MamaGeek

What other materials, besides wax, can you use to lubricate the bit? What about oil? Will WD40 work, or is Olive Oil better?

How does that pin vise work? Do I have to purchase drill bits? How do they attach? I have never done this before.

I'm looking for a small drill for pinning figures. What brands/types do you all use, and what do you recommend? I found this hand powered mini-tip drill set for $10 on a sewing/quilting site. Has anyone tried this one?

Very nicely done. I don't know how so many folks on here manage to paint so well, so fast.

The topic title and description really says it all: What is green stuff, where can I buy it, and how much does it cost?

Thank you! I appreciate the help.

I'm very new to painting minis, and so far you all have been very helpful in getting me started and improving my technique. I'd like to make some nice bases for a few of my figures, now. I've read many terrific basing tutorials at CMON and other places that describe how to create realistic-looking natural ground on which your figure stands, but I haven't seen anything on the most basic question of all: How do I attach the figure to the base? I have two different kinds of figures. One comes with a small sculpted base that's part of the figure, and allows it to stand on its own without any additional base attached. The other is a WarLord reaper figure (Elsabeth), which is attached to a metal strip at the bottom, and which comes with a plastic base with a slot. How do I attach these two different types of figures to plastic bases, and at what point in the basing process should this be done? Do I cut off the pre-sculped base from the first type of figure, or work it into the base design somehow? The metal strip on my WL figure, when inserted into the slot on the plastic base that came with it, extends above the level of the base, so that the figure's foot does not rest on the base. Do I need to file down the strip, or should I put some basing material under her foot? HELP!

Thanks! I bought a new brush about halfway through with a much finer tip, and that really helped. I'm hoping my next attempt, using that brush from the start, will turn out even better!

What's that on his forehead? Are those wrinkles, tattoos, scars? It's hard to tell from the picture. The overall work is great. The tassle looks a little hastily done, as far as highlighting goes, but the NMM and the depth on the rest of the figure is terrific!

Wow, that's a pretty high level of detail for a speed-paint. He looks really menacing. Is it just the photograph, or are his eyes completely black, with no discernable iris? That's a nice choice of colors. Overrall, great job!

It looks pretty nice from what I can see, but can you take a larger photograph? Higher resolution, I mean, so we can get a closer view?

I posted this original image last week: SharynOriginal After getting lots of great feedback, I stripped the paint and tried again. I stripped a few figures, but this is the first one I've finished repainting. I took pictures as I went along, so I could show you how she arrived at the final version. I made some mistakes along the way, and tried to correct them as best I could. I think I still have a great deal to learn, but I hope I've made some improvement. Most will depend, I suspect, on practice, practice, practice. SharynStripped SharynWIP1 SharynWIP2 SharynWIP3 SharynWIP4 SharynFinal Here's a comparison of the original and the new version:

Oh! Sorry, I'm in Virginia. I called my local gaming store, and they have a free painting class coming up in a couple weeks. Thanks for the tip!

What is an FLGS? Where can I find information about conventions on the East Coast?

I'm pretty new to these boards, but I've several times seen mention of something called RCon, and a few posters have referred to miniature painting classes they attended. Can anyone tell me more about this? I've been trying to learn some of the techniques I've read about on these boards, but I think I'd really benefit from a live demonstration.

That was really helpful, Anne! Do you have any pictures of figures you'd done that demonstrate that technique? I'm having a bit of a hard time visualizing all that you describe. I am planning on painting a bard with a vertical-striped skirt, and some "embroidered" flowers on her sleeves.

How can I paint a figure's fabric cloak, shirt, skirt, etc. with stripes, polka dots, or some other pattern and still do all the blending/layering/shading/highlighting to make it really pop? Do I have to paint each different-colored section section separately? Are there any tutorials out there? I searched for one, but to no avail.

Thanks for the tips! I did some Google searching for Tutorials, and found some information on blending and washing that I think I'll try out on my next attempt. The first few minis I painted were using borrowed paints, but now that I've bought my own set, I can be patient enough to take the time to do the job right, instead of worrying about returning my friend's paint to her. One thing I'd like to learn about that I haven't found much information on: How do you add detailing and still do all the appropriate blending? For instance, I wanted to put some polka dots or flowers or something on Petra's skirt, but still have all the natural shadows and highlights. I have a new figure I ordered with a pretty flowing cloak, and I want to make it striped, because the character is an ostentatious bard. How do I do that?

I'm pretty new to painting minis, so bear that in mind, please. I am really impressed by some of the work I've browsed in this forum, and hope I'll achieve that level of skill someday! 03215: Jadeah, Female Half Orc barbarian with an axe 03093: Sharyn, Female Wizard 02371: Nord Kegbreaker 03196: Petra Posiedew, Gnome Sorceress (I cut off the pigtails) I know I need to do something to smooth out the colors. I think you all call it blending. I have no idea how to do that. If someone can point me to some online tutorials, or some other threads that explain, I'd appreciate it.