Friday Quick Tip: Iyaden Yellow

While working on my Angels Sanguine, I decided to take a stab at using Iyaden Darksun to lay down my yellows for the helmets.  I didn't want the deep dark yellow that comes out of the pot but also wanted the depth that working up to a highlight gives me.  Yellow in almost every other fashion of paint is nothing but a pain to work with.  I found myself enjoying working with Iyaden Darksun unlike anything previous and managed to get a nice bright looking yellow that has plenty of shade left after the final highlight! 

Reinforcements: Champion of Chaos

Around the middle of last year, I decided I wanted to break into Fantasy.  One faction in particular fed my need for amazing models clad in armor with an air of bad ass.  Warriors of Chaos would become the army I would lead onto the battlefields of the Old World.  We will plunder and destroy, well once I have them painted that is.

I bought this guy from ebay late last year.  I knew I wanted to pick him up once I started the army.  It's such a strong sculpt I knew I had to have him, even if he didn't fit the original theme idea of an all cavalry warband.  When he arrived I got started. 

Having at him with metallic paints to start off I painted most of the model in GW Chainmail.  The armor was then washed with successive layers of Devlin Mud, the weapons and chainmail link armor with layers of Badab Black.  With the weapons I played with the idea of true metallics, as they're called, going to the extreme black where appropriate and using a gradient to give variation to the surfaces.  I then used a few small brush strokes of GW Chainmail to scratch the surfaces of the armor and weaponry. 

The browns and bones were done using Bestial Brown, Snakebite Leather, and Bleached Bone in various combinations.  The skulls caught a final highlight of skull white.  This is my standard method for tabletop. 

The fur was started with a black base color, highlighted with fortress grey and given a final highlight of skull white.  The end result is a very vibrant white that gives a stark contrast.

The chaos star was done by painting layers of Gryphonne Sepia over chainmail.  Scratching done the same as above. 

His cape was painted black and given a few line highlights of Bestial Brown, highlighted lightly with Snakebite Leather.  I really like this look and have used it before on other Warriors of Chaos models as a way to do black leathers. 

The base was drybrushed with Codex Grey and then Fortress Grey to highlight.

All in all, it's a very subtle paint scheme that really lets the models strong sculpt work shine through and not detract from what's been established with the pose and imposing look of the piece.  Overall I'm very happy with it and can't wait to see him taking skulls and slaughtering the weak. 

I'm working on hammering out a 500 point force for a few upcoming gaming events, so expect to see more chaotic happenings around TPC in the future!

Friday Quick Tip: Ork Skin Video

I have really taken to filming my painting sessions.  It's given me a nice new outlet to share tips and tricks with.  It's also a great way to learn how to edit video!  Today I bring a tip from my latest footage, painting Ork skin.

To preface, I never approach a models skin the same way twice.  I've made mention of my love of variety with skin tones before, and have made more headway in that effort with my Orks.  With each boy, nob and warboss, I've played around with the colors on a whim, never really bothering to remember or write down just how I got to a finished skin tone.  But with that in mind, I thought it would be a good way to show the process by filming as I painted my latest Ork model. 

They're set at double speed, with queues for colors used, so it shouldn't be too hard to follow!  With that in mind, give the videos a watch! 









You might notice that at one point I go to using a watered down Bleached Bone, though I found it to be a little too strong for where I was at with the model.  I ended up using a 50/50 mix of Bleached Bone/Goblin Green instead and did a final highlight of pure bleached bone.  It worked out better, and faster, than it would have had I not used the mix. 

The matt varnish is used to knock out some of the shine.  I still think he could go for another hit of it, but will wait until the model is finished and do a complete spray of the model with the airbrush instead of painting it on.  Using washes will leave you with a lot of shine, so be prepared to kill it off.

I really dig some of the music I'm finding on youtube!  I hope you enjoyed the videos and here's to it helping a few of you out there!  I'd love some feedback as well, let me know what you think!

Friday Quick Tip: Painting Battle Damage

It's been a while since I've really dug in with weathering and this time around I've taken the time to get a good amount of photos along the way.  Many of you already know, I fully believe in the beauty of weathering, grit and damage on models and have been advocating their use for years now!  With this tutorial I'll walk you through my simple and effective method of paint chips/battle damage all done using just a few simple tools and a bit of good color choice!

