Buggeye

The link to Curtis's website should be fixed (in the main post) if you wanted to look at more of his work. The "For Sale" signs went up months ago - so the dragon had nothing to do with that. In fact, if anything my neighbors have become even more neighborly and I've heard nothing but compliments. But it also means that if you wanted to bask in its Awesomeness there are 2 homes available As far as sealing it goes... The wood itself is still in the process of drying out. It was cut off at the base just below the tail (if I ever move to another house it WILL be coming with me) and wedges inserted to give it a bit of separation so it would stop drawing water. Long screws (about a foot long) were used to secure it. While the wood continues to dry out it will crack and split in some areas, some of this you can already see. Most of the cracks will just add character but a few may need to be repaired. So, by next spring the wood should be dry and it will stop moving (splitting/cracking) and should be nice and solid. At that point I'll go in and make any repairs needed and do any touch up work on the paint (I just might know someone with an airbrush). Then I'll seal it up with a good, hard, non-yellowing, high gloss sealer. I've already researched one that's used on the masts of sailboats.

Hello again everyone. Its been quite a while since I've posted anything and wouldn't ya know it.... the first thing I do post isn't a mini. But this is so awesome I felt I just had to share it. A couple years back 1 of the 4 big Cottonwood trees in my yard came crashing down and it hit 1 of the other cottonwoods when it fell. After getting a good deal on having the downed tree removed (its good to have family/friends with connections in city park board). I brokered a deal to have 2 of the 3 remaining cottonwoods removed. When they removed the one in my front yard I told them to leave the stump at about 9 to 10 feet because I had an idea of having something carved out of it. Well this year I figured out what I wanted and found a tree sculptor with the skills required and he lives here in the Twin Cities. For anyone that's interested his name is Curtis Ingvoldstad and his website is Wood Sculpture by Curtis. After meeting with Curtis and discussing what I had in mind we decided to do a Silver Dragon based mostly on Lockwoods' D&D's 3.5 ed. artwork. The sculpting, from start to finish took place over 13 sessions (4 hours per session on average). Everyday has been a treat. From watching it slowly take shape to talking to all the people who stop by to look at it. No matter how badly I mess up a Star Wars/Star Trek/whatever trivia quiz - Nobody can take away my geek card ever again. Curtis painted the entire beast himself except for the eyes. I pulled out my own brushes and paints and did those myself.

Its been a while since I've posted something. And this guy's been sitting on my desk for quite some time glaring at me in different stages of "done"ness. Well after messing up his cloak with a spatter effect (made it look like a drop cloth) I think this version is one I'll keep. Not quite as good as the camo patterns modern day hunters are using today but I think its a step in the right direction.

