Ayin

Thank you Ferox! I got her Friday and both she and the extas arrived in good shape. :D They look great! I will try to get pics taken of all 3 when we get our lightbox regrouped (most of it is at a friend's house, with one lamp having ended up at another friend's place). Hopefully it will all come together sooner than later. As for myself, I have to remember to be less ambitious on the next exchange mini I do. Between work deciding to get really busy at the same time I finally got all the pieces figured out, sculpted, and primed and my computer's hard drive deciding to die, it's been a little hectic. So I will say that I am working on her as best I can, and I'm really happy with the way it's turning out. I just hope my recipient thinks she's worth the wait!

As I feared, mine will be late too. I'm not sure by how long, hopefully I'll have a good idea after this weekend. Work has been keeping me pretty busy, along with some other things in life. BUT, I will get her done ASAP. My apologies to my recipient.

I feel you there. Mine has turned out to be the same way - I knew what mini I wanted to paint but wanted an inspiring base to put her on. Figuring that out took a while. Now that it's all finally come together (including that bit I forgot I needed to sculpt something on until I'd started priming everything...) I'm really excited!

Well, life has gotten in the way of my painting again. I am working on the painting today, after finally getting the rest done. Not quite all I wanted to do, but it will work. I hope to have it finished and out soon (insert Reaper ™ here.)

I'm finally getting to work on mine again tonight! I'm going to try to finish the sculpting tonight. Wish me luck!

It was awesome to see you guys there! It's been waaaaay too long for me. I am starting a savings fund for RC'11 ~ I am determined not to miss another one!

Working on mine - I'm really having fun with the base. Just need to stop by the hardware store, hopefully sooner than later. I'm still in sculpting phase, and I want to be painting!

Looks great! I think all the work (or maybe the cursing) paid off

I've got an OTT tabletop light myself, and it has a flip-down magnifying lens. It was my first time using magnification, and holy cow did it make a difference! My eyes are pretty good for fine details, but since I've started painting with it, I notice they feel less strained after hours of work. And the light itself is a wonderful improvement, too. I usually paint most of the mini without magnification, then switch to it for the fiddly bits. I know OTTS are expensive - I didn't realize how much so at first since I picked mine up on what turned out to be a ridiculous sale. I got it for about $20-30!!

I can't wait for him to be released too!!

Very nice work! I really like the color scheme you chose. I'm sure they are impressive on the field

I just wanted to clarify that I'm not saying you need to "fix" yourself to be happy or in love - if that were the case, no one would ever qualify. :) But if there is something you want to change/learn/try out, actually starting to do something about it, even something small, can help you feel more confidant. Even if you don't notice it, others probably will. And if it doesn't work out (cake decorating just isn't for you, say), don't be down on yourself - you've tried something, learned something about yourself, and can have more confidence to try something else that strikes your fancy. And just keep exploring until you find things you do like. But doing these things is a way to help you feel better about yourself, and as others have said, take the focus off of "finding the *one*" and put it on having fun. I raise my glass to you! Hope you have the best of luck and a great weekend!

Jacob's Sheep!! YES!!!

What they said! Heck, I myself am a geeky anime-fan, rennie, and big rpger girl. We are out there. I promise And I will reply to your ramble with one of my own.... (sorry ~ I'm prone to long posts when tired.) I've told friends (and I've seen it work - on others and myself) just work on being happy with you. Is there something you want to improve about yourself? (for you, not because of what others think)? Start working on it, a little at a time (most things don't change quickly). Something you always wanted to learn? Take a class. A cause you support? Volunteer. Heck, if nothing else take some art supplies to the park or hiking and find a nice spot to sit down and draw/paint! But get out there. Don't go out looking for love. No one else will complete you (despite what the love songs say). Because if you're not happy before the gf, you still won't be happy after. When you go chasing after love, people pick up on it and it tends to come off as "desperate". When you are happy with with yourself, and focusing on doing things you enjoy, you are confidant and, well, happy. People like being around confidant, happy people. And then one morning, you'll wake up, stretch, sit up in bed,and **BAM** the 2x4 of love will hit you right between the eyeballs and you'll stagger around the rest of the day wondering what just happened. And it will probably be someone you hadn't been looking at in that light. Don't worry about game. It gets old. It sounds like you want a relationship, not just a fling. From what I've seen, game is used to get the latter. Just help yourself get over your shyness. Being one who can be painfully shy myself, I know it's not easy. But just try saying "hi" to the girl standing in line next to you. No witty banter. No come-ons. No pressure. Just "hi", or "hey". And you can leave it at that, or compliment her shirt/purse/necklace/pick an accessory. Even if it's indirect - "I love that shade of purple" <- but only if you really do. Or comment on the wonderful sunshine today. Simple little things. And don't be upset if nothing happens. Most of the time, you'll just say hi to a stranger. But you might start a conversation. Many girls suffer similar issues as you do, and won't bite your head off for saying hi, and those that do, well, do you really want to date someone like that? As for your latest exes, it's sad but true. There are a lot of theories on why girls end up in abusive relationships. My theory is that it frequently comes down to self-worth. Most girls (in the US at least) don't seem to be raised to stand up for themselves, believe that they must look like the latest toothpick fashion models to qualify as beautiful (and if you're not, then you're worth less as a woman, no matter your other talents), and so forth. So girls end up feeling like they don't deserve something good (like a nice, sweet guy for a bf) because you have to *be* wonderful to have someone wonderful be in love with you. They end up in abusive relationships because they don't feel they deserve anything better, because after you've been in one (or several) it becomes familiar (i.e. habit) and while bad, familiar is comfortable (and thus preferable) compared to something new (and scary) that makes you question if you really deserve all this wonderful stuff (like a fun, sweet bf). There are other reasons, but I've seen this one waaaaay too much. And is there hope for love for geeks and gamers? Absolutely. I met my husband in a Subway Sandwiches. He was the only one on shift. I went in to get a sandwich, which I ate inside because it was cold out, and shared it with my lovebird. I was 2 weeks out of a bad relationship, and guys were no more than other breathing beings to me. He asked how my sandwich was when I brought the tray back to the counter, and was soon talking to my bird. That was almost 17 years ago...

