Glossing Over a Few Final Things. . .

The Minden Bosniaks mid-glossing, after the first coat. Hmmm. Mid-glossing. Sounds like a village just up the road from Badger's Drift on Midsomer Murders.

Well, we are nearing the end of the Bosniak tunnel at last. I've spent the afternoon applying the first coat of acrylic gloss with #3 and #5 rounds. Pretty spiffy if you'll pardon my saying.

As always, gloss varnish makes the colors pop even more. I am especially pleased with the black kaftans highlighted in very dark blue, the red with scarlet highlights, and the horse coats. Not quite Doug Mason ca. 1983, but they'll work well enough for me.

What's that? About 800 Minden Austrian dragoons thundering toward the painting table, you say? Come, come now. It's really just 36 riders and horses to paint. There will be times, I am certain, where it FEELS like 800 of them.

Ok. Enough chit-chat, everyone. Looks like I've got my work cut out for me. Chaaaaaarge!

-- Stokes

An Easter Sunday P.S.
A second coat of acrylic gloss was added earlier this afternoon, the figures above now look like little jewels, and they have been placed carefully in one of the large plastic storage tubs in which I keep the painted figures. I think a small game with The Young Master might be in order next weekend. We'll see what he thinks about it. In the meantime, 36 Minden horses stand ready for base-coating over on the painting bench. Stay tuned. The painting insanity is about to begin. Yes, I know. I've come completely unhinged.

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!

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...

Happy September 2nd!!!

T his weekend, the question of what, precisely, constitutes an "imagination" came up in an online forum of which I am a part. To be fair, the issue originates from further afield in a Facebook group that I am not a member of, but I weighed in with my own view. The following was in response to the question posed yesterday (Sunday) morning by an exasperated member of my own rather more gentlemanly town square, who had been met with a strident response to information he shared about his (admirable) hobby activities on said FB group. Here is, more or less, what I wrote: To my mind, the concept of imagi-nation(s) is a broad one. It can range from historical refights or what-if scenarios/battles/campaigns between armies of a particular era, to completely made up combatants operating in a quasi-historical setting, to the rather generic red and blue forces of the Prussian Kriegspiel that examine a particular tactical problem, task, or exercise. ...

The Grand Duchy of Stollen

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