Having absorbed the a on preparation and materials, you are now ready to begin the first exercise of Blanchitsu; ie slapping on the paint! Ensure that you're comfortable and that you have everything needed to hand. Apply the first coats of paint, starting with the largest areas - tunic, armour, arms, legs, head, etc. At this stage make no attempt to shade, just apply the chosen colours to the model. If you allow the brush to follow the shape of the casting, it will last longer and not show too many signs of wear. Don’t worry about small areas of detail or equipment at this juncture, just concentrate on making, a neat job of the major features. Once you have completed all of the basic colours put the model aside to dry. 72 oT‘With he First stage completed andthe model now absolutely dry, you may begin adding shadows tothe figure. The most effective way of representing the natural dackening of shadows, clothing creases et, is by using a colour wash ‘This is simply a diluted mix ofa darker shade ‘ofthebase colour. orexample, brown rather than, lightbrown, dark red rather than red, grey rather than white. The chart shows how you can create darker shades using Citadel Colour paint. By ‘experimentation you willsconleambow darken paintionesby adding differen colours or shades together The proportion af paint to water in the wash ‘isamattr of personal preference, required effect andthe density ofthe particular paintbeing used. ‘Trial and error will enable you to judge this most effectively. Ir would be foolish forus to ay down Strict ratios of paint to water, so you will have to developatee! fort! Aim for aconsistency similar ‘othat of milk, allowing the paintto flow into the crevicesand creases ofthe igure. A wash should ‘othe s thick thatthe base colouris completely ‘masked, nor should it be so watery that it dries in distinct “puddles. Many of the Citadel figres illustrated in White Dwarf are shased not by a standard paint ‘wash but using coloured ink. A mixture of ink nd vateris ideal for creainga wash. The pigment ‘used forinkcarries extremely well when diluted ‘and appears to be much finer than that used in paint 1 nae ce exsist Cesar ecreraty expeasieandgoainliand ‘fal ge The pot nova ht Cadel are emigre tetas aaron {Who says no-one ever listens os. We sai, Shou Oh orp). Watt ou fr re? Seats inate Dear As stated above, the colourchart we've given ‘hee isnt the be-end-end-ll for colour mixing. ‘The exact shade required may vary depending upon themoodofhe igure, surrounding colours and your own style. However, the chart is good starting point. You will notice that wherever possible a darker version of the base colour is ‘sed, dark blue toshade mid-blues and erimson, to shade bright red, for example. This is beter ‘than simply adding black to your orignal shade, Adding black does work up toa point, but the effect of adding black is to make the tone darker, whereas what you realy want isa tone ‘hats deeper, ie you wanta good strong dark blue ‘vera mid-biue, nt a dirty blue-grey. Yellow is particularly prone to discolouration if black is ‘added, for which reason a light red-brown is to beproferred, Likewise, white willlook very cold PCTINE CALA 73FLAT COLOUR \ INK WASH LINING HIGHLIGHTING snd artificial ifshaded by black/grey alone, alight jege or blue/grey are beter, the later lending an air of dignity to nobles or elves. fyouave not atemptedto shade sing the wosh technique before, you may wish to experiment with several diferent densities and ‘olour contrasts Before seting on style you prefer. Observe the way light falls upon feal ‘bjecs, people and clothes, notice how mich darker creases and shaded areas appear. Even flothes ofa single bright hue appear lighter or sarker sie allow the conor of he body or fll into creases. When trying 10 replicate this effect in miniature you ihaveto exaggerate the density fdas hacow inonsrtochieve wht Wi arasatealitic eu Tiss general ule iSrworking in miniature, colours must be Chern usa the miniature aatony ofthe ‘node overstate bythe culpa Iyou were {otake areal pesonand shrink tem downto the Size of a Cadel model they would appear Extremely pu a inmodel erm) boring Jast ssyou woud nc looktwice tn surely sled ‘model no-one is ging o look twice at a model ‘tic ses oly very sub shes ofl color Overemphassiewhalyououghtioty to achive gain tee othe photopapts. ‘Once you have finshed applying washes to youmodel you must putt aside again and allow {ttodry properly. When tis completely dry, the ‘model is ready forthe next stage, highlighting. Fortis you wllrequie your cheap or older brush, gsthtecnimecfdnbrashingguekly ans ood ‘Tobegin with, use your brush to mix a small amount of white with the base colour onto your palette. Then wipe most ofthe pigment fromthe brush, Slowly draw the brstlesof the brush across the aea to be highlighted, drawing against the lines ofthe sculptureif possible. Some of thedry pigment willbrushoffthebristlesonto the areas of detail and wel delineatedediges. You wll ‘notice how tis immediately creates highlight. ‘Thisshouldbe repeatedonceagainusing lighter shade and a slighty lighter brush stroke. ‘The ‘model should now begin to take on a3-D effect. ‘Continue to highligh the different base colours until this sage is complete. As with shading, ‘exaggerated effect gives the best results. ‘Weave occasionally hear itsaid that there is noneed shadeor highlight models, and that the natural surrounding light provides its own shadows and highlights. Thisis simply nonsense! ‘Thedepresions and raised portions of eminiature ‘probably show a marked difference of no more than 3mm, and are mostly inthe order of Imm ‘or less, Tn real life this figure is more a matter ‘of several