Thank you for your comments. The shields got better in time (you can see that some of the miniatures have rather crude attempts on their shields, while the later creations show improvement ;). I use a W&N Series 7 Size 1 brush for the freehands. With a steady hand and a fine tip it is possible to achieve a good result, but cleaning up is necessary in the end. However, these are still rank and file troops and the army has almost 200 miniatures in it, so I have to find a compromise between quality and being finished in a timely manner.
I will upload some more of my 15mm creations in due course, but will also add more of my 28mm stuff.