Skip to main content

A Jaundiced View. . .

Here's where we are with the six Austrian limber teams and riders this afternoon.

Relax!  No controversial posts today, simply a progress report on the current painting.  But I am rather jaundiced in outlook at the moment, following the application of the yellow facing color yesterday evening, a yellow highlight to two of the limbers this morning (while the carpet cleaners were here), and a second thin glaze of alkyd oil fleshtone on the faces, which weren't quite peachy enough for me.  If I get the limbers done this afternoon, I'll address hair, mustaches, and possibly highlight the riding gauntlets with off white this evening.

The limbers have been a two-step process so far.  First of all, I carefully slopped -- Can you ever 'slop' carefully? -- thinned alkyd oil Yellow Ochre all over them a couple of days ago.  I have followed today with carefully touching a small brush, loaded with the brighter yellow acrylic you see at right, thinned just a wee bit, to the raised areas to bring out some detail and add depth to the limbers, yet keep the "woodwork" from turning out too bright.  

The two limbers at far left have had both steps of the yellow treatment, and I am reasonably happy with the way they have turned out.  Not bright Ferrari yellow, but a more subdued mustard yellow, which seems appropriate for Austrian limbers.  It's kind of slow going though, hence the lunch break right now.

-- Stokes

Comments

Conrad Kinch said…
Good man - keep at it Stokes.
Pierre le Poilu said…
"..carefully slopped.." does seem to me to be an oxymoron, but it did make me giggle.

I am looking forward to seeing the finished limbers.
My Dear Heinz-Ulrich,

It was with a bit of joy that I read your last post. It would seem that you are enjoying our wonderful hobby and proceeding to make inroads into the proverbial lead pile. The artillery looks very nice indeed and should allow for one of the bigger games we all enjoy. As the notable Kinch said "keep at it"!

Enjoy the rest of the summer - September with all of its attendant work always looms just over the horizon when you get to the mid-point of the summer.

All the very best for a refreshing summer idyll,

Gerardus Magnus
Archbishop Emeritus



Popular posts from this blog

The 18th century? What's the Fascination?

Hessian musketeers by All the King's Men Toy Soldiers of Snellville, Georgia, U.S.A. Just a quick post post today, but I thought the above question might be interesting food for thought. Obviously, there is an array of possible periods, theaters, and conflicts that might catch our eyes. But what is it about the era 1700-1799 -- either real, or imagined? Is it the commanders and politics? The fairly straightforward tactics? The myriad of uniforms and flags? The variety and scope of the conflicts? The patchwork of various and sundry petty states, (at least in Central Europe)? I'm very interested to learn your thoughts. Don't be a lurker! Please leave a comment -- or even two or three. Have a nice day everyone!

An Early July Hussar Update. . .

  Marginally neater in appearance with green bases, girths, and ivory horse markings added, but I need to neaten up some hooves now before moving onto the rest of the tack. W here in the world did June go? While I still ponder the answer to that question, how about a quick painting update on the first batch of 14 Minden Austrian hussars and Nadasdy? Good.  I'm glad we are of a like mind. Still on the sloppy side, but I've managed to move things along, painting the green bases, white (ivory) horse markings, and beginning the miles and miles of tack adorning the various horses.  I always like to begin with the girths spanning the horses' ribs which helped hold the saddles in place.  Even with the figures mounted individually on temporary painting bases, these can be kind of tricky to access, but there we are. I've also used various Army Painter washes (Mid-Brown and Strong Tone) as well as their Speed Paint (Grim Black) to make the manes and tails of the horses a bit m...

Basic Reds Done at Last. . .

  S till quite a way to go with the current batch of 20 human figures and a horse (of course), but they're actually starting to look like something after all of the red distinctions.  Quite a bit of painting in hour-long sessions the last week as and when time has allowed.  Mostly applying the basic dark red to facing areas and turnbacks followed by the inevitable touch-ups to clean up wobbly edges and those misplaced, minute splotches of Citadel Khorne Red.   They're looking like so many Austrian infantry regiments of the era at this point, but the eventual flags will turn them magically into the Anhalt-Zerbst Regiment, more or less, of the AWI period.  But I'm getting a bit ahead of myself. One frustrating point (ahem) of sad discovery.  I've started trying to use those Winsor & Newton 'Series Seven' brushes (#1 rounds) purchased last spring, and the blasted things simply will not keep a point.  Very frustrating since I have heard over the y...