Dita, Steampunk Witch: Figure 178 or 265

   This week I finished Dita, Steampunk Witch, from the Chronoscope Set.  Only one figure let to do from this set.
       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 washers with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then glued the washer-mounted figure to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue.

      I began by painting the entire figure, and her base, Black.  I then drybrushed it with Folk Art "Settlers Blue".

     Next, I painted her skin with Americana "Mocha". Then I painted parts of her outfit with Crafter's Edition "African Violet".  I painted her hair with Apple Barrel "Burnt Sienna", and  the end of her broom with Folk Art "Barnyard Red"

     I then gave her hair, skin, and broom end a wash with Winsor Newton "Peat Brown' Ink using a wet brush.  When that was dry, I painted her eyes and lips, and then did her skin highlights, with first the "Mocha", then I mixed some Crafter's Edition "Flesh" with the "Mocha" and did lighter highlights.   Next, I highlighted her hair with first the base "Burnt Sienna", then with Americana "Burnt Orange", I did highlights on the broom with first the base "Barnyard Red", then with Ameircana "Georgia Clay".   I then used the "Settlers Blue" to add some more specific highlights on the Black.

     Next, I did the highlights on the purple, first with a mix of the "African Violet" and some Apple Barrel "Apple Lavender", then with just the plain "Apple Lavender"

      I then worked on the metal parts, painting them first with Ceramcoat "Bronze", and then going back and doing highlights with Ceramcoat "14K Gold"  I painted the round object on her hat like a headlight, using Folk Art "Medium Grey", Folk Art "Silver Sterling", and White highlights.  I also added tiny White highlights to her goggles.

      After the figure had the afternoon to dry, I gave it a coat of Ceramcoat "Matte Varnish" in the evening.  The next morning I flocked the base, and later that afternoon I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote.

    I'm pleased with how the figure turned out, even though I didn't get it finished for Halloween. I did notice in the photos, that I didn't do good coverage with the Dullcote, and there's still some shiny spots in her clothing folds and recesses.  I'll have to ht it again with the Dullcote tomorrow.

Giant Spider (Frostgrave Version): Bones II Figure

    This week, I squeezed in painting, (in between all my Fall-In preparations!), one of the Bones II Giant Spiders from the Core Set Bonus Figures.  I wanted to paint it up as an Ice Spider for use with Frostgrave.
       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 white-primed 1" fender washers with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then glued the washer-mounted figure to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue.

     I began by painting the entire spider with Crafters Acrylic "Storm Cloud Grey". When this was dry, I gave the entire figure a wash with GW "Badab Black" wash using a wet brush.

     When the wash was dry, I drybrushed the spider with the base "Storm Cloud Grey", and then gave it a lighter drybrushing with Folk Art "Platinum Grey".   I then painted in two eyes with Crafters Edition "Christmas Red".  Next, I took some White and painted a design on the back of the spider, and gave the eyes tiny reflection dots.  Lastly, I used the White to touch up the paint on the base, anywhere that I had accidentally gotten other colors.
      When everything had overnight to dry, I gave the figure a coat of Ceramcoat "Matte Varnish".  Then, the next morning, I flocked the base with Woodland Scenics "Snow" flock.  Later that afternoon I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote.

      I decided to go with grey on this fellow, as I think I tend towards blue with my Frostgave stuff, and I wanted to get away from that.  It's a nice and simple monster, and was quick to paint.

Butteryfly Dragon Familiar: Figure 177 of 265

   This week, I started working on the witch figure from the Chronoscope set, as it was Halloween week, but I realized I wasn't going to have enough time to finish her.  So, I pulled out one of the familiars from the Familiars set, and prepared that to do a quick paint job on instead.
      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 white-primed 5/8" fender washers with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then glued the washer-mounted figure to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue.

   I began by painting the entire figure Black.  I then drybrushed it with Folk At "Settlers Blue".

     I decided to give the wings a Monarch butterfly look, so I painted in the design with Crafters Acrylic "Pure Pumpkin". I also used the "Pure Pumpkin" to give it tiny dot eyes.