When starting off with my latest Sons of Medusa Razorback, I knew I wanted to approach it much the same as past things but try and speed it up a bit by adding depth in later stages.  So to start off, just getting your model to base color with a light highlight along armor lines and joins.  Get your colors blocked out, clean and smooth.  I highly suggest an airbrush to get your main color on and use a brush to block in the rest, in this case that's what I've done with the black.

Here you can see the tools of the trade.  I make consistent use of foam from a blister I bought way back when, chipping off a little bit of the crusted up foam each time and creating a new random edge to use.  In this same photo you see a big, gnarly messed up brush.  If you don't have one of these, you need one.  Go do a few terrain projects and trust me, you'll get one quick enough!  The brush is a bit less random but with a good eye for the pattern it's giving you, you can make it just as random as the foam but this comes with a handle!  When you're using the foam, you can do a few different things to help in the application, rolling it, scrunching it, whatever.  Just find something that works for you, is easy to work with, and gives the kind of pattern you're looking for.

I make use of a paper towel as my palette when working on chipping.  It's a bit easier for me to guarantee I won't blob the paint on and get just enough to the tips of the bristles or edges of the foam.

When you're using this technique/method, it's REALLY important to know what sort of pattern you're getting with what sort of pressure you're pressing with.  Check on a piece of paper, your palette, hand, whatever.  Don't just go blob the paint onto your model without first checking that you're getting the right look for what you're going for.  Make adjustments with paint amount, pressure, angle, and applicator before you go to the model with the paint.

I've gone with Catachan Green as my vehicles 'primer/undercolor'.  This deeper green helps to push the color back behind the bright Scorpion Green base color.  Cooler/Darker colors will work great for this, but test a few things out on a few different test pieces.  See what works best for your color scheme and go through the full method for each to be sure of your color choices.  The level of weathering is up to you, a little, a lot, in between, whatever you like!  Pay special attention to high traffic areas like the hatches, edges and track sections.  Give your piece a bit of narrative with a few long scratches from some unknown alien race!  Have fun, and if you go a bit overboard, you can always paint the base color back in. 

Above you can see the Bleached Bone highlighting that is applied to the lower edge of all chips.  This is what really drives home the depth of the chipping.  I simply use the same color that I highlight everything else with.  Take your time with your chips to be sure you're hitting the right edges and the results will be nice and convincing.  Also don't be shy, those little chips need love too, get in there and go to town!

A lot of folks like to add freehand detailing to their vehicles.  After a few goes at it on various other projects, I've found that the best time to do so is after your chipping is finished.  You don't waste time with unnecessary details that end up getting smothered in chipping by an unsteady hand this way.  You know what sections you have to work with this way and save time by not having to paint some areas of your freehand details thanks to a convenient paint chip!  Just paint around the paint chips with your freehand and pay attention so you're not going over them.

Once the freehand is down, here is when you get to play a bit more and be free to make a bit of a mess.  Using my grime streaking, I go in with Gryphonne Sepia and from the edges, corners, bolts and a few of the larger paint chips, I streak down along the model a bit.  I don't like to go all the way down the model, just far enough to make it noticeable.  The above look took two layers of wash and a bit of heavy attention to the crevices with a big drop of wash painted in to add the depth we skipped out on earlier!   With regard to the top of the tank, I don't streak, but pool around areas like rivets and other details that stick out.  Just a quick pool around these details and a wipe off of the raised surface works wonders!

Once the wash is down, you can move on to a plethora of other techniques that all add something extra to the story of your freshly busted up ride!  I mentioned a few of these other details in this models Reinforcements article which you can check out here.

There you have it folks, at long last a fully realized chipping tutorial on a real model from very own Sons of Medusa.  I hope this opened a few eyes to how simple this really is, and maybe explained a few of the things many have issues with when they've tried the technique from the past article.  I'd love to hear some feedback and see peoples results from those who've given this a go!  

Field Report: Speedy Tau Tutorial

Santa Cruz Warhammer has posted a quick and dirty Tau painting tutorial for those in need of a fast tabletop paint job. They've used a favorite wash of mine, Gryphonne Sepia! The crisis suit at the end is really telling of what you can expect with solid washing. Check it out.

Don't forget, if you've got a tutorial you'd like to see featured here, send us a link at ThePaintingCorps@gmail.com! Even if it's not your own article, we're all about sharing great info from around the web!

