Custom Mini Model Horses

 I’ve finished customizing a Connemara Pony from the jumper mold (with a G1 Morgan Stallion head), but before I paint her, I’ll focus on tack, doll and jump to complete the picture. Bits and pieces of my project. Because I want my pony to appear petite (14.2 ha) I am scaling up the items around her. From the size of the jump to the adult rider, I’m hoping she’ll look like the pony she is, not a big warmblood. My ratio is 1 foot equals .425 inches. My first project to tackle is the plants that will decorate my jump. Today’s hunter fences have lots of “fill.” For this I purchased a bouquet of fake flowers with small-scale components. I’ve trimmed off some pieces to use—and found that some unraveled completely!  Fake flower bouquet with small components. For my flower boxes, I began with 1/4 inch square dowels and cut them to about 4 inches long. I painted them with craft acrylic paint and sprayed with matte finish. For the greenery, I used coarse turf that’s used in model railro...

Kristen Donato did a wonderful job hosting Save The Tigers Model Horse Show at the fairgrounds in Hillard, Ohio. With both a youth show and a NAN show, the hall was busy with about 57 showers and nine divisions. Custom minis were a smaller division held after the traditional customs and were double judged on breed and workmanship. Performance was open to all size models. I was excited to debut a few new custom minis, including: Buttercup, a Breyer Pony CM to a Walk, shown as a half-Halflinger mare Heart B Dyna, a CM driving horse to a portrait mule, who took home the overall performance champ Margit and feline friend, a CM from the Breyer pony I never want to interrupt the judges by taking photos and be “that shower”, but I did get a few photos of the lovely custom minis at the show: As for performance, there were a few other showers showing minis: A lovely trail set-up with a tiny mailbox A micro-mini trail entry showing the ...

From trail classes to jumps, poles are part of performance classes. Wood dowels cut to 3.75 inches (for 10 ft long poles) or 4.5 inches (for 12 ft long poles) are easy enough to trim to size with a small saw. But painting them without painting my fingers is another story. I just repainted a few I had lying around by spraying them white with primer, using a clip to hold one end. When dry, I flipped it over in the clip and sprayed the other end. To add a little color, I put painter’s tape over each end and painted the middle with a paint brush and acrylics. The width of the tape was an easy way to measure how much white to leave. The tape was also a perfect place for resting the poles while they dry. The pink paint needed a little clean up after the tape was removed. Then it’s back to the clip for a quick spray of matte finish. And my fingers (and desk) were relatively free of paint!

I am getting ready for the Save The Tigers Model Horse Show on Saturday, and I thought I'd spiff up my performance entries a little with arena bases. My goals here were to keep to a small budget and a manageable size. For the first one, I found a wall hanging at Walmart—a picture frame without glass or a matte for about $5.00. I removed the hook from the back so it would lie flat on the table and a clip from the front. I also found a 3 lb. bag of kinetic sand for $13.00. (Regular sand can be done, but I usually make a mess of it.) Honestly, I'm a little worried about sand scratching my models, but it does look neat. The fence is made of hobby wood (the small Popsicle sticks) and is removable for easy, flat storage. It stands 1 3/4 inches above the edge of the arena. Just a note, I steer clear of balsa wood because it is so fragile. Picture frame base about 6 x 8.5 inches. 3 lbs of kinetic sand isn't a lot. Quick! Unlike regular sand, kinetic sand h...

Stablemate Flowerpots from Model Train Flowers inside Horse Dewormer Cap “Planters”