Custom Mini Model Horses

I have been remiss on posting finished models for my personal challenge of finishing one hundred models (instead of starting something new.) As you may have noticed, I’ve started a new model with wire mesh as part of the mane and tail... so many wonderful horsey distractions! Meet Encore! He is a custom from the G3 rearing Andalusian. This is one of two models in a bow that started with this mold. I found the mold a little tricky to work with because of his pose. When tamed into a new pose, however, he’s quite the sweetie! Encore is a red roan taking a bow. CM by Sarah Tregay. Encore has been on my workbench for about five years. My friend, Karen Prescott, began two bowing models at the same time and they were completed a long time ago. I chose bay roan for this guy, a color that can be painted many ways with many mediums. I chose a pastel base coat and pastel pencils. I purchased two brands and ended up using them both because they dulled quickly. I drew on many tiny...

Meet Pizazz! He's my first custom on the mini Brishon mold. Pizazz is a Gypsy Vanner in claybank dun with sabino markings. If you've worked in pastels you know that the color evolves from light to dark, so a bay might look like a palomino for the first layer or two, then maybe a chestnut before it becomes bay. And sometimes plans change. This boy was one of those models. I had a sandy bay sabino reference photo in front of me, but I changed course when his body color hit on claybank dun. I have a soft spot for claybank duns. My first job as a teenager was as "Hack Staff" at Camp Seven Hills, a Girl Scout Summer Camp in Holland, New York. That summer a big quarter horse mare named Dolly was one of the horses in my care. She was blind in one eye and had a mare-y attitude. She was the most beautiful warm dun color with a red mane and tail. I spent the summer doting on her and hoping she felt loved. So, long story short, Pizazz isn't bay. A splash of war...

I hope all of you are safe and healthy, and I hope the model horse hobby is filling your time at home with a little joy. I've been working on finishing models that I've been meaning to get to for months or years. This is one of two models that I purchased to paint. She is a Hagen-Renaker Shetland foal. She is a little smaller than most Stablemate foals so she was a fun challenge to paint... plus she put a little "mini" into "custom minis." Meet Cupcake, a pintaloosa Miniature Horse filly! Cold Painted Hagen-Renaker Filly I couldn't resist this heart-shaped snip on this little girl. She's a baby silver dapple with both an blanket and pinto markings. QHICK TIP: Prepping china models for cold-painting is quite easy. This one came on a paper card. I carefully tore the paper away, then soaked her in rubbing alcohol. The glue on her feet rubbed off. Next, I filled any air-holes with epoxy. When that is cured (about 24-hours), I washed...

Ganache is a custom Valegro with a new tail, hooves and tiny changes to the legs (by Sarah Tregay) Do you remember when the Valegro and Andalusian Stablemate models hit the shelves? It was the summer of 2016 and I had just discovered a new location of a small toy store chain in Boise... so I had to go in! I bought three of each model. I started customizing them that week. This one's tail sort of fell off in my hand so it went on to find a new home and this one had a new tail sculpted. Long story short, he sat around for years in plain white primer. Then with this personal challenge of actually finishing the models I started, I got him out of his pony pouch. I knew the real Valegro looks great in bay, I chose to paint him bay as well.

I finished Annalisa, a dark bay thoroughbred mare, about a month ago but wasn't able to take her photo. Even with the sun yesterday she wanted to catch the breeze and topple over... so I just have one shot of her out with the mares. Annalisa is a simple custom from the new walking thoroughbred mold. She's got big mare-y hooves and a softened mare-y face with a star. I usually use white primer on my models, but for her rich coloring I sprang for the red primer.

Pippi, a seal brown Spanish-bred mare. CM Alborozo Mold. Pippi is a playful mare in dapple seal brown inspired by  Vesuvio Bien Vee photographed by Soltera. Both are a color I hadn’t tried to paint before, and I am happy with the soft feel. Her braid is caught up in the game. Finally had some sun to work with in this photo of Pippi, a custom Stablemate scale Alborozo. Vesuvio Bien Vee - Paso Fino Bellas Formas National Champion 3 Year Old Gelding in 2001. This gelding exhibits a good breed standard of conformation, type and overall form. My own work. Photo taken in May of 2006 at Hoot Owl Farm. Author is Soltera. Pippi by Sarah Tregay Brown mare CM Alborozo by Sarah Tregay