Friday Quick Tip: Grime Streaks

With one of my latest projects, I've come to realize that I haven't gone over this very simple, yet very effective little bit of weathering, grime streaks. I have been making good use of them for a long time now, hearkening back to the pre-GW wash days. Luckily, with the advent of the wash in a pot, the process is much simpler, and in my view, better looking.


For the sake of this step by step tutorial, I've used the tank from the masked white wash tip. You'll also need a sharp tipped brush with a nice sized belly to allow for continuous painting. I used a standard round brush in this instance. You'll also need a pot of Gryphonne Sepia. You might find a different color more acceptable for your scheme though, so don't be afraid to think outside of what's presented in this tut. Any color would be acceptable so long as you feel it fits to the desired effect.


When starting, look for spots that would have rust marks or water streaks. I stick mostly to rivets, armor joins and battle damage for much of my grime. But feel free to explore a variety of locations. Keep in mind any place that water could accumulate or run over. These spots will make the model come alive with use, wear and tear.


Here you can see a single rivet with one quick layer of grime streaking down. I go lightly for any first layer. You always want to be sure that your brush isn't overburdened with wash, so be sure to test your brush on a paper towel or palette to keep from blobbing the wash on the model.


Your first layer is key so take your time, and place your brush strokes where you want them. Just don't be too afraid of messing up! This is weathering! It's supposed to get a little bit messy! You can see that the lines all go (roughly) vertical, starting from a rivet or join of some sort. If you happen to paint some battle damage onto the model as well, be sure to use those spots as starting points as well.


In this final photo you can see what another coat of wash will give you in terms of effect. Keep in mind that any successive layers of wash will be FAR heavier than the first application. It's up to your eye to decided whether or not another layer is necessary or not. I also highly recommend giving this technique a go on a test piece, maybe just a scrap armor plate from your bits box. It will save you much more time using that piece instead of messing up on a near finished model and having to correct your mistakes!

There are a lot of different ways you can go about this effect. This just happens to be one of the easier ways I've found so far with very little time and effort being invested for a very satisfying result! If you've got another method, we'd love to hear about it! Leave a comment or shoot us an email at ThePaintingCorps@gmail.com!

LBursley's Wash Recipe - Released!

 

After running into a legal wall (ACMI), Les has decided to release his inexpensive wash recipe to the public to help the community since he can no longer offer them via an online shop. (Edit: Les has worked out the legal issues and offers his full range of washes on AwesomePaintjob.com for those without the time or patience to make your own!)

(Edit: The Video is no longer available, but the recipe still works!)



WASH RECIPE:

You will need:

• Distilled Water (grocery store)
• Liquitex Matte Medium
  
• Liquitex Flow-Aid Fluid Additive
  
• Plastic Squeeze Bottle
• Daler-Rowney FW Acrylic Water-Resistant Artist's Ink
• Large Plastic Squeeze Filler Bottles
• Recipe notebook so you can write down custom mixes

All recipes use 1 oz bottles. Adjust to whatever size you decide to go with.

Preparation:

• Fill 1 filler bottle with Matte Medium, the other with a 10:1 Distilled Water and Flow Aid.
• Fill the 1oz Dropper Bottle half way with Matte Medium then fill the rest of the way with the Water/Flow Aid mix leaving a little room for the ink drops so you dont over flow.
• Every bottle uses this combination to start with.
• Shake inks well before adding them to the mix.

Colors:

My mixes will give you a starting point and you can customize to your liking from there.

Soft Body Black: 20 drops Black


Heavy Body Black: 60 drops Black


Parchment: 40 Drops Flesh Tint


Flesh Wash: 40 Drops Burnt Umber


Dark Sepia: 40 Drops Sepia


Blue: 40 Drops Rowney Blue


Green: 40 Drops Dark Green


Purple: 40 Drops Purple Lake


You can mix the ink colors to make infinate amounts of custom colors for your own purpose. Never buy washes with limited color choices. You now have the recipe to the most flexible wash production that you can do at home.

Enjoy! -Les

Friday Quick Tip: Weathering Washes

It's still Friday on the West Coast!!! And, I have a good one from our good buddy Les on making your own quick weathering washes. Check it out:

Friday Quick Tip: Wash Basics I

When I started my Orks oh so many months back, I knew that I would be using the new(ish) Games-Workshop Washes rather extensively, along with a few old school washing techniques I'd learned along the way. You might be new to these wonders of modern painting, and even if you're not, I'm hoping that this set of articles ( which should continue on future Fridays! ) will be helpful in guiding your use of them to new heights.

