It begins

Yesterday we loaded several months of hard work into the minivan...

and headed over to the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds.

We loaded the show hall...

and went to dinner.

The Jennifer Show 2019 will officially begin in approximately one hour and forty five minutes. I can not wait!

It's really happening

Three years is a long time to plan something. At a certain point, it starts to feel pretty theoretical. It's like we keep talking about this big thing we're going to do, but in reality, it's never going to happen.

Well...

The Jennifer Show is really happening.

Hobbyists across the country globe...

are packing their ponies...

photo by Barb DiAnnibella

and packing their cars...

Erica Ferguson andAndrea Brygidyr's car

and hitting the open road.

Erica Ferguson andAndrea Brygidyr

Some people are travelling alone.

Lindsay Diamond

Others are bringing family members.

photo by Hellen Ferguson

Michelle Eisley is bringing her dog.

Everyone - and I do mean everyone - is bringing lots and lots of stuff.

Taylor Joplin

The road may be long, but the rewards will be many.

Bobbie Allen

Just ask Amanda. Heather and I picked her up at the airport today, and immediately took her out for Pho...

Amanda Brock and Jennifer Buxton

and Boba.

Heather Malone

The Jennifer Show is really happening. I can't believe it. I am so excited.

Share the love

Between us, Jenn and I have cast five hundred sixty five Love medallions.

Three hundred ninety five of these will be distributed by the judges and Jennifers. The other one hundred and forty have been tucked inside the goody bags.

Each entrant gets two Loves just for attending the show. 

One is a gift from Jenn and I.

The other is to be given to a model or person that you love.

We're not going to police this. If you choose to keep both your Loves, that's your prerogative. However, we're really hoping everyone will participate in this part of the Jennifer Show. Please help us share the Loves! 

Today we ride

Jenn and I have been working on the Jennifer Show on and off for most of the last year. At first, it was pretty casual, but as show day draws near, it's become increasingly intense. The last couple weeks have been the Jennifer Show 24/7. I haven't had a lot of time or energy for anything else, not even riding. I know it's going to get worse before it gets better, so today I rode.

My mount was Lucy, who was her best self; bright, cheerful and not even a little bit anxious.

We rode the Sand Creek Trail to the Morrison Nature Center and back.

After we were done, we headed to our favorite watering hole for post-ride drinks.

It was a perfect and much needed break for me. Now I'm back at home and ready to go full steam ahead again. The Jennifer Show is almost here, and I can't wait.

Carra's TJS donation

Most of the Jennifer Show donations are model horse related, but there are a few things that have absolutely nothing to do with plastic ponies. Check out this great selection of goodies sent by Carra McClelland.

Inside the beautiful, personalized tote bag...

there is a soft fleece blanket covered with constellations (Clear skies!), 

two bottles of wine and two wine tumblers/adult sippy cups, 

a moisture mask, bath bomb, fleece unicorn socks... 

and lots of colorful candy. 

What a great, non-horsey donation! Thank you so much, Carra, and cheers!

The TJS Sportsmanship Award

Kimberly Bleecker contacted me about donating a single, giant, custom made rosette to the Jennifer Show.

"I'm sorry I didn't think about this sooner," she said as we were discussing the donation. "There just isn't enough time to have more than one made."

"That's okay," I told her. "I'm sure we can find something amazing to do with it."

And we have. 

Behold: the Jennifer Show Sportsmanship Award.

With some eighty three entrants, no class limits and placings only to fourth, the competition at the Jennifer Show is going to be really, really tough. Most people will win less than they usually win, and some people will probably be shut out completely. Despite this, we're hoping the atmosphere in the show hall will be as fun and friendly as the competition is fierce. This gorgeous ribbon will be awarded by Jennifer Scott and I to the person who best exemplifies the spirit of our big, tough, fun show.

Of course, we aren't leaving it at just a ribbon. There will also be a special set of bronze Notch and Ruffle medallions,

a pair of Tara's Muppet pony pouches...

a set of Sue's whimsical bear magnets,

and both pairs of Heather's awesome socks. 

Thank you so much for your generous donation, Kimberly. The Jennifer Show definitely needed a Sportsmanship Award. I can not wait to see who wins it!

Bonus championships

In 2016, the Jennifer Show had one performance division with two Overall Champions and Reserve Champions, plus separate recognition for the top Novice and Mini performance showers. That worked well enough, but it was a lot for the judge to keep track of. I decided to drop the Novice and Mini awards for 2019.

I'm pretty sure I told Jenn about this decision, but maybe I didn't. In any event, when the 2019 show packet was released there were mention of Novice and Mini Performance titles. We tried to roll it back , but people had already noticed. At this point we had two options. We could disappoint a few people, or we could add more prizes.

Guess which one we chose.

The top mini and novice performance showers will receive special edition Santana and Myr medallions.

Additionally, the two top mini performance showers will also win these amazing CollectA size trophy halters by Anna Helt of Dreamflite Design.

The leather halter features 'triple stitched' cheeks, Rio Rondo hardware, working tongue buckles, rolled throat...

and a hand carved noseband reading TJS. 

 The rope halter is made from four-strand round braid DMC floss with bronc noseband carved with "TJS" and a flower/oak leaf motif.

They are both tiny and amazing. Thank you, Anna, for sharing your talent with the Jennifer Show Mini Performance showers. I know they're all going to bring their A-games.

I haven't yet decided what I'll give the Novices - if we have any - but I'm sure I'll come up with something. The Jennifer Show prize pool is overflowing. No one is going to go home empty handed! 

Pearlies and swirlies

In addition to all the regular colors, the Jennifer Show medallion stockpile also includes a number of metallics, pearlies...

and swirlies. 

To make the metallics and pearlies, skip the baby powder and prepare the mold using metallic or pearl powders. These can be purchased from Reynolds Advanced Materials, or you can the Pearl-ex from your painting stash.

These powders are even harder on your lungs than the resin fumes. Always wear your respirator while working with them!

Apply the powder to the mold with a soft make-up brush. 

Be sure to push the powder up the sides and into all the crevices. 

Remove the excess, then mix and pour your resin. 

The metallic powders are very strong and will almost completely mask the resin color. I used a black resin for the Gold Fridas.

The pearls are much less opaque. These Loves are plain white resin with a little smear of yellow poured over a mix of white pearl and gold.

To make a swirly, measure your resin Parts A and B and add just a little bit of color to Part B. Mix thoroughly.

 Combine Parts A and B...

and mix again. 

Add more dye to the cup. 

 Gently swirl it in. 

The goal is to create swirls of more intense color. If you over mix, the medallions will be solid colored. If you under mix, you end up with sticky blobs of dye that don't cure.

Pour the resin into a prepared mold. The swirls aren't obvious when the resin is liquid.

 Ten minutes later, you can't miss them. Look at this adorable herd of swirlies!

The Jennifer Show is less than a week away... I'd better get back to casting!