Archon Shiva
New member
So, you have neither the skills, equipment or patience to paint miniatures properly? You see posts from people who claim they can't paint to save their lives and keep going "I wish I could do that!" You're hesitant to buy supplies because you're convinced that after a single horrible failed attempt, they're never going to be used again? You're afraid of even touching a brush to a miniature because you think the unpainted probably looks better than anything you can manage?
This is the tutorial for you. It's going to teach you how to paint badly. It's going to make you do stuff and use materials that will make the experts curl up and cry. But you're going to paint miniatures. And they're going to look better than you ever thought you could manage.
This tutorial is intended mostly for the people who were drawn in by Zombicide, so I'll be painting a zombie. I'll be painting a glow-in-the-dark figure from a $6 100-pack of Zombies!!!, because I had it handy. I've never painted a zombie, so it's not even going to be a good zombie.
I've made some of the less critical pictures links to make the thread load faster.
A. Materials
Paint: Get the cheap stuff from the dollar store. Think $1 per 60ml bottle. If you already have paint for whatever reason, you can probably use that. Avoid latex paint you'd use for walls, that may be a bit thick.
Start with black, two shades of brown and some sort of green-gray-blue-ish zombie skin tone. Maybe a bit of blue, for jeans, and red, if you want blood. You can always run by the dollar store later for more colors.
Brushes: Think five-for-a-dollar, with different tip sizes. Or go crazy, invest a whole $5 and get a semi-decent brush - but it might be a bit too soon for that.
As for workspace, you want something to protect your table, a saucer of water, something to mix paint in, and a paper towel. Light helps.
B. Cleaning the miniature
The small things are where it's at. Wash the miniatures in warm, soapy water. Work inside a strainer to avoid losing one in the drain. Rinse and dry. Skipping this step messes up two things: the paint won't stick as well, and it will never dry completely, making the figure sticky forever.
C. Priming
Paint the whole thing black. Don't worry about putting fingers everywhere, or uneven paint. If it seems to accumulate too much in places, paint over that area again once the brush starts to run out of paint. You could do only half at once, if it helps. Let it dry, then add another coat. More drying is a good thing.
D. Painting
Always do layers from the inside out. In this case, skin first, then clothing.
Just put whatever skin color you're using where there should be skin. In this case, the head, hands, and a bit of leg sticking out. I also put some in the hole on its back. If you use too much, wipe it with the paintbrush again, but don't worry about it.
Note that I clearly missed spots on his left arm with the primer. It doesn't matter, we'll hide it later.
I then used a technique called dry brushing where you put some paint on a brush, then wipe most of it on a paper towel.
Then, in the manner of a young kid enthusiastically painting his first white picket fence, slap some brush strokes across the jacket.
On the plus side, I added some paint to where I missed his arm with the primer.
On the minus side, I went and put some jacket brown over his ribs, which is sorta wrong. Don't worry, it'll fix later.
This is the tutorial for you. It's going to teach you how to paint badly. It's going to make you do stuff and use materials that will make the experts curl up and cry. But you're going to paint miniatures. And they're going to look better than you ever thought you could manage.
This tutorial is intended mostly for the people who were drawn in by Zombicide, so I'll be painting a zombie. I'll be painting a glow-in-the-dark figure from a $6 100-pack of Zombies!!!, because I had it handy. I've never painted a zombie, so it's not even going to be a good zombie.
I've made some of the less critical pictures links to make the thread load faster.
A. Materials
Paint: Get the cheap stuff from the dollar store. Think $1 per 60ml bottle. If you already have paint for whatever reason, you can probably use that. Avoid latex paint you'd use for walls, that may be a bit thick.
Start with black, two shades of brown and some sort of green-gray-blue-ish zombie skin tone. Maybe a bit of blue, for jeans, and red, if you want blood. You can always run by the dollar store later for more colors.
Brushes: Think five-for-a-dollar, with different tip sizes. Or go crazy, invest a whole $5 and get a semi-decent brush - but it might be a bit too soon for that.
As for workspace, you want something to protect your table, a saucer of water, something to mix paint in, and a paper towel. Light helps.
B. Cleaning the miniature
The small things are where it's at. Wash the miniatures in warm, soapy water. Work inside a strainer to avoid losing one in the drain. Rinse and dry. Skipping this step messes up two things: the paint won't stick as well, and it will never dry completely, making the figure sticky forever.
C. Priming
Paint the whole thing black. Don't worry about putting fingers everywhere, or uneven paint. If it seems to accumulate too much in places, paint over that area again once the brush starts to run out of paint. You could do only half at once, if it helps. Let it dry, then add another coat. More drying is a good thing.
D. Painting
Always do layers from the inside out. In this case, skin first, then clothing.
Just put whatever skin color you're using where there should be skin. In this case, the head, hands, and a bit of leg sticking out. I also put some in the hole on its back. If you use too much, wipe it with the paintbrush again, but don't worry about it.
Note that I clearly missed spots on his left arm with the primer. It doesn't matter, we'll hide it later.
I then used a technique called dry brushing where you put some paint on a brush, then wipe most of it on a paper towel.
Then, in the manner of a young kid enthusiastically painting his first white picket fence, slap some brush strokes across the jacket.
On the plus side, I added some paint to where I missed his arm with the primer.
On the minus side, I went and put some jacket brown over his ribs, which is sorta wrong. Don't worry, it'll fix later.