Today we'll be going over the most basic use of these great paints, adding depth. You've likely seen people all across the net telling people to wash over their entire model with Badab Black or some other dark wash color to bring out all the great detailing that's just waiting to be contrasted with some nice dark recessed areas. And to their credit, they're right! If you're not up for building your colors up from a dark color or going back in and adding it by hand, washing can really speed up the process to great effect.


To start us off, you're going to want your base colors all opaque and in place on the model. Here you can see I've used my US WW2 color set to paint a nice opaque color scheme on this Slugga Boy from the Assault on Black Reach set. I haven't built any of these colors up past their base color. Keep it neat, keep it clean, and keep the coverage even.


Now the easy, and honestly rather fun, part of the tip! Paint over all the surfaces you want to add the depth to with Badab Black. I have spared the skin on this project, as I use a set of other washes and highlighting that I will be sure to share in the future! Watering the wash down just a bit helps get a bit more even coverage. Be sure to not let a big pool of wash form in any spot and only into the recessed details. Play about with it for a little bit and you'll get the hang of leaving the wash where you want. Your colors will get darkened on the whole, so don't try and leave any spot without the wash, that's what we want!


After letting your wash dry ( Completely!! ), break out your base colors again and use them to highlight your model! No thinking, just reapply your paint to the appropriate areas leaving a bit of the darkened color showing. Use the highlights appropriately and you'll really get a nice effect with hardly any effort! It's all about picking out the higher or edged details leaving that washed down color to the lower or recessed areas of the model.

With this model, I've given him a dusting of Bleached Bone at the end of the process to give him a bit dirtier of a look without taking it too far. This also helps to bring out some of the harder edged details even more, again if you do this step, be sure to stick to the upper details and leave your shadows alone!

This model also uses my Rust recipe in a bit more of a wash fashion ( watering down the paints ), as well as a bit of Freehand for the check-marks and star detail.

I've been hard at the washes since they were released using them in all different manners and so far, I'm extremely happy with the results. Anyone have any fun tricks with washes they've stumbled across?

Friday Quick Tip: Metal Variation Using Washes

Recently I finished painted the above Techmarine for my Sons of Medusa. A fun model with a lot of cool details and some serious opportunities for metallic work. As I went to working on the servo arms, I knew I didn't want them to simply be silver, but a playground of variation through the different components.

In order to add this variety I drew upon a technique I picked up from White Dwarf in a LotR painting article. It was about using washes to create color on top of a metal basecoat, creating a different take on metal surfaces. I used this on my entry for the Dakka Painting Challenge "Old School" for the first time and was very pleased with the results. To see exactly what I'm talking about look at the carapace armor on his torso.

The idea is to create a thick layer of wash by painting the wash on in multiple coats and using the base metallic to 'scratch' it and create a nice worn look. With the commissar, I used Badab Black painted over a Boltgun Metal base coat. It was then chipped with Boltgun Metal. This was also the first model I learned to change the color of metallics with washes, which lead me to my Gryphonne Sepia Gold/Bronze method I still use extenisively, as shown below.

Changing metallic colors using washes gives a lot of control to the painter and really opens up a new variety of shades and tones that give great effects.

For my techmarine, I picked out what parts I wanted to add a bit of variety to on the arms and made sure to paint them all in the same manner to add continuity to the model.

I started the arms by painting them 100% in Chainmail. I then used a heavy wash of Badab Black to create shading on the flat metallic. Once dry, I used the Chainmail again to highlight a few higher edges and bolts.

My wash of choice to add variety was Devlin Mud. Your first coat will go on lightly, don't worry, it's doing its job. The GW Washes really work best in layers, where the last layer helps catch the next and create color slowly and deliberately. Let the layers dry completely, or you'll find yourself pulling some spots up which is a pain to fix.

How deep a color you create is entirely up to you. That control is possibly the best part of this technique. When you've got a color you are happy with, use your base color, in this case Chainmail, to chip and scratch the finish where it would look appropriate.

Using washes to change colors and metals is a big part of my painting repitoire these days. A part that I ensure you, if you put the time in to learn, you will thoroughly enjoy.

Have a good tip on the use of washes? We would love to hear them!