A few days late for Saint Nicholas Day, but the image is nevertheless suitably bright and cheerful. And it points the way to even greater things to come in the next few weeks.A slight headcold sent me to bed mid-evening yesterday without any painting done. Grrrr. But when you feel slightly run-down, it's sometimes best to put on some clean pajamas, fix a cup of tea, and retire to the second floor with the rest of the Sunday paper, which is what I did. It never seems to fail, but one of us usually succumbs to a cold in early December just about the time the academic term ends. It must have something to do with final and utter mental exhaustion after 15 or 16 chaotic weeks, leading to a somewhat weakened constitution, which paves the way for a minor bug to take hold. Aah-choo!!! Gesundheit!
Today, it's suitably dark and grey outside. Much of the American Midwest is in the midst of a large winter storm, stretched across several of the plains states. We might see as much as three inches of snow here in Central Illinois by evening, but most of Iowa is under a blizzard warning! Our temperatures are supposed to drop considerably tonight, and tomorrow will be much colder and blustery. But it's warm and comfortable in the house, and we don't absolutely NEED to go out today, so we certainly cannot complain here.
Time permitting, I've been examining my Funken and the Internet closely the last several days when it comes to the uniforms and flags of the German regiments in French service during the mid-1700s. Fascinating and eye-catching stuff there. I like especially the mid- and light blues worn by many of these units. None of that dour Prussian/Hessian dark blue! Nope. Those German-French units provide ample fodder there for painting up quasi-imaginary tabletop battalions and regiments. And Lauzun's Legion of the American War of Independence? Be still my heart! Especially those hussars and grenadiers.
Many of the troops that were part of the Reichsarmee also wore interesting coat/vest/breeches combinations, so there is plenty of scope for less common, historical uniforms out there that will not necessarily be carbon copies of the Big Five (Prussia, Austria, France, Russia, or Britian). And let's not forget smaller powers like Spain, Holland, and Denmark, whose troops also appeared on the battlefields of Europe, wearing interesting and variegated uniforms. Oooooo, it's nearly got me twitching all over!
Comments
As you know I'm basing my Saxe-Bearstein troops on those from Hanover . . . well sort of.
Hanover's cavalry and dragoons both wore white . . . and since I want them to look different, I'm changing the basic dragoon coat to a golden tan type color.
Of course the Grant's just painted a lot of historical units up and incorporated them into their own Imagi-Nations . . . so you are on solid ground here.
I hope that your headcold doesn't last and that you and your family are able to have a delightful holiday break.
-- Jeff