Skip to main content

Pontonier Update #5: The Tiny Details. . .

We're getting very close to the two wrapping things up with the pontoniers.  Right on schedule.  It's rare when that happens.  And I'll bet you didn't know that actor David Soul (of Starsky and Hutch fame) had an ancestor who fought for the Grand Duchy of Stollen, did you?  Can you spot him?

Another nice painting session this evening after the Young Master's bedtime, and I finished up a few remaining tiny details, including brass buttons, wigs, and hair in a few different colors as well as retouching the brass buckles on some of the figures where these are not covered by gaiters.  

Except for the pontoons, which I'll finish tomorrow, I'm satisfied, and will call the two companies of pontoniers done except for retouching a few of the green bases.  I might even be able to apply my usual two coats of acrylic gloss varnish tomorrow too.  And then on Sunday, it's time to turn my attention to General von Bauchschmerzen and his uhlan escorts luring in the background.  

I must admit, it is a very nice feeling when painting goes so quickly and easily, but then I think that's due more to the high quality of the Minden figures, which are easy to paint to a good standard, than it is to any great skill on my part.  Who knows?  But I do like the way things have turned out.

 -- Stokes


Here's another vintage Scandinavian Christmas greeting card (it reads 'Happy Christmas Wishes') that I suspect is Norwegian given the farm wife's sweater and the mountains in the background.  Along with her farm's nisse and the cat of course.  The tradition goes that you set out a bowl of warm, rich cream porridge in the barn for the nisse on Christmas Eve to keep him happy and content, ensuring continued good fortune for the coming year.


Comments

Pierre le Poilu said…
Are nisse musical? Do they sing christmas carols and winter songs? Is the banjo a traditional nisse instrument?

Nice figures by the way.
5:02 AM
tidders said…
Pontooniers looking good, will make a great setup when finished

-- Allan
6:14 AM
Jiminho said…
Is David Soul Sr. the fellow in the pontoon with an oar but without a tricorn?

I have to say that you seem to have mastered the "porcelain figurine" look with these figures. It is a unique look (to my mind, judging from wg figure painting sites on-line) and both striking and effective. Well done!
11:26 AM
WSTKS-FM Worldwide said…
Thank you for your kind comments, men! Yes, Mr. David Soul is indeed the blond gentleman in the pontoon holding an oar. I'd even say that the face of this particular casting looks very much like the actor in his 1970s prime. I don't know how musical nisse are, or if banjos are their traditional instruments. This is actually the first illustration I can recall that depicts a nisse playing a musical instrument. Any native-born Norwegian visitors out there who might care to enlighten us on this particular point? Please feel free to weigh in here.

Best Regards,

Stokes
12:23 PM
CelticCurmudgeon said…
My Dear Heinz-Ulrich, Greetings,

The figures are lovely. Do you have an idea for rules for them now that they are almost done? Will work on the pontoon bridge move according to how many pontooniers are available? Is there an officer figure in overall command? Can the men fight or are they simply all potential POWs?

Warmest holiday regards from the Cancellery. If only the cook could get your stollen recipe correctly done....

Gerardus Magnus
Archbishop Emeritus
2:16 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Presenting the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere!!!

Here they are, with the rearmost nine figures still drying, three squadrons of the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere, now in the service of the Grand Duchy of Stollen. And now, it's onto that artillery!
14 comments
Read more

Keepin' an Eye on the World Going By My Window . .

'The Nap at the Palace' by Jose Triado Mayol N ot much in the way of hobby-related activity happening here in the Grand Duchy lately.  Sigh.  And no surprise there really since there are only so many hours in the day, only so much mental and physical energy to spare, and you sometimes simply just have to give in and know when to say, um, "When!"  A glass of wine and/or evening yoga by the hearth with the Grand Duchess (who has practiced for over 20 years), and then off into la-la land.  Zzzzzzzzz.   More immediately, I'm recovering, mentally speaking, from a grueling Friday in which I was involved with three (online) conference sessions, one right after the other, followed by a 90-minute meeting at the end of the day. Also virtual. My brain has been mush ever since, so an easy, completely unproductive Saturday watching intermittent snow fall outside (no accumulation however) and drinking coffee while the visiting handymen completed some repair work down h...
3 comments
Read more

And It's the End of September!!!

  Saxony's Ploetz Cuirassiers, an illustration lifted from the Kronoskaf website, which has thus far guided my spectacularly glacial painting of 30 28mm Eureka Saxon cuirassiers purchased all the way back in October 2016. A gray, cool Saturday here in Mid-Michigan with rain in the forecast. The Grand Duchess is away at a conference, so it's just "The Boys" here at home. The Young Master (almost 15) has retreated to his room for something or other following breakfast while I have stolen back down here to Zum Stollenkeller (masquerading as my office) with a second mug of coffee and both cats comfortably ensconced nearby. Enjoying the late morning and still in my pajamas! Not much planned for today beyond designing a couple of promotional flyers for workshops my department is presenting (small parties we will throw?) in October and November.  With maybe a bit of on the next podcast script. More important,  I am toying with the idea of returning for an hour or...
3 comments
Read more