      Next, I painted the rock with Folk Art "Medium Grey", then drybrushed it with Crafters Acrylic "Storm Cloud Grey", and then Folk Art "Platinum Grey". Then I painted the tiny plant atop the rock with Americana "Avocado", and then painted in some details with Crafters Acrylic "Wild Green".
        After the figure had the afternoon to dry, I gave it a coat of Ceramcoat "Matte Varnish" in the evening.  The next morning I flocked the base, and later that afternoon I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote.

     It's a nice quirky little figure, and I think the orange wings give it a nice presence.
     I think I should have the Chronoscope witch ready for next week.


Figure 177 of 265: Complete.

Town Guard (Anhurian) Bowman: Bones II Figure

     This week I also completed the Town Guard Bowman from the Bones II, Expansion 2.  I hadn't bought Expansion 2 during the Kickstarter, but I was able to get the Town Guard set from a friend, as I was keen to use them for Frostgrave soldiers.
      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 white-primed 1" fender washers with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then glued the washer-mounted figure to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue.

     I began by painting the chainmail Black, and then drybrushing it with Ceramcoat "Metallic Pewter".

     Next, I painted his pants with Americana "Territorial Beige", his tunic with Americana "Avocado", and his shoulder pads with Crafters Edition "Spice Brown". His hoodie I painted with Americana "Zinc, and the little secondary shoulder pads under the other shoulder pads I painted Americana "Dapple Grey"

     I then painted his bow with Crafters Acrylic "Cinnamon Brown", then did his face and hands with Americana "Shading Flesh".  I painted his boots with Folk Art "Dark Brown" and his belts with Americana "Charcoal Grey".  Then I did his helmet, sword grip, and quiver with Americana "Asphaltum". The top of the scabbard I painted with Americana "Khaki Tan". 

   Next, I painted his scabbard with Aleene's "Deep Khaki", then did the arrow shafts with Crafters Edition "Taupe", and the fletchings with Folk Art "Porcelain White".  Then, after everything had a while to dry, I gave all the non-metallic parts a wash with GW "Agrax Earthshade" wash using a wet brush.

     After the wash had plenty of time to dry, I began doing highlights.  First I painted his eyes, then I highlighted his skin with the base "Shading Flesh".  Next, I highlighted his tunic with some of the "Avocado" mixed with a little Americana "Jade Green".  Then I highlighted his pants with some of the "Khaki Tan". His double shoulder pads I highlighted with their respective base colors, then I highlighted the bow with its base "Cinnamon Brown" . His boots I highlighted with Americana "Sable Brown", and then I highlighted his belts, helmet, and scabbard with Americana "Mississippi Mud". His scabbard I highlighted with the base "Deep Khaki", and his hood I did with Crafters Acrylic "Storm Cloud Grey".  The arrow shafts I highlighted with the "Taupe", and the fletchings I highlighted with Crafters Acrylic "Light Antique White".
   Next, I painted his helmet bands, his buckles, and the metal parts of his sword and scabbard with Accent "Princely Pewter". I then highlighted these with the "Metallic Pewter". I also took this opportunity to highlight any of his chainmail armor that needed a touch up with the "Metallic Pewter".
     Lastly, I painted his base White.  I then applied a little area of white glue to the base and sprinkled some sand on it.   When the glue was dry, I painted the sanded area with Ceramcoat Walnut. Then when it was dry, I drybrushed it with Folk Art "Medium Grey", then Folk Art "Barn Wood". When everything had overnight to dry, I gave the figure a coat of Ceramcoat "Matte Varnish".  Then, the next morning, I flocked the white areas with Woodland Scenics "Snow" flock.  Later that afternoon I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote.

     I'm really pleased with this guy.  I think he came out looking good with a nice simple paint job.

Sascha Dubois: Figure 176 of 265

   This week I completed the Sascha Dubois figure from the Chronoscope Set.  I had posted an article here two week as ago about how I had converted this figure to be more of a fantasy figure than a sci-fi one, so it could fill the roll of a Chonomancer apprentice for my Frostgrave games.
       I had already prepped the figure in the usual way before I did the conversion work, so I moved directly to gluing the figure to a white-primed 1" fender washers with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then glued the washer-mounted figure to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue.

