MamaGeek

I painted this staff by hand (it is a smooth surface): Here is the Wood Grain Thread from 2011 where I obtained the advice needed to paint it.

Then you have people like me, who paint eyes outside the lines.

nice conversion!

Yeah, the face looks great!

Woah! Very cool!

You're so creative!

It was really more PayPal's reaction to the incident that ticked me off more than anything else. When I reported it, they just put a flag on the purchases, then waited for me to pay my credit card bill, anyway. PayPal didn't communicate with me at all until I disputed the charges with my credit card, and then it was to demand for my bank account just to be allowed to use a credit card to pay for things again, not even as a seller. PayPal behaved as if I was the one doing something wrong by refusing the charges. Thanks, LittleBluberry, for your insights on Etsy. Appreciate it.

I can sell on Etsy and accept credit card payment without having a PayPal account, just an Etsy account. That is where I'm leaning towards at the moment. My PayPal incident: Got some emails from PayPal about payments I supposedly made for jewlery for about $300. Checked my PayPal account, and discovered someone had broken in and spent money with my credit card. My card number wasn't stolen. It wasn't used anywhere else, only through PayPal. And my PayPal password wasn't changed, either. I contacted PayPal, they put some kind of investigative hold on my account, then proceeded to do...nothing. After about a week, I called my credit card, disputed the charges, and got a new card issued. PayPal cancelled my account and sent me a nasty email about not paying, then demanded my bank account information in order to reactivate my account. I'm sorry, but if I can't trust them with my credit card, there is no way I am giving them my bank account information.

So I'm interested in selling some of my painted miniatures, and I'm wondering about the best way to go about it. What have you all tried? What did you like/dislike about various selling sites? One stipulation I have is that I will not use PayPal. I had a very bad experience with PayPal once and do not trust them. I'll make an occasional credit card payment through PayPal, but I will never again have a PayPal account, which you need to accept payment. I sold a miniature successfully on eBay once, but someone else handled the auction (i.e. he did the actual selling, I just supplied the mini). Without accepting PayPal, I don't think I'll be able to go that route myself. I was considering creating a store in Etsy. Their rates seem reasonable, and they are reputable enough that I think they can be trusted. I was thinking of putting the listings on my website, but I don't think it gets much traffic. The auction I did was listed on CMON. (Can you advertise Etsy listings there?) Any advice, especially from past experience, would be appreciated. Thanks!

Yes, that blonde recipe is a good one!

Thanks, Andy! And did you notice I filled in her belly button and painted her with all her clothes on? :-) It ties back to our earlier discussion about how females are depicted in fantasy art. Real women have curves, of course, but fantasy does not have to equal slutty. (And those poor bards always have such a bad reputation! LOL!)

Awesome! Very nice legs! The feet look a little short for a booted storm trooper type, unless that's just the photo angle.

I worked on the base some more, to add some interest, and tie in the colors better. I sculpted a few flowers and a snake, darkened the dirt, lightened the stump and log, and painted the moss, so it's closer to the color of the figure. I also added some freehand designs to the back of the cloak: You can see more photos of the completed figure on my website.

That is awesome! I love this mini! It has so much style!

She is very beautiful. The face is pretty, which can be hard to achieve on such a small scale. I like the coloring on her hair, and the freehand design is very nice. The plastic base looks rough-cut. If you get a chance, try to smooth over it with some wood putty, then repaint black. That will give it more of a professional finish. I may have to copy that freehand pattern sometime... Do you have any larger images, especially of the front?

Nope, no website. He's just a wood turning hobbyist. I just pay him in cash, since I see him every work day. If you contact him (via email), you'd have to make your own arrangements. PM me if you're interested.

Thank you to all who took the time to post about my miniature. I appreciate the feedback and the kind words! And thanks for all the "likes" as well! Thank you! Keep in mind that the lute is a conversion. Check out the unalterned mini before you order her and make sure it's still what you're after. You're right, but I wanted to use that wooden plinth, and looked in my box for a mini to put it on. I saw this mini, and thought, well, it's small, but it could work. I guess not so much! I was there. I met a lot of painters that day, so it's possible we met. Lanura Windsong is probably my best work, and one of my favorite minis. I'm glad you found my site, and liked my work! I agree, great color and shading. And the base is kinda big for a playable mini, unless you're going for the diorama feel. If that's the case, you could use some of that base space. Maybe add a small wishing well, or accent the stump in front of her with a tiny birdhouse, bright ivy, or ornament. Anyway, just my two oxidized cents. Looking sharp! I'm thinking of maybe trying to sculpt a few crocuses peaking up near the stump. They always poke through the last snowfall in my yard. I could paint them to match the bard and bring the base and mini into better harmony. I was thinking of painting the green moss to match the green of the bard's cloak, too. It's not really natural, but it's a fantasy piece, so that's ok. What do you all think?

When Reaper released this miniature (Lady Moray), I was thrilled. She looks just like my very first D&D character, a bard named Valanth Mocnjay, who has a pet mockingbird. I bought the figure right away. I didn't like the long knife (short sword?) she was holding in her left hand, so I converted it to a lute I had in my bits box, which I thought more fitting. (Lute is from from Reaper's Adventuring Accessories pack SKU#02638) The stump and log are from Secret Weapons Miniatures. The snow is crushed glass (also from SWM). The wooden base was turned by hand by a friend of mine. He sells them for $5 each. (Send me a PM if you want his email address.) Any feedback would be appreciated, especially on the base. I haven't varnished anything yet, so I could easily make touchups. Update: see photos of base additions in later post.

Very cool. I like how you worked the little details, like the purple ridges, instead of just a wash and dry-brush job. It takes it to the next level. Nice work!

Very cool and creepy, nice monster to antagonize the players with. The color scheme works, and you did a good job with it.

She's coming along! I'll have to start really following this thread, now that I know about it. I love your WIPs!

Very nice job on both! I like how you painted the Eyebeast's eye, and the basing on the rust monster is very creative.

Thanks for the photos, Andy! Oh, they are so beautiful! I can't wait to paint them, though I will wait months if it means they are cast for mass production, so that many more artists can appreciate them.

I'm good with both, Andy. Can you take a couple photos of the two figures together? I can't tell you how very pleased I am with your work. It turned out so much better than I envisioned it. Beautiful! Beautiful!

She's gorgeous!!! I love the skirt and the veil! The sense of movement is perfect. Your idea for the swirling skirt was genius! OK, I'm seeing a couple oddities that may be the photo angle or the glare. Maybe you can clarify for me. First is her face. It looks like there's an odd crease on the side of her nose. Is that photo glare, or a real crease? Second is her sleeves. They look like they're two different thicknesses. Again, is that just the photo? (I'm sure the sleeves would be easy to fix, the face less so if it's a real problem.)