The Shelving Conundrum

Getting new horses settled on shelves is fun. But sometimes you get one too many new pieces and then you end up having to rearrange several shelves to make room.

I hit that point with my BreyerFest and Second Chance Sale horses.

Oseberg, Aquavit, and my Scandi Surprise are currently grouped together next to my Semi Rearing Stallions. 

I had a good coupon and decided to finally buy the 75th Anniversary Traditional Family.

The PAS, PAM, and PAF shelves are all full, so I simply grouped the family together next to Vintage Club Zahra.

I have been wanting a Yan Wu and purchased him during the Second Chance Sale.

What a gorgeous model - Breyer knocked it out of the park with him, and my piece is flawless.

I'm not super happy with the way I have rearranged the shelves to accommodate these new models. I like to group by mold, and I'd like to get the PAM and the PAF together with other PAMs and PAFs. (The PAS is actually right next to the PAS conga.)

And, the shelves are DUSTY. Since they are white, they don't show the dirt like darker colored shelves would, but it's there. A lot of it.

Which isn't surprising. The last time I cleaned, culled, and rearranged shelves was nearly three years ago in January of 2024. My shelves desperately need a good dusting.

That's gonna be a challenge. The earliest I will be able to do them is in January after the holidays. But, depending on how much I sell at the Feast in October, I may need that January time to sew items for Kalamazoo in March. Which is why I've gone so long between dusting - the best dusting months have become sewing months. 

Another wrinkle is that I will need help with the top shelves. I've lost two inches in height over the past decade and I can no longer reach them.  

But, long time blog readers may remember that the last time I cleaned my shelves, I also had a nasty fall as I was getting off the ladder.

I'm not anxious to repeat that again.

But, needs must, as the saying goes, so I am going to have figure out a way to dust both the horses and their shelves. (And not have another fall.)

Wish me luck and stay 'tooned.

Cleaning, Culling, & Rearranging

 It's started. At last. And probably after two years or more since the last time. I am cleaning and dusting my collection and it is a mammoth job.

It started because I have been taking models off of shelves as I do a major collection purge.

I'd set up a folding table and begun pulling models off the shelves that I intended to sell, leaving them there until I could photograph them and then pack them (those big boxes in the background) to take to swap meets and live shows. 

That left a lot of open space on my shelves, and before I rearranged models and put them onto that newly opened shelving, I needed to dust, both the shelves and the model horses.

The culling had begun in the sewing room where my Hartland sub-collection is displayed. A few are from my carpet herd, a few are test or very limited pieces, and many are woodcuts.

Keeping the carpet herd, Tiny Mites, woodcuts, and the most rare Hartland model in my collection, I brought the rest of the Hartlands into the horse room to prep for sales.

And the domino effect began. All that empty shelf space! I dusted and then headed into my office to look for models that could be moved onto the sewing room shelves.

I began with the Classics as they were most likely to fit the shelves the Hartlands had been on.

The space on the former Hartland shelves filled quickly, leaving lots of open space on the Classic shelves back in the horse room. And so it continued all afternoon long - dusting, moving, dusting again, and rearranging.

The former Classic shelving is now filling up with the few Classics I am keeping (my Cake horses!) and smaller Traditionals. And of course, moving horses off the Traditional shelves has left more open shelving on them.

These three shelving units are finished except for the very top shelves. I can't reach those models without a ladder, and even then, lifting models from that angle hurts my shoulder. (I damaged the rotator cuff in my right shoulder playing tug with Pepper.)

Knowing I was struggling, Craig went downstairs and got our large step stool for me. He offered to use it himself and dust those high models and their shelves, or to stand beside me and hold them while I dusted and moved things around. (What a guy; thank you!) 

There are nine more shelving units to go plus all of the tip top shelves. It's going to take some time, but to be honest, I actually find this relaxing and enjoyable. Some of these models have been with me since I was six years old and are like old friends. 

And the older I get, the more I enjoy connecting with old and dear friends, be they model or human.