Grulla Brindle Mustang Custom Mini by Sarah Tregay The weather hasn’t been very cooperative for both spraying models and photographing them! I finished a simple repaint this week. He’s a grulla brindle mustang stallion with a little sock and a star, stripe and snip. His base holds him into a leaping pose. He was inspired by Drink One For Me, an AQHA stallion. ( https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Community/2015-AQHA-IBHA-Drink-One-For-Me-Grulla-Brindle-Stallion-1882271148752678/ ) Brindle Grulla Stablemate Custom by Sarah Tregay

Registration for National Model Painting Month is open! Please visit namopaimo.com to sign up. Registration will remain open through midnight January 31. Once you register, you can't change your model... so start planning now so you have plenty of prepping--and decision-making--time. The Facebook group is here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/234123470349077/ Me and my little draft project. #NaMoPaiMo I'm going to paint a model I've been working on this winter. He's an American Cream Draft stallion made from a Breyer Stablemate Vaulting horse and a heand and neck combo resin sculpted by Maggie Bennett. Right now he needs another round of prep work--you know how that first coat of primer shows the little things that you missed? Now that he's one color I can see where I need to focus to blend the two parts together. For those of you on Pinterest, I'm working from photos of a sweet-looking stallion named Joker's Golden Boy. https://www.pinterest...

I've decided to challenge myself to learn more about horse coat colors by painting mini Alborozos in different colors. This guy, Ignacio, is chestnut, one of the more common colors in the real-horse world... although maybe not in the model horse world where buckskin pinto shows up quite frequently. Because who doesn't love a splash of white on a dilute? I made his mane and tail a little darker than his body color for a little variety in contrast. December, January and February have been cloudy, snowy, windy and rainy. In other words, not good for my favorite photo spot... King of the Wind Farms in Macomb, Michigan where my horse, Mr. Pots lives. So I was happy to be out taking new photos yesterday! Chestnut Stablemate Alborozo by Sarah Tregay

This little sport horse is an Equus Kinsky. His name is Czechmate. I chose the breed because who doesn't love a dapple palomino with metallic tones? Around 40% of these horses have coats in various shades of gold, due to the cream dilution gene while others are bay, chestnut, or black (although black is rare). The coat is extremely glossy and almost metallic.   I got distracted from pastelling and finishing models by the International Customizing Equine Event where I began (and finished customizing) a pair of Akhal Teke buddies. So I'm pleased with this cutie.   The weather has been gray and cold. Maybe the sun will shine on me for a photo shoot!  He looks handsome in the sun!

My horse, Mr. Pots who is half Appaloosa and half Mustang. Appaloosas can be tricky to capture in miniature. They seem to have endless intricate markings from a speckled nose to a striped (or not) hoof, from an oblong heart-shapped spot to a perfectly round one. One of my favorite molds (back when we long-time hobbyists only had G1 Stablemates) was Seabiscuit. This is one of my Seabiscut customs from years ago. So for this Appaloosa project I chose a Seabiscuit. He needed a little help in the feet department due to some mold flaws, but other than that he's pretty similar. Confetti is a leopard Appaloosa mare I used burnt sienna Pan Pastel for Confetti's spots. They seemed like they needed more layers than the black Pan Pastel spots on Party Invite. Party Invite, a mini Alborozo in leopard Appaloosa

I have (finally) completed my Copy Cat Custom Model! I began working on her in January of 2019. And I have a few excuses as to why she took 10 months... Copy Cat Custom Arabian Mare "Kitty" Excuse #1 was that my OF model was in bad shape with goofy legs, and she had no texture in her mane and tail. Excuse #2: I had to go to the art store and buy not one, but three, Pan Pastels in Neutral Grey. Excuse #3 I don't usually paint light dapple grays. I tend toward darker ones. So I had to practice on an Alborozo. (And spend the day at the beach) Here she is will a little epoxy helping her out. The challenge included a bow. So I've named her Kitty after the contest. She sports a little green bow and a little attitude. I'm looking forward to showing her at her first show this weekend!

Czech Me Out is a Czech Warmblood Stallion customized from the Django mold. He sports big, starry dapples and a braided mane and tail. He's so happy to have color on him—he's been waiting to be painted for over a year now. I used my new neutral gray pan pastels.

One Man Band is a chestnut pinto warmblood stallion on the new mold now with braids.  I'm excited to finish my first custom horse on the new standing Warmblood mold from the paint-your-own unicorn set. He posed for his photos yesterday at Lake Saint Clair. He has two blue eyes.