It's A Problem

I have a problem.

I am solidly Team Matte.  I do have a handful of glossy models in my collection.  Mostly because that's the only finish that was available on a horse I really wanted.  

Examples of this are Chadwick (2022 Collector Club Web Special)

and Tassili (2021 BreyerFest SR)

In cases where a matte/glossy split was discovered upon release (such as with BreyerFest SRs), I've always hoped for the matte version and I've been mostly lucky there.  

Such as with Seurat (2021 BreyerFest SR)

When a matte/glossy option is given, I always choose matte. 

First one that comes to mind there is Astrid (2021 Breyer PC)

Another is Cancion (2023 Breyer PC)

All that is to say, yes, I am fairly solidly on Team Matte.

So...  what's the problem?

For the 2021 BreyerFest, I had ended up buying three tickets (a record for me) and so I picked out 6 SRs.  Of those, I chose two Surprise models.  My very first time taking that gamble. 

In 2019 (in person), my mission was getting Rocket, and I wasn't interested in the surprise model that year (which was known before I got my SRs) so I randomly grabbed another SR at the time.

In 2020 (virtual) I only had one ticket and reeeeally wanted Oak and Epona (and got them!)

Anyhow, in 2021 (virtual again) I was able to get 3 tickets and decided to go for 2 surprises.

The mold and colors for the Surprise were completely unknown, until people started getting their boxes of horses in the mail.

It turned out the Seven Arts Surprise for 2021was on the Dundee mold - which was a mold I did not have yet at that time.  Of the several color options (and each in matte or glossy finishes) I ended up with...

The classic champagne sabino in matte:

And the classic champagne sabino in glossy!

At first, and just for a moment, I was a bit bummed to get two of the "same" model.  But then I started to think it was kind of cool - what were the odds? - and it was interesting to compare the two colors in different finishes.  I've always kind of thought of them as brothers.

Many, many... many times over the past few years I've "decided" to sell the glossy one.  I'm Team Matte, remember?  I'm "not an OF collector"...  *eyeroll at myself* (ha!) 

However, clearly - as these pictures were just taken this afternoon - I haven't been able to split them up.  

The recent version of this dilemma was: why don't I just sell both of them together?

After all, the BreyerFest 2024 Celebration horse was on the Dundee mold, I came home with 2 of them, and I think I like her color more than the brothers.  (I also have 2 copies of "Merle", the SR from TSC last year, that I had bought on clearance as possible CM fodder...)  So for the tack making "excuse" of having a copy of a mold for making tack and costumes, I'm good!  Also good on bodies to CM.

Yet... even with all that rationalizing and also thinking, hey,  they could stay together if I sell them together AND I'd free up some much needed shelf space...  I took them both off the shelf, looked them over, sighed, and put them back.  

I'm not sure either of them are going anywhere.

And then...

In my last post, about the SRs I brought home from BF 2024, I talked about how I ended up with two copies of the Surprise horse in Cremello

One matte:

One glossy:

Again (?) I told myself, I'll probably sell the glossy.

They're both kinda cool though...

Another pair I mentioned in that post are the two Sorry Not Sorry SRs.

One matte:

One glossy:

AGAIN (seeing the problem yet?) I thought I'd sell the glossy.

They're both still here.  I've taken both of them off the shelf a few times, looking them over.  Then put them back.  

It really is a problem.

I keep trying to say I'm not an OF collector, I'm not *much* of an OF collector, I don't reeeally conga anything, I don't conga *many* things. 

Am I starting to accidentally conga matte/glossy splits? 

Noooooo!

Anyone want to buy a glossy BF SR?  Can't promise I'll actually sell, but... maybe...?

*sigh*

Ha!