No Figure Today

     Hey, readers.  I've been a bit under the weather the past few days, and so wasn't able to get a figure finished to post today.   Fingers crossed I'll have one ready for next Monday!

Dire Bear: Bones 3 Figure

     This past week was a short one as I was traveling over a long weekend, so I picked a really easy model to do.  The Dire Bear from the Bones 3 Stoneskull Expansion seemed just the thing to get done in just a few days.
      I prepped the figure in the usual way; soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.   I then glued the figure to a black-primed 1.25" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then placed the figure in my painting grip.

     I began by painting the entire bear with Reaper MSP "Turkey Brown", and then painting the paw pads and claws with Ceramcoat "Walnut".  Next, I painted the mouth with Americana "Shading Flesh", the teeth with Americana "Antique White", and the nose with Ceramcoat "Black".

     When everything had time to dry, I gave the entire figure a wash with Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash.   When the wash was dry, I drybrushed the fur with Ceramcoat "Territorial Beige", followed by some Folk Art "Butter Pecan", and lastly a little of the "Antique White".  I then highlighted the nose and claws with Americana "Neutral Grey", and then highlighted the teeth with some Americana "Bleached Sand". 

       Lastly, I painted the figure's integral base with Americana "Bittersweet Chocolate".

      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the base.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed it with Testor's Dullcote".

     Well, you can tell he was a rushed job.  I'm not happy with the highlighting.  I studied pictures of grizzly bears, and there's an odd way the fur reflects the sunlight that I tried to catch, but I think it just made him look a little mottled.  Or it may have to do with the almost bumpy way the fur is sculpted.  Anyway, he's certainly good enough for the game table, so I'm satisfied with that.

Half-Orc Merchant: Bones 3 Figure

   This past week I wrapped up the Bones 3 Townsfolk set by painting the Half-Orc Merchant figure.
    I prepped the figure in the usual way; soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.   I then glued the figure to a black-primed 1" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then placed the figure in my painting grip.

     I began by giving the figure a wash with Reaper MSP "Grey Liner"; and when that was dry, I painted his face with with a mix of  Aleene's "Deep Khaki" and Americana "Shading Flesh".  I then painted his pants with Anita's "Burnt Sienna"". and his coat with Crafter's Acrylic "Orange Spice"

   Next, I painted his hat and gloves with Americana "True Blue", and then did all the trim on his coat, hat, gloves, necklace and the sign disk, with Accent "Golden Harvest".  After that, I painted his collar and stockings with Folk Art "Platinum Grey", and then did his hair and shoes with Ceramcoat "Black".

      While I had the "Black" out, I also painted his backpack frame.  I then painted his belts with Accent "Real Umber", and the pouch on the front with Ceramcoat "Black Cherry".  After that, I painted his side pouches with Reaper MSP "Turkey Brown", and his sign pole with Reaper MSP Bones "Cinnamon Red".    I also decided at this point that I wasn't doing to make the sign disk gold; but instead I wanted to do it white like a sign board, so I painted it with Americana "Snow White".  I also, thinking the gloves looked fingerless,  went pack and painted his fingers the same mix of colors I had used on his face.

     It was then time to work on his load.  I started by painting the keg with Ceramcoat "Territorial Beige", and the small case with Folk Art "Hunter Green". I then painted the bundle with Folk Art "Barn Wood", and the chest with Americana "Light Cinnimon".  After that, I painted the fittings on the chest with Ceramcoat "Bronze", and then painted all the rope with Americana "Khaki Tan".

     Next, I painted his necklace and buckles with the "Bronze". When everything had a while to dry, I gave the entire figure a wash with Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.  When this wash was dry, I painted the eyes and fangs, and then highlighted his face with a mix of the "Deep "Khaki", some Aleene's "Dusty Khaki", and a little Crafter's Acrylic "Flesh". I then highlighted his pants with Americana "Georgia Clay", and his jacket with Crafter's Acrylic "Pure Pumpkin".  After that, I highlighted his color and stockings with the "Snow White", andhis sign pole with Americana "Opaque Red".

      I then highlighted the trim on his coat and hat with Crafter's Acrylic "Bright Yellow", and his hat and gloves with Crafter's Acrylic "Tropical Blue".   Next, I highlighted his front pouch with Americana "Burgundy Wine", and his side pouches with Americana "Sable Brown".
   At this point  went around back, and highlighted his keg with Americana "Bleached Sand", and the case with Americana "Festive Green".  I then did the bundle with Folk Art "Porcelain White", and the chest with the "Sable Brown".  I used the "Bleached Sand" again to highlight the ropes.
     Next, I highlighted all the "Bronze" with Ceramcoat "14K Gold", and highlighted the backpack rack with Accent "Princely Pewter".
     Keeping with the medieval tradition of merchants using signs which depicted what they sold, to help the illiterate populace, I tried to think of what kind of signage a general merchant would have (which I thought this fellow looked like.) I finally decided on a pan scale to represent "Trader"; and so, after repainting the sign with the "Snow White",  I painted on the pan scale with the "Black".
      Lastly, I painted the figure's integral base with Americana "Bittersweet Chocolate".
      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the base.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed it with Testor's Dullcote".

     I'm really happy with how this big fella turned out.  I wanted him to look flamboyant, figuring he'd dress brightly to attract customers, and to show he's a man of means; but also because I thought he is probably self-conscious about being part orc, and considered by most folks to be "ugly", so he over compensates with his clothing.  My only unhappiness is with his sign, which I saved for the last and ended up rushing.  I'm not happy with how it looks (I think it looks more like a sailboat, than a pan scale!) and it just looks amateurish.  I may go back and re-do it if it eats at me enough.