Based on what you've identified as stuff you like - These are all titles I liked enough to buy and I think fit your taste. Try: Witch Hunter Robin (modern scifi with a supernatural twist) Ghost in the shell 2nd Gig (2nd season basically) Ghost in the shell the movie (be aware the 1st movie comes after the TV series in the timeline but was made first so you will see an age difference in the animation styles) Ghost in the Shell 2 - Innocence (Visually stunning - no dub available, subtitle only and again comes after the 1st movie in the timeline) Death Note (currently being aired on Adult Swim but you REALLY need to see this from the start) Karas (this was a short 6 episode series that is currently being sold as 2 movies Prophecy & Revelation) Spriggan (this is a good saturday afternoon popcorn flick) Read or Die (the OVA's) Read or Die the Tv series Outlaw Star (the Fore runner to Cowboy Bebop) Vampire Hunter D (older movie but the story still holds up - more of a Fantasy title) Vampire Hunter D - Bloodlust (newer shinier better - This one really is the shiznit - more of a lost tech scifi title) Highlander - The search for Vengence (the same studio that did Vamp D Bloodlust also did this - Starts medieval - switches to scifi) Rah Xephon - Mecha - less angsty than Evangelion Geobreeders - This is fun comedy/action/scifi. Serial Experiments Lain - This is some smart "pay attention" scifi. Kinos Journey - Awesome series with moral issues and lessons learned type of feel. The Place Promised in Our Early Days - movie - the artwork here is amazing Voices of a Distant Star - short film - scifi/mecha - but so frickin powerful I cried (this is a good thing - this shouldn't be missed). Rune Soldier - Fantasy/action/comedy Chrono Crusade - Fantasy/action Peacemaker - Medieval japan - swordfighting action/intrigue/and some comedy Berserk - Hardcore Fantasy - Lots and Lots of Blood - not for the squeemish - couple of nude sceens as well. Gilgamesh - Modern/super natural/with a very Goth feel to it. Noein - Scifi - recently was aired on either FX or scfi channel in the "AniMonday" slot Last Exile - Scifi. Titles to look out for (I have seen most of these but they havent been fully Dubbed Yet. Black Lagoon - Modern - South Asian Sea pirates - (one of the main characters is a Laura Croft clone but with a much nastier disposition) Ergo Proxy - SciFi/cop/mystery Gundam 00 - This is How Gundam Should Have Been Done!!!!! (basically a complete rewrite of the Gundam Universe) And my current Favorite: CLAYMORE - Medieval/Fantasy - (Think Klockenbooty with Big two handed swords) Can't wait for Funimation to finish Dubbing this.

If your looking into different ways to build stuff you may want to consider Extruded polystyrene instead of the expanded. Its the blue or Pink insulation foam commonly used for wall insulation. Probably the best place to get tools for working with this stuff is at Hot Wire Foam Factory. There are some videos on the site that demonstrate their versatility. I used the Factory to build the Greyhawk Arena WIP Greyhawk Arena Finished . Having only the Factory, my building options are limited but still impressive (especially after watching the instructional DVD). But the handheld tools open up tons of options, a staggering amount really if your good at freestyle sculpting.

Awwww Thanks my peeps :) As I reflected upon the last year I was most aware that I have been blessed by having some of the coolest friends/painters/geeks/nerds/players/gamers a DM could hope for. And next year is looking even better by adding in a local Con circuit.

July Leo's *secret handshake* Happy B-Day Ali!!

July Leo's *secret hand signal* Happy B-Day Blueweasel!!

Sweet, glad to you posting these. MQmoxie did these at the Paint and Take Reaper helped sponsor at CONvergence in Bloomington, MN. I told ya then that if we had done a Painting contest for the Paint & Take, your minis probably would have taken top honors. And I was thrilled when I found out he was an Iraq Veteran and practically buried him with tips & tricks that have been developed since he set down his brushes 14 years ago. Next we need to tweak your Photo Fu. Looks like you've got plenty of light - so the next step is to get you a blue->white fade background sheet.

As his DM here in the Twin Cities, in the event of Jesters death I was instructed to erase a certain folder on his computer. As payment for this service I am to receive all his Gaming related gear. This includes his Airbrush and supplies, gaming books/novels, miniatures (including his private collection of Painted figs), and I'm gonna say his Anime collection is related close enough that it goes to me as well.

I think I squeezed this one in just in time before the deadline for the Reaper Wannabe contest. Just hope the round base doesn't disqualify me :p The somewhat weak tail tab for mounting it was something I knew I had to deal with before it became a problem. Luckily the the bottom tail feather is thick enough to drill and insert a couple brass rods.

Hope I'm in time. Warlord: 14086: Giant Eagle

This makes the 3rd Angel of Light in what will be a set of 6 for my Mom. Painted this for a friend of mine that plays a paladin of Wee Jas. Nice coincidence that the colors are kinda Xmasy. And a couple of Klocke Dwarves - also used for Pc's in our Friday game.

Not sure if its the way the eyes are sculpted or if the masters are getting a bit old but when your looking at the unpainted sculpt those eyes are not symetrical. You've done a good job with what I feel might be the hardest set of eyes to paint.

Heres a larger pic of Big Red. T'Raukzul 600 x 3982 pixels