     I began by painting her skin with Americana "Shading Flesh".  I then painted her top with Accent "Mustard Seed", and her pants with Americana "Zinc".

     Next, I painted her coat with Accent "Deep Forest Green", and then went back to the "Mustard Seed" and used that to paint all the facings  and turnbacks on her coat. I then painted her boots, scabbard, belts, and the stone circle she stands on, with Black.  I used to Crafters Edition "Spice Brown" to paint her gloves, and Americana "Territorial Beige" to paint her hair.   When everything had had a while to dry, I gave all the browns,  yellows and her skin a wash with Winsor Newton "peat Brown ink using a wet brush.

   When the wash was dry, I painted her eyes and lips; then highlighted her hair, first with Apple Barrel "Maple Syrup", and then with Apple Barrel "Lemon Chiffon".  I then highlighted her skin, first with the base "Shading Flesh",  then adding a little Crafters Acrylic "Flesh" to it to do some lighter highlights.  I then highlighted her coat, first with Americana "Forest Green", and then with Americana "Leaf Green".  Next, I did the highlights on her top, and all the coat facings and turnbacks with, first, Crafters Acrylic "Bright Yellow", and then Crafters Acrylic "Daffodil Yellow".  Her pants were next, and I highlighted them with, first, Americana "Neutral Grey", and then Crafters Acrylic "Storm Cloud Grey".  Her boots, belts and scabbard I gave highlights with Folk Art "Settlers Blue". I painted her wand (?) hanging from her belt with the "Spice Brown", then highlighted the gloves and the wand with Americana "Sable Brown". I then painted the sword grip with Ameircana "Asphaltum".
   I then worked on the stone circle, drybrushing it first with Apple Barrel "Rock Grey", and then with Folk Art "Platinum Grey".
   

    Next, I worked on the metals, painting her epaulets, buttons, buckles, the pocket watch, the key at her belt, the rings on her wand, and the sword and scabbard parts all with Ceramcoat "Bronze". I then went back and highlighted all these parts with Cermcoat "14k Gold".  I then painted the bead string on her belt with Folk Art "Metallic Blue Sapphire". Lastly, I painted the base around the stone with "White" to cover any paint that had accidentally gotten on it; and while I had the White out, I panted in the face of the pocket watch, and then got the Black and my thinnest brush and painted a pair of hands on the watch face.
      When everything had overnight to dry, I gave the figure a coat of Ceramcoat "Matte Varnish".  The next morning I flocked the base around the stone circle with Woodland Scenics "Snow" flock.  Late that afternoon I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote.

     I'm really pleased with how this figure turned out.  I think  she will fit fine as the Chronomancers Apprentice.

Rex, Dark Future Hero: Figure 175 of 265

    This week I completed Rex, Dark Future Hero from the Chronoscope set.  It wasn't hard to see that this was supposed to be a not-Arnold figure from Terminator, so I did a quick Google search to see the exact colors of his classic T-1 outfit were. (Edit: I've been informed that this is a not-Mad Max figure, not an Ah-nuld one. Oops!  Though I think it works I'm both roles)
       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 washers with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then glued the washer-mounted figure to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue.

      I began by painting the entire figure Black.  I then drybrushed the entire figure with Folk Art "Settlers Blue".  Next, I painted his shirt with Americana "Zinc".

     I then painted his skin with Americana "Shading Flesh", and the stock of the shotgun with Crafters Acrylic "Cinnamon Brown".   After these were dry, I gave the skin and the stock a wash with Winsor-Newton "Peat Brown" ink using a wet brush.

