra valuable.
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