Gypsy Uh Ohs!

This is a most roundabout story, but it deserves to be on here!

So my new Gypsy Cob boy, City Of Lights, placed 1st in Gelding and grabbed Grand Champion of show in his first ABMHA fortnightly show.

So I was checking out my Gypsy Cob page to see if I could find a good pedigree for him among my horses, when I realized none of my Gypsy horses had their personal pages done. So I started making one for Rex, my oldest stallion. As I started putting his pedigree into the generator, I realized his dam was younger than he was. Oops!

So I've been on the hunt for a new dam on the same site as I found his old one, vannercentral.com. So far, no luck.

But then I came across the most beautiful group of horses owned by one place that I have ever seen, here: http://www.vannercentral.com/Cielo%20Celeste%20Farm.htm. I can't even begin to tell you which one is my favorite. Look at that coloring on the silver! Look at how long that tail is! (Can't even imagine how hard that is to keep clean--and then I thought his dam's name even more humorous, hehe) Look at that dappling on the Duke! *swoon* Okay, I lied, I'm pretty sure he's my favorite. And Sir Collins! I think I found the sire to my Creamsicle!

I don't usually see horses I'd like to own, but if I ever find me a horse in Duke's color, he's mine!

Oh, and for anyone who's curious, here's an uncommon gray one! http://www.vannercentral.com/Tomboy.htm

Creata Winners Choice

There is a little known model horse brand called Winners Choice (WC), made by Creata, that I have had the good luck to know for many years. They are a collection of micro mini sized horses that preceded the Breyer Mini Whinnies.

Candace Liddy was commissioned to sculpt the molds. Three series were produced: one each beginning in 1996. In mid-1998, the companies behind the horses had a disagreement and the models were discontinued.
Luckily, in 2004, Breyer bought the rights and molds to all the Creata horses, and the horses were once again produced in 2005 under the safety of big Breyer's name.

I don't believe the first Breyer Mini Whinnies (MW) were of the same quality as the first Creata ones. Big splotches of black paint mark the eyes and areas around it, as shown by this mare.

 This probably lowered many collector's expectations of the micro mini-sized horses. But it is hard to argue with the gorgeous detail and the cuteness of the WC foal.

However, the more recent releases of MW have had a large increase in quality, and I am excited to add them all to my collection.

Meanwhile, Creata horses are becoming increasingly harder to find as the years progress since their manufacture. I was lucky enough to own the entire first set, Series 1, from my childhood, and recently came into possession of many of Series 2. Series 3 was only produced for a short time, so I have doubts I will ever be able to obtain them. At the end of their lifetime, some of the horses were sold to a company that put them into soap!

During my searches, I've come across two great reference sites for these models. There used to be a third, but I think that one got swallowed up into the great Geocities apocalypse. They can be seen here:

http://www.angelfire.com/miniwhinnies/WCSeries0.html

http://creatamicrominis.webs.com/index.htm

I hope you enjoyed this introduction to a long-lost brand!