Yearly Archives: 2018

Read more about the article Trumpeter 2nd Rgt. Lancers of the Guard
Miniatures / Modern-Napoleonic (1799–1815)

Trumpeter 2nd Rgt. Lancers of the Guard

This is the last figurine for 2018 and I can say it's been really challenging both from the painting and assembling perspectives. The figurine is a 90mm one and represents a Trumpeter 2nd Rgt. Lancers of the Guard (ref [1]). This is my first figure of this type and as I said it's quite difficult. The first challenge was the face. Sometimes I want to test different brands of colours (I typically use Vallejo and Andrea) and this time I tried the Scale 75 but found they are too sticky for me, so I decided to use oil colours for the first time (I mean, not for the armour as I did in the past). I tried the Oilbrusher by…

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December 20, 2018
Read more about the article Medieval Footman
Medieval-Late (1250-1500) / Miniatures

Medieval Footman

This is really a big bust! The scale is a standard 1:10 but the overall posture and the the pole arm take a lot of space in my showcase. The bust is manufactured by Altores Studio and represents a infantry footman in the medieval age (ref. [1]). I really love this bust especially for the shouting facial expression which is pretty much unique. I tried to reproduce a tired soldier after a tough battle, hence the long beard and the dirt over all the surfaces. I hope I have been able to do a decent job, but overall I am happy with the final result. [ngg src="galleries" ids="19" display="pro_mosaic"] References[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infantry_in_the_Middle_Ages

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November 11, 2018
Read more about the article Jacobite Highlander Culloden Moor, 1746
Miniatures / Modern-Early (1492-1750)

Jacobite Highlander Culloden Moor, 1746

This is a medium (scale 1:12) bust from Heroes and Villains Miniatures (ref. [1]) that portraits a Jacobite Highlander (ref. [2]). I am not fey happy with the face, I think I did the same mistake as the previous bust and used too many layers of colour, although they are thin. The real challenge here has been, of course, the tartan and the texture. It's really a nightmare painting so many line and squares and their shadows and lights, but overall I am happy the way it ended up! [ngg src="galleries" ids="18" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"] References[1] - http://www.heroesvillainsminiatures.com/product/jacobite-highlander-culloden-moor/[2] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobite_rising_of_1745

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September 4, 2018
Read more about the article English Man-at-Arms, Crecy, 1346
Medieval-Late (1250-1500) / Miniatures

English Man-at-Arms, Crecy, 1346

Another small bust (scale 1:12) from FER Miniatures which is very nice and represents a "Man at arms" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man-at-arms) during the battle of Crecy in 1346. I wanted to represent a tired soldier after a battle, but I am not completely happy with the outcome about the face, I think I used too many layers of colour so the face ended up being a bit shiny... However, this is also my first attempt at painting a complex heraldry like the one painted over the shield and in this case I am much more happy with the final result! [ngg src="galleries" ids="17" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"]

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May 26, 2018
Read more about the article Saxon Huscarl, Hastings, 1066
Medieval-High (1000-1250) / Miniatures

Saxon Huscarl, Hastings, 1066

This is a small bust (1:16 scale) by FER Miniatures who represents a Saxun Huscarl (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housecarl) during the Battle of Hastings in 1066 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hastings) This bust is nice and quick to paint as it's rather small. I just want to highlight the texture of the cape which I tried to reproduce by using a technique similar to the dry brush, but with more colour and using a simple stippling. [ngg src="galleries" ids="16" display="masonry"]

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April 26, 2018
Read more about the article Frederick II
Medieval-High (1000-1250) / Miniatures

Frederick II

This is one of my favorite figurines, and portraits Frederick II of Swabia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor). This is an old 90mm miniature from Pegaso Models, but this is undoubtedly a classic. I think I improved a bit my technique about painting shades and lights for both white and red hues. The chain mail is not painted, that is I leveraged on the white metal and oil colours to paint the shadows. The red cross and the eagle on the shield are bass-relief, so they are easier to paint and the 3D effect is nice. The shadows over the eagle are painted with oil colours. The gloves have been painted using the Quickshade colours by Army Painter, starting from a beige surface and…

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March 27, 2018
Read more about the article The Defeat
Medieval-Late (1250-1500) / Miniatures

The Defeat

"The Defeat" is a representation of a scene where a Polish Knight takes possession of the flag of an unhorsed Teutonic knight in the context of the "Battle of Tannenberg" (1410) also known as "Battle of Grunwald" (https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battaglia_di_Grunwald). This is my first "mini diorama" where I had to fit two figures. I painted the metal parts by polishing the white metal of the miniatures and painting them with oil colours. The flag is scratch build out of a think sheet of white metal. [ngg src="galleries" ids="14" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"]

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February 26, 2018
Read more about the article The Black Prince
Medieval-Late (1250-1500) / Miniatures

The Black Prince

This is an old 90mm figurine from Andrea Miniatures that portraits "Edward the Black Prince" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_the_Black_Prince) The surcoat has a nice heraldry (fleur de lis) bass-relief, so they are easier to paint. As there is a wide surface area which is metallic, I decided to leverage on the real metal and painted the lights/shadows using the oil colours. The white band around the waist is a bit controversial, as I have not been able to find any illustration about it in the historical sources, but removing it would have been a nightmare, so I kept it. [ngg src="galleries" ids="13" display="pro_blog_gallery" border_color="#dd9933"]

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January 6, 2018