Horse from trailer set (1993) - Elsa - my first restoration

 It will be a long post, as long was the metamorphosis of this horse.

This is my first thrifty purchase - a horse from a set with a car with a horse trailer from 1993. It was a camping set. The trailer, was not only transporting horses, but also a camping table with seats and a roof, a barbecue, a camp bed, a wardrobe, dishes and cutlery, and equipment for the horse.

Horse after restoration

The horse in this set is a beautiful dun mare with a very long mane and tail. Unfortunately, she had no name. Its equipment included:

• bridle with a bit - pink in color
• two-piece reins - also pink
• English type saddle - pink
• pink horseshoes
• blue blanket with a silver collar
• bucket and brush for washing
• ribbons
• brush 

I guess there were hair clips as well, but I'm not sure.

Barbie Journal copy taken from Flickr

As I wrote before - it was a budget purchase, the horse in the advertisement looked much used and unkempt at the same time. The mane was a felted tangle, the tail in an even worse, residual condition, no original equipment of any kind. She had, however, a Western saddle, which (after a long investigation) turned out to belong to a walking horse from the 2000s. The photos showed that the horse is very dirty, painted here and there with crayons, felt-tip pens, some paint or nail polish. Hers original painting, however, was preserved, apart from minor abrasions. I only have one photo from the announcement:

photo from the announcement

She came to me on May 18, 2021, from the vicinity of Opole (city in Poland). At the moment of opening the package and the first inspection, I felt very sorry that someone had brought such a charming model to such a deplorable state. In the photos, she did not look as attractive as in real life. I bought her for pennies with the idea of turning her into a full custom and giving her a whole new life. However, I fell in love with her and decided to do everything to protect her from a custom transformation. I decided that I would try to restore her.

Below you can see photos before combing and washing, out of the box:

I gave her a bath. Water after it looked like this:

And she looked like this:

She was much brighter. After drying, it turned out that the stains on the sides did not come off.

Mare got even more beautiful, despite these stains. The next item on the agenda was combing her mane and remains of tail. But before I stuck a comb into her hair, she underwent a fabric conditioner rinse.

This is what her mane looked like just before the first encounter with the comb (photo above). And below you can see the beginning of the hard tedious work on the knots.

And finally! I managed to get the mane in order without major losses.

Next was the wretched tail. I was honestly afraid to touch it. It looked very unstable.

And in the end it just gave up.

The tail that gave up

Mare without tail

While shopping in Pepco, I noticed children's hair ornaments consisting of a braid of light hair. It was Elsa's braid from Disney Frozen. But it was not yet the moment to give the mare a name. I found also a braided headband and finally got two elastic bands with braids. It got the idea how to bring her tail back. At first I sacrificed the headband. Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture of it before destruction. The color, of the hair from headband however, was slightly different from the mane ...

Elastic hair bands with braids before destruction

comparison of the colors of the mane and hair from headband

New tail from headband

Even so, new tail looked good, but for me it was not thick enough. With the destruction of the headband, I came up with the idea to use everything possible from it. A string of sequins woven into a braid seemed perfect for making a bridle and reins. She didn't have a saddle pad either, so I cut out a piece of my old dirty pink T-shirt to make one. At the beginning I decided that the bow with the image of Elsa would be perfect as a tail decoration. The shimmering stars, on the other hand, were perfect for decorating the mane.

And then I came up with an idea for her full set. Saddle pad decoration, decorative leg protectors, bridle decoration. Below are the photos from a trip to the countryside house - as you can see, the mane underwent a shock treatment - soaking in boiling water and cooling it down in ice cold.

Elsa in her full outfit

Above - an evening "ride" around the room with my old Barbie Bath Fun on Elsa's back, accompanied by Farben (in his white version - on the right) and Sunny (on the left) with Cali Girl Barbie. On the back, behind Sunny, you can also see my first doll horse (from my childhood), its size unfortunately does not fit Barbie dolls, but it was perfect for Pamela (a doll smaller than Barbie). The "ride" was restricted to the room because it was raining outside.

I think Elsa has a tremendous grace. The tail was too thin, so I sacrificed a half of another braid from elastic hair band and all the ornaments from it - to decorate her outfit. The saddle does not quite match the size and color, but I decided that I wouldn't deprive her of it, as I wanted to leave her that one thing that she came to me with. I think that a dapple grey horse - like Blizia - would fit better with this outfit. But it was a pure accident that such a set was created - all because she's tail gave up.

Curl stayed on the ranch with Farben and the first Sun Runner,  Elsa. Blizia, Sunny and the dolls returned with me to city. 

Elsa's mane underwent a few more treatments - straightening with an iron (I do not recomend doing it, because it can cause a damage to hair) -  the tips were still very bent, which caused tangling and frizz.

After washing, there were also white stains on her neck, which were wiped off over time, probably they were deposits from the washing powders with which she was cleaned.

Finally, she also got an outdoor session. Unfortunately, not on the grass yet, because it was too high for her at that time.

There are still some painting corrections waiting for her - especially on the hoofs.

I can say that this is my second attempt at reworking horses - I must consider making a bridle and a saddle for the first Sun Runner as first. This time there was more work and ideas. And in this way, a damaged horse, which probably no one, except me, paid attention to on the advertising portal, was saved from further children's games, and perhaps even from ending up in the garbage. She gained a new identity and a second life. She is a really beautiful specimen, much prettier than today's Barbie ponies. She became OOAK - the only one of its kind in the world.