NAN 2010

I miss out on getting a lot of pictures, I showed in way too much performance (which I always do) and totally forgot my camera on the second day. But here are a couple I got. This one was a favorite. The model is a Zara that was missing a leg that I redid to look like my real morab mare, Jericho's Royal Secret (see real horses, this is Sassy).
This costume was made by my BFF Kathy Wiggins as a bit of a joke at my ridiculous leopard print and pink fetish. She took a Lisa Salamandick halter and breastcollar set and went crazy. Its so cool and sparkly! I did the doll. This was a huge class but a great example of how something a little different thats well documented can do well. The documentation has real "Hollywood" style half arab youth entrants pictured. If you want to see amazing though, check out the NAN website and see what won champ, that set up that won is a true piece of art. But I was so happy to have my "real" horse and something made by a dear friend do so well. To me silver was gold on this one! AND Sassy got reserve champ in breed! Turns out she is a great show mare just like her namesake!

Remember Anne Nicole? She won champ in parade last year (yes the flag in the wrong hand, the doll broke the right hand right before the class and the laminated reference pic had the flag in it, but it was a rodeo setup, not a formal parade class but still, I did know better, I just didn't know what to do with that reference sheet, that why I don't laminate them anymore, something you need to make last minute changes!)
But anyway, Anne Nicole lives with her new owner now, who shows her to death and does great with her, which to me is a great compliment! Shannon thought it was funny that I beat myself in this class (Lady Liberty top tenned) but really, Colette won this all on her own. This brown parade set looks amazing with her.

I love this set up! Kathy Wiggins made the tack, I made the bull (from the Herden steer) and the horse (remade Keltic Salinero), Joan Yount made the doll, and Kevin McFarland made the wall.

Lastly, a real highlight from the halter day. The American Gaited class was so crazy big, ASBs and TWH did NOT get split like in previous years, and there were over 40 horses listed for the class (not sure how many were there in the end). Champ was Lady Liberty, and reserve was Sultana Santana, a rejoice with a ruffian head I did four years ago now owned by Beth Lamm, whoo hooo!

Thanks to Karen Meekma for the pic, I didn't have my camera this day!

Showstring 2010

My model year goes from Breyerfest to Breyerfest, and I often sell much of my showstring at the end of the show year. But this one is just for me. Three years ago my oldest daughter wanted this poster book. While much of it was kinda corny, this one picture jumped out at me. I thought this was make a really neat model horse. When the Breyer Wintersong model came out, I knew I had my victim! It just took me a while to get to her


Many people ask how I do drastic repositions, the key is to know when to cut. If leg has to be moved drastically from the stifle/hip area, its usually easier to cut it off completely and replace with wire. If you don't, you end up with really bulky joints and my pet peeve, rubber band legs (legs without joints)

So here is the body minus the head, and you can see the one hind leg was okay to move, but the other had to be cut off. I use soft aluminum wire for this.

Here is a butt shot of the finished Cornelia Marie. Named in honor of the late Captain Phil from Deadliest Catch (a favorite show)

I added some cute flowers and butterflies to the base, I wanted her to look like a mare just out having fun in the pasture

Her face, I only did minor remaking of the nostrils and eye sockets to make her look feminine. She won her class at the Breyer show...still want to do some more details in her feathers but look forward to showing her for a long time!

I have very few pieces left that I am doing "on orders" and can't wait to have the time to do more pieces that I come up with. Some will be for sale, but some like her will stay at the Purdy Farm.

More NAN pics tomorrow!

NAN 2010

Well not to stick my tounge out...but several people have asked what I have still for sale, so here is Paint My Cash...a multi live show halter winner. This year at NAN he top tenned in breed, won the breyerfest paint halter class, and got reserve of his division! He has cards for 2011 in halter and western performance, and a new halter card for 2012-2013. He has a reference sheet that shows how racehorses often have their tounges tied to the side to aid in breathing.

The sun was a little bright, but I customized the bridle path area and forelock to make him tack friendly

A great show proven show horse, $550 plus postage. I can try for better light later on in the week.

Ok now on to NAN, those pictures were suppose to be last!

It is going to take a while to sort through all the pictures, and I didn't get any on halter day, but I can say NAN 2010 went great! Not only for my horses but for many horses I did that are now owned by others. This is the first one I found, little Docs Diana winning non speed games. This is a favorite set up, since the saddle is made by one BFF, Kathy Wiggins, and guess who made the super cute WESTERN bridle??? The goddess of English Tack herself, Jen Buxton! I get to go out to Denver in a couple weeks, so though since she is picking me up, I better put her pics up first! LOL

Here is Quiver, getting Top Ten in dressage with is Buxton set. This set has all gold hardware and is to DIE for stunning!

