Tom T's Tabletop Workbench

[Tom T]

I didn't have a chance to get any painting time in Monday. So here's a quick finish from Sunday's progress . . . My Father's roll top desk lives in our living room. He refinished it the Summer after I was in the 8th grade, so that would've been 1973. Yeah, I was painting figures back then so this is an especially appropriate use. (Apologies for the lousy photo.)

 

I use craft paints almost exclusively. Mainly the Americana brand. I've come to learn their properties, and I like 'em. Though, to be fair, some of the discussions here are making me think about experimenting with some of Reaper's paints . . . Anyway, two strawberry flats, with the front edges cut off, hold pretty much everything I need. Two TV trays and set up and clean up takes less than five minutes and I can be with my Dear Wife while I'm painting and we can watch movies or listen to music together.

 

I hot glue two rare earth magnets, from a local Harbor Freight, to 3/4" hard wood dowels that I cut to about 6" lengths. My paint sticks fit my hands comfortably and I think they really help make it easier for me. I use metal bases, from Wargames Accessories, and the figures are secure and I can easily turn them any which way I need to reach any spot.

 

I use a #4 Loew-Cornell Comfort 3000 for a quick and dirty wash using diluted FolkArt 2804 Walnut Stain ~ my replacement for GW Badab Black. I'm still learning this one's properties and this looks a little darker than I would normally like. It really makes the details pop out at you and it helps me see where the shadows will be. (And, yeah, this is when you find out if you really got all of the flash cleaned up!) Then two heavy coats of Americana DA064 Burnt Umber on all of the bases' edges.

All of the bases got covered with a diluted wet coat of the Burnt Umber. Then my Wife suggested we eat out . . . So that's where I'll be picking up at tonight.

[Tom T]

The dwarf we both have came out around 1988 and was the work of the Perrys.

 

He is in the Citadel 1988 catalog as Norse Dwarf 10: http://www.solegends.com/citcat1988/0301norsedwfs-01.htm

Fantastic!!! Thank you so very much ObsidianCrane!!! I've already got #16 painted for this game. And now I know where to start looking for a couple of the others. I really appreciate your pointer! Thanks!

[Tom T]

So here's where I started at last night. All six bases have been edged and painted with Americana DA064 Burnt Umber.

Onto dry brushing with DA173 Khaki Tan. I try to scrumble the paint on in as many different directions as I can, and I make sure to randomly hit the bases' edges too.

Followed by DA092 Mink Tan.

Then DA242 Fawn.

A lot of times I'll stop at this point and work on the figures then finish the bases. I'm pushed for time so I kept going. Next is My Studio 72781 Tan.

Then a mix of the Tan and DA257 Bleached Sand.

Then a light dry brushing of DA257 Bleached Sand.

At this point I realized I'd waaay over done the last two steps and lost a lot of the contrasts I'd been building up. What can I say? I was Hungry and dinner was ready. As a Friend of mine would say, "I'll get that later!" It's definitely time to clean up the brush I use for dry brushing my bases and change out my water bowl!

All in all it took about thirty minutes or so to do all six bases, including taking some quick photos. I'll go back and finish the bases after the figures are essentially done.

 

Hope that you Enjoy! And please wish me Luck! We've got a couple of hectic work weeks ahead of us and I suspect that painting time is going to get squeezed by work.

[Leopardpixie]

I like those metal bases. Ive been looking for an alternative for all the light weight bone modles, and i think that it might do the trick. Thank you for posting.

[Tom T]

I like those metal bases. Ive been looking for an alternative for all the light weight bone modles, and i think that it might do the trick. Thank you for posting.

A Pleasure Leopardpixie! I'm very happy with 'em so I hope they work for you too! I tried Litko awhile back. Wargames Accessories has a great selection of sizes, great prices, cheap shipping and they're fast.

[Tom T]

So after a couple of cold Stella Artois and a fine Birthday dinner I switched to a #2 L~C Comfort 3000 Round and Fawn DA242.

Then a quick Orgyn Flesh wash for all of them.

I'll come back to their faces in due time, but now I can start getting some paint on 'em! Two thin glazes of True Blue DA36 later . . .

