A HORSE-crazy mum has built an extra room in her home for her 600 My Little Pony figurines.
Lauren Henderson, 36, finds the plastic ponies in attics and charity shops and restores them with her daughter, Bella, nine.
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She began re-collecting the 1980s childhood toys four years ago after Bella was gifted one.
And her hard work has paid off – as her collection is estimated to be worth £35,000.
Teacher Lauren convinced husband Kieran to build an extra room in their South Wales home for the collection.
Lauren said: “It started off as me trying to get back the ponies I had as a child and it got a bit out of hand.
“A box of ponies turned into a bookcase and then two – but I didn’t want to keep them packed away in a box.
“We were in the process of building our own home, and I told Kieran that we really needed to add an extra room on for the ponies. Luckily he’s very supportive!
“I have to have special lighting in there, and there’s no natural sunlight, so that the ponies don’t fade.
“Even now, I have to be absolutely ruthless and make sure I don’t have any duplicates so they all fit in.
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“It’s very much a played-with collection, I don’t keep them all in boxes and it’s given me so much joy to see my daughter and her friends play with them.
“A lot of the ponies are scented, so when you walk into that pony room, the smell is just incredible, it transports me back to being a little girl.
“Everybody who’s ever been in that room has left with a huge smile on their face, it’s just a room of pure joy.”
Since setting up her own restored ponies business, she and Bella have travelled to Florida to meet My Little Pony creator Bonnie Zacherle.
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