Lesser Stitch Golem: Bones 3 Figure

   This week I was again pressed for time, so I selected one of the Lesser Stitch Golems from the Bones 3 Stoneskull Expansion add-on to paint, figuring it would be simpler to get done in limited time.
     I prepped the figure in the usual way; soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.   I then glued the figure to a black-primed 1" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then placed the figure in my painting grip.

  I began by giving the figure a wash with Reaper MSP "Brown Liner"; and when that was dry, I started painting by doing the button section of fabric on his back with Folk Art "Deep Tomato Red".  I then painted the area around his shoulders with Americana "Antique White", and the section of fabric on his belly with Folk Art "Butter Pecan".

      Next, I painted his head, and sections of his arms with Americana "Sable Brown", and then painted bits of his thighs and arms with Folk Art "Barn Wood", and then his feet and other parts of his arms with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

I then painted the two cloth patches on his front; doing the lefthand one in Reaper MSP "Frosty Blue" with Crafter's Acrylic "Purple Passion" checks, and the right hand one with Crafter's Acrylic "Forest Green" with a Crafter's Acrylic "Bright Yellow" pattern on it. 

     Next, I painted the "hands" with Americana "Zinc", and then all the buttons with a a variety of colors I had sitting around the work table.    Then, after everything had time to dry, I gave the entire figure a wash with Citadel "Agrax Earthsahde" wash.

     After the wash was dry, I began highlighting by drybrushing all the brown/tan colored cloth with the "Antique White", and then did a lighter drybrushing with Americana "Bleached Sand".    Next, I highlighted the front center cloths; using the base "Frosty Blue", and some Apple Barrel "Apple Lavender" on he lefthand one, and Americana "Jade Green", and the Crafter's Acrylic "Daffodil Yellow" on the right hand one.   Around the back, I highlighted the central panel with  Ceramcoat "Bright Red".  After that, I did the stitching, using both the "Bleached Sand", and Ceramcoat "Black" in different spots.  I highlighted the buttons a variety of colors I had sitting around, and then painted the "Hands" with Folk Art Metallics "Gunmetal Grey", and then highlighted them with Ceramcoat "Metallic Silver".
      Lastly, I painted the figure's integral base with Americana "Bittersweet Chocolate".
     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the base.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed it with Testor's Dullcote".

     Well, I'm happy with how this fella turned out.  He was a lot of fun to do, and I look forward to painting his brothers from the same set. 

Gremlins: Bones 3 figures

   This past weekend was our club's 2-day regional gaming con, BARRAGE; so knowing I'd be involved in a lot of work for that, I picked something really easy, and selected half the Gremlins set from the Bones 3 Stoneskull Expansion.  
    To me, these guys looked very similar to the Pathfinder Goblins, that I had painted back in 2014 to be Snow Goblins.  So I thought I'd paint these the same way, to be Snow Goblin kids; and mount 2 to a base, then mix them in with the regular Snow Goblin force.
      I prepped the figures in the usual way; soaking them in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving them a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying them.   I then glued the pair of figures to a white-primed 1" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then placed them in my painting grip.

  I began by giving the figure a wash with Reaper MSP "Blue Liner"; and when that was dry, I painted both of the figures with  Reaper MSP "Frosty Blue".  When that was dry, I gave the figures a wash with Iron Wind Metals "Medium Blue" Ink.

     When the ink was dry, I painted the under tunic on the one on the left below with Crafter's Acrylic "Ornage Spice, his over shirt with Duncan "Olive Green", and his collar with Folk Art "Porcelain White".  The one on the right I painted with Reaper MSP "Olive Skin" for the under tunic, Americana "Light Cinnamon" for the backpack, and Apple Barrel "Apple Maple Syrup" for the collar.

     I then painted the teeth and the string on the left ones back with Americana "Light Antique White", the knife handles with Americana "Mississippi Mud", and the blades with Americana "Zinc".  Around the back, I painted the pouch on  the lefthand one with the Light Cinnamon".   Then, when everything was dry, I gave the clothes and wepaons a wash with Citadel "Agrax Earthshade"wash.   I was as careful as I could be not to let it run onto the blue skin, except I applied small amounts to the eye sockets and mouth.

    After the wash had had time to dry, I went back and added highlights.  I began by highlighting the skin with the original "Frosty Blue".  This allowed me to cover any mistakes where wash, or the drybrushed white had gotten onto the blue. Next, I added eyes with the "Antique White", and then added black pupils. I also used  Crafter's Acrylic "Light Antique White to highlight the teeth and the rope on the back.  Next, I painted the eyepatch with Ceramcoat "Black". 
     Up next, I highlighted the collar on the left one with the base "Maple Sugar Tan", and the backpack, as well as the pouch on the righthand one, with  Americana "Sable Brown".   I then highlighted the collar on the right one with Folk Art "Barn Wood", the shirt with Americana "Jade Green" and the under-tunic with Crafter's Acrylic "Pure Pumpkin".   I highlighted the knife handles with the base "Mississippi Mud", and then painted the blades with with Folk Art Metallics "Gunmetal Grey", and then highlighted them with Ceramcoat "Metallic Silver"
    Lastly, I painted the base with Ceramcoat "Snow White".
     I let them sit overnight, and the next morning I gave them a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.   Later that afternoon I flocked their bases, using Woodland Scenics snow flocking.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed them with Testor's Dullcote".

Ma and Pa take the kids out for a little raiding trip!

     I'm happy with these little guys, and, as hoped, they proved to be an easy job to get painted up.