With the skirting roughly blocked in I switched to French Grey BLue DA98 for their quilted torso armour.

By the time I got the second figure to this point my eyes were tiring and I realized that the Stellas were catching up with me! Hey, I was Celebrating!

 

And I really am going to have to fix their bases before they're done!!!

[Tom T]

I should have gotten the under robes sooner, but they'll still be there tonight. Since they'll be fiddly to get to soon, I did the short sword scabbards with Mink Tan DA992. Then I moved onto a light high light mix of True Blue DA36 and Sapphire DA99. Followed with a little touch of True Blue DA36 again to the shadows. You'll notice I missed the left-most figure's left shoulder armour when I used did the French Grey base coat!

Next was a quick kind of "wet-ish" dry brushing over the quilted armour with Baby Blue DA042. Hmmm, I already see a couple of spots that I'll have to go back over . . .

 

When I looked at them again this morning it's pretty obvious that I need to brighten up the highlights on the skirting . . .

[Tom T]

I've got a veritable ton of advice type questions I want to ask you all after Thursday night's painting session and I've got photos to share/illustrate 'em . . . But instead of working on working on work and then getting to paint and play I've spent the day dealing with, well, stuff . . . So, I'm not going to post photos or ask questions or advice yet because 6.6 POUNDS of Incredibly Beautiful Bones Goodness was put into my sweaty hands this evening.

 

Um. Is it Okay to go, "SQEEEEEE!!! ", in my own WIP thread??? <Seriously!?>

 

I've spent an actually relaxing evening Inventorying ALL of My Lovely New Preciousnesses. And I have fallen in Love with so many of them that it scares me. I mean, now I've got another >mutter, mutter, counting, counting, muttering, counting, checking the Inventory, counting< TWENTY more figures to deal with! And each one is Calling to me. Begging me to just give then SOME kind of Paint Love. They Promise that they won't care OR tell ~ they just want PAINT!

 

I'm serious.

 

They're all talking to me.

 

There's a Frost Wyrm staring at my monitor, and a couple of boxes of Orcapoclyse are spilled out at my feet; and, and, and the extra packs of Swamp Things are smelling kind of, well, swampy (Which is Fine, please don't get me wrong. But they are LOOKING at me!!!); and there are some Beautiful Dragons peeking over my shoulder from the trunk, and there's, and there's, and there's, and there's . . .

 

Well. Thank You Reaper. I am in LUV. And, even better, my Dear Wife, and Chief Collections' Curator, thinks that they are Wonderful too! But then she said, "These really are Beautiful Figures. Are you sure one Vampire really was enough? And don't you need more of those gorgeous Dragons too . . . ?"

 

 

>whimper>

Edited July 6, 2013 by Tom T

[Tom T]

So, I managed to get some time in painting late on Thursday, the 4th. First I went back to the under robes peaking out with Folk Art 424 Light Gray, then with DA02 White Wash. Followed with a touch up of DA36 True Blue where needed. Then I did a quick diluted True Blue in the shadow areas. The quilted armour was edged with DA168 then I used DA010 Cadmium Yellow over most of those areas. I finished the night with DA58 in the exposed areas of their quivers and their bows.

 

And a group shot, with one of the pikemen I'd almost finished earlier since I want to get close to their colors.

 

What do you think so far? I'm really wondering if I need to lighten the blue robes' highlights more? And should I do more on their quilted armour? A wash or a glaze to tie those colors together more? Or are they like this?

 

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

Edited July 6, 2013 by Tom T

[ObsidianCrane]

A wash over the darker blue and a brighter highlight on the scales would do a lot I think.

 

Then its the eyes and hair :)

[Tom T]

A wash over the darker blue and a brighter highlight on the scales would do a lot I think.

 

Then its the eyes and hair :)

Thanks ObsidianCrane, I'll gite that a try when I have a chance to paint again (which might be in a couple of days now)! Much appreciated.

[72moonglum]

So found this and just wondering what ever happened to these elves and dwarves?

[Kharsin]

Wow Tom! Just saw this thanks to 72, and it's great to see all of these awesome models. Did you get them finished in time? I don't game so I've never had to face the pressure of finishing an army on time. Kudos!