Elena

I'm a terrible one for starting new projects before finishing what's already "on the bench" and I'm doing it yet again. I had a look through my collection of unpainted miniatures today and experienced an unreasonable urge to make a start on this figure.

 The miniature in question is Elena, female barbarian - from CoolMiniOrNot's own line. This figure seemed to get no love at all when it was released which struck me as odd - I think it's stylistically very cool and quite well sculpted. Not sure who it's by - I was thinking Yannick Henebo but I'm not sure. Anyway I'll see if I can stick with the project until the end and maybe come up with the first painted version of this figure I've seen other than the "box art"...

Nagrot, Crook-eye

I had a look back through the blog to see if I'd posted any pictures of this miniature back when I first started painting it. Turned out I had - back in October of 2010. Didn't realise it was that long ago. Good to finally get it finished. Decided against the shield in the end - not because I'm lazy - I just like the look of the miniature without it.

The base is just rocks, miliput, coriander root, techstar snowflakes (still have a heap left from a bag I purchased back in the early 2000s) and paint...

Unfinished and almost forgotten 2

Okay so I've spent a bit of time on this miniature now. Mostly I just wanted to smooth out the transitions on the skin - they were quite scratchy looking - something that happens if I'm glazing and not being careful.

The first picture shows the miniature as it had been for a couple of years. In the second I've smoothed out the transitions on the torso and added a little colour to the underside of the belly as well as adding some darker lining around the eyes with a red/black-brown. In the last I've smoothed the rest of the flesh, added some colour to the knees and repainted the mouth and left hand. In the end I basically repainted most of the flesh areas, not sure how obvious the changes are but I do think adding a little colour and warmth to certain areas improved the miniature subtly.

Unfinished and almost forgotten...

I guess having a collection of partially finished figures is a pretty common theme amongst miniature painters. Some of my own horde will most likely never be revisited for a variety of reasons but others - so close to completion, beg for a little attention.

I've picked out a couple which I think are decent candidates - I'm relatively happy with where they're at but I can - after having a good look at the photos - see what can be improved through different colour choices and general refining of what's already been laid down.

First up is Nagrot Crook-eye from Guild of Harmony, sculpted by Seb Archer. This is a great little sculpt and I like a lot of the painting - the yellowish metallic of the skull and the purple loincloth contrast nicely and the rest of the metals, leather and fur are okay however, whilst I don't mind the skin colour, it's a little rough in transition, a bit flat - lacking contrast and could be more interesting colourwise. I'm also undecided about the shield arm - initially I preferred it hanging limply without the shield but now I'm thinking that it'd probably be better if attached - not sure which way I'll err yet. I'll spend a few hours on it this evening and maybe tomorrow and see what I can manage.

Yet more touting of my auctions...

Another miniature from the shoebox. The new pictures seem (to me at least) to be a vast improvement over the previous ones so hopefully someone out there is willing to fork out the 99 cent asking price - it's not even US money we're talking here but Australian which is around USD0.93... Not even the price of... well anything... So dig deep - loose change from the back of the couch should cover it.

eBay Time...

I can't remember the last time I've eBayed any miniatures but I think the time may have come. Rather than being on display, the below miniatures have been packed in a box for the last couple of years which is of no use to anyone so hopefully somebody out there can make use of them.

The first auction is up now. You can see it here if you're interested.

I hate to do this...

I watched part of the Miniature Mentor video on photography by Felix Wedgwood and decided to change a few settings to see what happened. I used my painting light and the background is an ugly colour but I think the improvements are dramatic. If you feel inclined let me know if you think the quality of the photo is a significant improvement over the previous.