Now that the chaos is over I hope to begin regular postings. I didn't want to post the new breyer customs I did for the show since I wanted them to be a surprise, but really want to show up the latest drastic custom, Cornelia Marie!

Tune in tomorrow!

Imafam II, the camel at NAN

So how did this camel come to be? Well this one is all Danielle's fault. Over a year ago she had one of the awesome Herden camels up for sale and I really wanted it, but she had to go and sell it to someone else (okay to be honest I had my shot at it) and when I whined she said " Well its not like you couldn't make one yourself"
True, but where to start? Ready for a shocker????
This first pic is the original Imafam in the foreground, with her poor broken leg from demolding, and Imafam II, the NAN camel, is the background. Imafam II has a different tail, and from the molding the head position comes out a little different


This is the original in primer.....

And here she is in progress! YES that is the breyer FAM!!!! Amazing what you can do with some apoxy and aluminum foil isn't it???? I purposely left her feet so you can see the original FAM hooves on the bottom. The only other thing not covered are the eyes, the finished camel has the same breyer eyes.

The whole reason I made a mold and wanted some cast copies is what you can see here. She is quite the frankenstein thing, and I worry how stable the piece it. That and just think of the camel remakes I can do!

NAN auction, why the wait?

Here are a couple more pictures I forgot, and if there are any angles you want to see, I can take more of either the horse or the camel. Once the new rider is done I will post pictures of just him


I am really happy with the Dancing Horse, why is it this one has to go?

Well one of the reasons it took so long was damn Mountie the Moose. I got Mountie last weekend at the show in Spokane, WA that was invaded by the Canucks. The is absolutly no border control up north at all! First thing he did was dive into the garden....now I have been to Idaho twice and there are no such plants in that state...so don't believe the hype! In fact, the potatoes I ate there were grown in Washington! Whats next, Illinois apples??????

Then he jumped up on Sassy....oh I wish I had gotten her face in frame!

Then over into the corn field and started eating up the crop...as if we don't have enough deer doing this already!

Okay seriously, what a crazy Canuck he ate all the pig's food!

Then he tried to climb one of our maples and broke it....or what that the storm???

Moral of the story, we need a fence up North!

But really, if you ever get a chance to go to a show in the Northwest and get the pleasure of a Canadian invasion, you will never have more fun! They are a FANTASTIC bunch, duct tape and all, and the BEST FRIENDS!

AND they helped my Blackhawks get the Cup! WHOO HOO

NAN auction, all done!

WOW what a two weeks! Between the storms, sick horses, a trip out to the Potato Head's house (oh don't worry you know who you are) that I have a bunch of pictures to post too, Mountie the Moose tearing up my farm, but look! Its finally done!


This set is the most hours I have ever put into a NAN piece, but I want the set in Lisa's memory to be something special. All the colors were focused around the breastcollar set. Which again, I can't thank Kathy Wiggins enough to donating the halter and breastcollar set. The camel mold was way more work than I expected, but it does work (they are rough though) and the camel in this set is the very first cast. Well technically second, wait till you see the first one! These pics have to go off to the auction coordinator today, but I wanted to post them here first.

This is not the final doll though, his clothes were still tacky and we have more storms moving in so I wanted to take pictures before we got hit again.

The arabian dancing stallion should be a ton of fun in performance. This caramel chestnut color is a personal favorite, since its similar to my real purebred Gold N Ali daughter!

Okay so just imagine the spruce trees are palms....what can I say we don't have too many palm trees in Northwest Illinois!

Tomorrow will post pictures of the camel, the original Imafam, the remake of the breyer FAM is a little beat up from the mold making process, but she will be back at breyerfest this year...please let me know what you all think!

NAN auction

Well I wanted to do more this week, but thanks to a nasty electrical storm my satellite connection wasn't working! But wanted to show off the NAN piece I am finishing up this next week. This set is called "The Journey" and is a tribute to a dear lost friend of the hobby, Lisa Salamandick. Lisa lost her battle with cancer last year, and I will go into the full story of how I got to know her later....but she so loved arabians, especially dancing horses. So the horse of the set is a drastically remade breyer lonesome glory into a fiery dancing stallion. The set comes complete with halter and breastcollar set made by Lisa herself...generously donated my uber gal pal Kathy Wiggins (who I would be lost without!)
Here is the head, its a remade PAM head and I did a mane and tail full of action to really make him dramatic


Full body shot, he is doing a correct spanish walk, think of all the fun he will be to show!

And the matching camel, this is a remake of a breyer FAM, no joke! I showed her at Breyerfest last year and she was a huge hit! Now the set comes with a resin copy, the only copy that will be sold to the public!

Here is the poor thing under rubber, casting next week! Gotta run for today, its getting ready to storm again I have to unplug everything so it doesn't get fried again, let me know what you think!