     When the wash was dry, I painted his eyes, then did highlights on his face, hands, and arm with the base "Shading Flesh".  I then mixed a little Americana "Mocha" into the "Shading Flesh" to do some lighter highlights.  It was at this time that I realized that he was wearing what looked like a fingerless motorcycle glove on his right hand.  So, I quickly painted it Black and did some "Settlers Blue" highlights on it.  I took this opportunity to add Black eyebrows on him, and do some more specific "Settlers Blue" highlights on his black outfit.  I then added highlights to his shirt with Folk Art "Medium Grey".
     I now worked on the metallics, painting the metal parts of the shotgun with Accent "Princely Pewter". I then highlighted the gun parts and painted his belt buckle with Ceramcoat "Metallic Pewter".  Finally, I painted his jacket's many zippers with Folk Art "Silver Sterling".
      I decided I was going to leave the metal plate he is standing on exposed when I flocked the base, so I wanted to paint it like a piece of rusty metal and began by painting it with Ceramcoat "Walnut".  Then, with an old frazzled small brush, I stippled and splotched Crafters Edition "Spice Brown" over it trying to keep it off his boots.  Next, I did the same, but to a lesser extent with Accent "Golden Oxide". I then touched up any areas on his boots with Black where I had gotten spots on them.
       After the figure had the afternoon to dry, I gave it a coat of Ceramcoat "Matte Varnish" in the evening.  The next morning I flocked the base, and later that afternoon I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote.  I let the figure st overnight, and the next morning I applied a gloss varnish to his leather jacket to make it look really shiny like it does in the Terminator photos I had looked at.

     I'm pleased with how the figure turned out. Nothing terribly impressive, but a nice useful pulp, zombie, or sci-fi genre  game figure.

Sascha Dubois: Figure 176 of 265- Conversion Work in Progress

     Yes, I know I skipped a number. :) That is because I'm doing some conversion work on this figure, so I know I won't be able to paint it until a week or so from now. Figure 175 will be another figure that I will have painted by this coming Monday.
     When I looked at this figure, I really liked the look of her coat, which reminded me very much of an 18th century officer's coat.  This made me think of the Elquin High Elf Adventurer figure I had painted a little while ago, which I painted as wearing a 19th century uniform and overcoat.  I intend at some point to get another Elquin and paint him again, this time with a snow base, as a Chronomancer for my Frostgrave games, and it seemed that Sascha in her coat from the 1700s might be perfect to be the Chronomancer's apprentice.  The idea of them traveling in time, and picking up articles of clothing from different eras, really appeals to me.
     While I liked the blend of the old fashioned coat and the futuristic bit and bobs on her outfit, I thought the laser pistol at her side might be too much. This, combined with the fact I wanted to include something that might tie her to a medieval-like fantasy world a little more, gave me the idea to replace the pistol with a sword.  So, I set about doing the conversion.
    The first thing I needed was a suitable sword donor. So I sifted through my 'out' box and found Mi-Sher with her double swords. All I would need is to trim the hand off one of the hilts.  So, I prepped the figures in the usual way; soaking it 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.

      I then cut off one of the swords, and trimmed away the hand.  I then cut the sword into three sections, as I wanted it to fit in the crease between her outer thigh and her coat where her pistol had been, and I wanted the tip to stick out under the back bottom of the coat. I also trimmed part of the hilt's cross-guard away, so it would fit up against her hand. I then cut away Sascha's pistol at this point; and trimmed off the blocky parts sculpted on the front of her boots, as I felt they made her footwear look too modern. Lastly, I trimmed the communicator in her hand to attempt to make it look more like a pocket watch.

     I then used some superglue and glued the parts into place.

        I was left with a gap between her hand and the hilt...

      And a gap between the sword and the coat.

      So, I got out some Milliput I had and filled the gap between the sword and the coat.  I then attempted to resculpt the hand so it looked more like it was resting on cross-guard part of the hilt.

      I'm not a great sculptor, and the close confines of where the hand was located made it difficult to work on, but hopefully it is good enough that paint will hide a multitude of sins.  And, after all, it is intended as a gaming piece, not a display figure.

     So, now I will let it sit for a little bit so everything is good and dry, and we will pick up in couple weeks with the painting article.  I'm not sure what color I will paint her coat; British scarlet? Russian green? Austrian White?  I'll have to do some thinking.