| Layering is a basic technique for applying highlights | | | | Eyes |
| to a model that are both more precise and | | | | FolkArt Lime Yellow |
| cleaner looking than your basic drybrushing. While | | | | 50/50 Lime Yellow/Skull White |
| drybrushing certainly has its benefits, when applied | | | | Gems |
| to an entire model it gives the model a dirty look | | | | Blood Red |
| and is hard to control exactly where you want | | | | Blazing Orange |
| the paint to go. With layering, you decide where | | | | Skull White (dot) |
| the highlights will be. Some basic things to | | | | Barbed Wire |
| remember before you go ahead and start painting | | | | Vermin Brown base |
| them: | | | | Boltgun Metal heavy drybrush coat. just shy of a |
| 1) Determine both the starting colour and the final | | | | wet coat actually |
| colour that you want to aim for. | | | | In order to paint with layers, you simply start |
| Don't be upset if the final colour comes out a bit | | | | with a darker colour of what you want to end up |
| different however, that is normal. Choosing the | | | | with and add more and more of a lighter highlight |
| colours you want to start and finish with will help | | | | colour to the mix in order to continue the |
| with choosing highlight colours. | | | | progression from dark to light. Each time you go |
| 2) Determine where your light source is coming | | | | a step lighter you paint a smaller area within the |
| from. | | | | previous one. Depending on how many coats you |
| This sounds like a silly thing to worry about but it | | | | want to do and how smooth you wish the |
| is actually very important. A model that is lit by | | | | transition from dark to light to be, you can paint |
| noontime sun will be highlighted substantially | | | | successive layers either very close to the outside |
| different than one that is lit by the sun from | | | | edge of the previous colour or you can go smaller |
| behind at dusk. Personally, I like to do my layering | | | | and leave a fair bit of the previous colour showing. |
| as if lit by the sun from directly above as it is | | | | Going fairly close to the edge of the last colour |
| easier :) | | | | will result in a smoother looking blend of colours |
| 3) Decide on just how many layers you want. | | | | but takes a lot more layers than leaving a larger |
| For quicker painting on models you just want to | | | | amount of the previous colour. However, leaving |
| look decent on the table, 2 is enough (not including | | | | larger layers is perfect for tabletop quality minis |
| the base colour) but for models that you REALLY | | | | and requires much less time. Seems like a ton of |
| want to look impressive, you are going to need | | | | work but it really isn't as more often than not, |
| far more. I tend to paint everything with at least | | | | you are going to be adding just a bit more of the |
| 4+ layers but that is just me. | | | | lighter colour and doing another coat immediately |
| For the Steel Blue | | | | after the first so it goes fairly fast. I will use the |
| 50/50 FolkArt Metallic Sequin Black/DecoArt | | | | steps for the Steel Blue as the basis for this |
| Metallic Ice Blue | | | | article. |
| 3-4 layers of Metallic Ice Blue mixed with | | | | In this case I use a 50/50 mix of Metallic Sequin |
| increasing amounts of Mithril Silver | | | | Black/Metallic Ice Blue to achieve the initial colour. |
| For the Gold | | | | This is then painted on the entirety of the |
| Tin bitz base | | | | surfaces you wish to be the colour you are going |
| 50/50 Tin Bitz/Shining Gold | | | | for. Don't be afraid to get paint on other surfaces |
| Shining Gold | | | | at this point as you can simply clean up these |
| 50/50 Shining Gold/Mithril Silver for the extreme | | | | ares with your black/white bascoat when you are |
| highlights | | | | done. Keeping the paint you have just used, add a |
| Cloth | | | | small amount of Mithril Silver to the mix and paint |
| Vermin Brown | | | | the next stage in a slightly smaller area than the |
| 3-4 coats of vermin Brown with increasing | | | | last coat. Repeat this step 3 or 4 more times, |
| amounts of Bleached Bone | | | | adding in more Mithril Silver as you go until you |
| 50/50 Bleached Bone/Skull White | | | | reach the desired effect. A good spot in the pic |
| Skull White (extreme highlights only. Will look fine | | | | here to see the separate layers is on the loincloth. |
| without this step as well) | | | | You can see the dark first layer and the next |
| The design on the tabbard is done in pure | | | | few layers within each other fairly clearly. This |
| Ultramarines blue iirc | | | | method can be applied to any mini with any colour |
| Hoses and gun clip/basic metal parts | | | | and once you get the hang of it is extremely |
| Boltgun Metal | | | | easy to do. |
| Black Ink wash (no water added, straight Ink) | | | | |