A very exciting parcel arrived today from
Modellpferdeversand! I don't usually buy internationally cos of the postage and import and handling fees, but Germany seems to be able to bypass the post-Brexit headache as I've had two parcels make it all the way here with nothing extra to pay, thank goodness!
So when there's irresistible models which can only be bought from overseas, I just have to go for it.
First, the two newly released models from WIA, named Vincenzo and made in two colour options. Well, I say 'options', as if we're supposed to choose between them, but just like every previous WIA release they're equally nice, so I just get myself one of each!
Take a bow, handsome boys!
Let's have a look at the grey first, I've named him Harecroft Fidalgo.
The mould really does look great in person, and these production models are every bit as good as the promotion pictures showed, so I think WIA genuinely do photograph a model from the main run, rather than using the artist's proof paintwork to flatter the models, the way some companies do. If you like what you see in their official images, the horses you'll unwrap are really that good!
Each WIA horse is a shrunk-down version of a Brigitte Eberl resins (see the big Vincenzo
here on Equine Resins Directory), so you're getting something which was designed as an accurate and fully detailed large sculpture by one of the best in the business, for not much more than the price of a plastic toy horse from the likes of Schleich, CollectA, or Mojo.
Rather than being plain matte white, he has a nice subtle amount of colour to him, as well as the obvious darker shading on his nose; there's hints of grey, cream, and silver, throughout his colour. He's also got streaks in his hooves - where white markings catch the hoof it grows pale, and although the markings are invisible on a fully greyed-out grey horse, the stripes in the hooves remain growing through for life. A lovely touch in the paintwork design, which not many people would've considered adding!
His mane is really magnificent!
I'm impressed with the amount of overlapping detail WIA have moulded here, it can't be easy to design the moulds to include all that hanging hair and complex limb positioning, but they make the extra effort - and it's well worth it!
And here is the perlino, Harecroft Pérolo - I'm really not sure which of these two is the most gorgeous, they're both beautiful whether classic pale grey or glowing peachy perlino.
The deep kneeling bow position is very unusual in the model world - we've had a few artist resins, and customs repositioned to a bowing pose over the years, but never released as an original finish plastic model, so it's something very novel, and refreshing.
Allegedly it's quite easy to teach a horse to bow using a treat held slightly further and further out of reach until they kneel to get it, but I've never managed with mine - she just waits til I stand back up with the treat then says her 'please?' noise cos she can't understand that she could just bend down and take it!
They've done a lovely job of the perlino colour, it could easily get too pinkish but the tone here is a dusty faded pale orange, with nicely done darker shading in the mane (and look along the crest of the neck, the join between smooth body coat and mane hair is added in with a fine hand-painted zig-zag join). The eyes are also blue, as they should be for this double-dilute colour.
The WIA models are listed as 1:18 scale, this is roughly the same as CollectA and Mojo (both advertised as 1:20 for their horse models) though in reality I find WIA tend to fall a bit on the smaller side, when comparing breeds like-for-like - not enough of a difference that you couldn't use them in group set-ups for photoshoots or showing scenes, but enough to be worth mentioning in case anyone is super scale-conscious and wanting to work things out from measuring to the millimetre and referencing the real horses breed standards.
These models are just so photogenic, so you get a lot of pictures. They're also very steady on their feet, no need to worry about wobbling or tipping on the shelf. They were packed in individual little boxes with plastic inserts to make sure the slightly pliable legs don't get warped or squashed in transit.
The mane looks even better on the perlino than the grey, I think - the softness of the shading helps bring out the lovely detail and texture in the sculpt.
As well as the two Vincenzo models, I decided to get the brumbies by Southlands Replicas.
Founded in Australia, the company was focused on bringing figures of native wildlife and extinct creatures to the market. So many companies make the iconic species like kangaroos and koalas, but Southlands aimed to fill a lot of gaps and include animals which aren't so well known outside their home country. Unfortunately, due to the financial pressures of the last few years, they've now called it a day, and when the stock of current animals is gone, they'll be no more.
As part of their range, though not
quite wildlife, in 2018 they made the only feral horse breed found in Australia. Sculpted by Anna Dobrowalska of
Horse And Bird, the brumby moulds have now been given a life beyond the end of Southlands Replicas - Anna also sculpts horses for Mojo Fun, and the mare and stallion moulds are coming to join Mojo's 2022 range soon.
While it's lovely they've been rescued in this way, and will carry on being available with their new brand, there's one thing which means I wouldn't have been quite so happy with the Mojo versions - the foal isn't coming with them. I'm sentimental enough about models that I want to keep the whole family together, and that meant adding the original Southlands releases to my order while the seller still had at least one of each left!
Here's the whole family!
I love the mare's grumpy face, so many model horses are happily alert or excitedly running along, not many get to lay back their ears and pull such a very mareish face!
She's very sweet, apart from that grouchy expression, with a nice mix between detail and slight fur texture, it makes her look naturally cute but not too toyish or cartoony.
Her colour's nicely shaded, paler on the lower legs and belly, and with some nicely added grey skin for the eyes and muzzle - hand painted I think, but softly so.
I wanted to give each brumby a name themed to their native local landscape and nature, so for this one I chose Harecroft Brindabella, the name of a mountain range in one area brumbies are found.
The stallion is much more glossy than the mare, I don't think this would be a design choice as in real life there's no difference in coat health or shine between the sexes, he just got a different paint application than she did. He also has plain black eyes, rather than the coloured irises added to both mare and foal, but the mould more than makes up for it in personality and drama, he's great anyway!
I've called him Harecroft Waratah, after a big spiky flower found in the mountains which gave the mare her name.
I think he's my favourite rearing model from the whole selection of toy-type plastic figures, a lot of brands have done these poses over the years but I really do like the way he's turning to one side, like a moment caught in freeze-frame motion, you can imagine how he'll twist and shift his weight and focus as he comes back down.
One thing I noticed about the difference between this Southlands release and the Mojo Fun edition - he's carried over his colour, but not his socks! So as well as gaining the baby to complete the family by buying them this way, but I also got white markings I wouldn't have had otherwise.
And here he is, the little one! Such a fragile, delicate little thing, balancing perfectly steady on his toes for the shelf, but looking like he's just about to kick and jump!
He also gets an Australian native flower name, from the home range of the real brumbies, and a fittingly cute-sounding one - a long-stemmed round yellow daisy known as Billy Buttons.
A very good parcel day indeed!