Wow. Thanks, Laszlo. I think I have a new member on my favorite sites list! And no, I don't want things to look super-shiny. I want the mini (Rosie!) to be standing in a section of machinery. She is there to keep things running smoothly. after all!

Thanks for the suggestions, guys! The article was pretty interesting. Thanks for posting it Wren (and I haven't forgotten about your cat!) I'm thinking I will go ahead and paint it (and I was planning on photographing it so I have reference ) I'm hoping to do a WIP thread with it, and hopefully I can get started this week.

So I would appreciate a little advice before getting started on my project. I have finally found the base I want to use. I'm going a bit steampunky - it's an old back of a pocketwatch, a few gears still attached, and pretty tarnished. It will need some work to turn it into a base, and I want to attach a few more scenery pieces to it, but I'm trying to figure out if I should seal and repaint the whole thing ( I am considering using greenstuff to add plates to the floor) or seal it and just let it be its wonderfully tarnished self. My sticking point is that I like the way the metal looks now, and I could probably work around the holes in it by adding "pipes" and a few other things, but I am concerned my mini and anything else I may sculpt and paint to add to the base would look way too "off" compared to real metal, and thus distract from the piece as a whole. Any suggestions?

I really like the outdoor look. Especially the vine/tree! What are you using for the leaves? Can't wait to see more!

Wow, Derek! And I thought I loved your sea elves diorama! (I still do :) ) I love the bear, and how you changed the lunge into a restive pose. And I'm glad you left her outfit in grey. She still stands out really well. Also, I'll add my thanks for including the description of how you planned everything out. I'm looking more and more into posts that go over that as I'm hoping to start my first diorama this year. Any insight I get helps me feel more confident about the planning of mine.

I LOVE the "Hirst and Wurst" idea!

I like the red/purple combo on the elf. Just like what everyone's said - washes! :) Personally, in his case I'd keep the red bright, but darken the purple to a near black with limited highlights. That way it will retain the richness of the purple, but the red will be a brilliant focus point on the mini. Perhaps use a lot of golds in the patterning (like a brocade)?

I know I started out with Testors! Wow, do I not miss using them!

I'm glad you applied for the Privateer Press job! You're right, the worst that will happen is they won't call. Too many people (myself included) let opportunities go by because they're afraid of being told "no". Hard habit to break, but I'm trying! I've noticed in the last year especially, a lot of people have come on hard financial times - my husband and myself included. I've also noticed that a lot of people have downsized, cut back on spending, gotten rid of a lot of "stuff", and are focusing more on their families, SOs, friends, and things they truly love to do. And while sure, the money is missed, I know so many who are a lot happier than they were. Blessings in disguise and all that :) I wish you the best of luck with both your schooling and job hunting!

@ Mercius ~ ouch! I hope it works out... I just ordered mine! Can't wait to start :D

Not that I'm volunteering him , but my husband works for WorldWorks and has built several of their cardstock models. If properly bribed, he might be willing to come out to ReaperCon'11 and do a few demos if there is enough interest in it. His availability would also depend greatly on his other job as well. There are several "Kit Bashes" that could make great demo models - they are small additions to existing sets, and could probably be built within a 2 hour class. Or perhaps (with Denny's permission) a small section of a set, like a single floor tile with wall and pillar pieces, and maybe a chest or chair or some such. The necessary supplies for it would need to be worked out, though. Good Xacto, metal ruler, cutting mat, tape, glue, etc. along with the printed cardstock and maybe foamcore. Would these be provided with the class or would participants need to bring their own?