inches. The way that light falls upon ‘the miniature and the real life object is totally liffeent, eventhe restricted light from a window diffuses around a small model in a way it cannot {a in the case of a large abject. your subjectincludes armour, either inthe formf plates of metal or mail-type armour, the basic techniques of wash and drybrush will give ‘2 good result, For plate armour abase of silver ‘canbe washed with black. When mixing wash to shade armour, da ltie more wate than you ‘normally wouldto allow the metalic base colour to shine through. Drybrush with silver. The ‘highlights on metal should beclearer and cleaner than oncloth. Experiment until you get an effect ‘you like. {you want to simulate rst, weathering or Sank mage, Wa unt ce Rig ctely dry and apply 2 wash of orange or froma Tisha oa Betscd pel ‘verte whole figure ogiveita weaher-besten appearance, but be careful not to overdo it! A a ule, metalic colours shoul be lft o dry for slighty longerttannormalpigmens. [fyouapply awash over ameulicshadetefore its properly ‘dy twillranhornbly Avoid eomuchbroshiwork ‘when shading, oF you wil serub ay the Base cout Tks now time to attend to any areas not yet painted, This will include detail such as belts, helmets, hair, fet, pouches, plumes, trappings, ‘weapons, et. The Same techniques are used as for the larger areas, but you will ave tobe even ‘more careful. Notonly are the areas smaller and more fiddly, but you must void spoiling work already completed. Be especially careful not t9 splash surrounding areas withyour washes. This Sage can be awkward, especially ifthe model featureslotaf deal which s difficult get at (Once you have painted few models you wil be able io identify those areas which are more convenient to paint initially and those which are better left unt ls. When the whole model has been painted, shaded and highlighted, the next stage is outlining Todo this you wil need to use your finest brush, bringing ittoa good point andtaking only ate paint upon it tip. Outline all ofthe areas where ‘one part ofthe model joins another, such as the Joint between sleeve and hand, where the tunic ‘Joins the breeches, the edge of belts, where the helmet or hair meets the fae, ec ‘Thismethod is used by historical wargamers topaint whole armies, usually employing black {ooutlne thecrisp colours ofmiltary uniforms. ‘When dealing with armies this looks extremely 200d, but for individual models alessstarkeffect ‘works better, i nc + Sa Wa ree ie ge + Sut oe Sep tov + Hgts age 7a GEIS DEAFor genera outlining, dark grey or dark brownare the mosteffetive, depending upon the colour of areas being outlined. If an area is especially dark, or ifthe contra is especially sharp, such a clethand meta, black may beused. Mix the required colour with water unt you get ‘consistency that flows easily bu still gives @ 0d opaque line. Often its sufficient to merely dip the tip of ‘thebrush in waterto freshen up the paint without spoiling the tp, this counteracts the rapid ‘evaporation of water and the fast rying-time of ‘he pain itself. Ouining requires a steady hand and a degree of patience... OK, a Degree in Patience. See the photo for a demonstration of the famous John Blanche elbows locked todesk, vwrists locked together, holding breath technique! ‘With the outlining complete you may wish to pause for breath before adding the in bits such as runes, rips, cus, butions, badges, patterning ‘and soon. The technique used is essentially that for outlining, although carrying the colours as required. You may wish to go back and outline these elements again once they are dry, using a suitable shade to do so. “The face is often said to be the focal point ofthe carefully presented model, Painting a face is not especially difficult so long as you are prepared to inves abit of time in getting iright. ‘This isthe John Blanche face painting method. Everyone has their own style, their own approach, ‘and heir own deal -sobe prepared to adapt these ideas to your own needs. Just as shading and highlighting were deliberately exaggerated to give the figure depth, sofacesarealsoexaggerated.Itistru,thetypical Blanche vizage leans towards the darker side of life but, in our judgement the method works, producing attractive and evocative faces ‘The face should receive its base coat, wash andhighlights during the norma peinting routine, In addition, extra highlighting is applied w the ‘nose, and a black wash is applied into the eye socks. Lips are added in the desired colour, ‘ormally @ mix of red/yellowiwhite for human coloured creatures. A dark red-brown line wll Separate the lips, or dark crimson inthe case of ‘open mouths. Tusks and teeth are spotted in carefully. Ifyou accidentally get white paint onto the lips you can easly paint over the mistake Eyes are spotted in with white, carefully following the moulding. When dry a small dot ‘is added forthe pupil. The op of the ye is then Cutlned using black, somewhat like line of black ‘mascara. If you allow this lie to drop slightly ‘onto the eye itself you will create the impression of an eye-id, preventing the eye from staring There are other ways to paint faces, but we shall returntothese ina future article. Advanced techniques of Blanchisu may be dangerous inthe hands of those who are not yet traly learned in the control oftheir powers! ‘When the face iscomplete your model is all ‘but finished. All that you will need to do now is decorate and pintthe base. Again, thisisadiverse subjectand one which we shall returntoin future article. Fortunately, one of the most simple ‘methods is also one ofthe most effective, and is often used for madels shown in Waite Dwarf. You will need PVA (woodworking) glue and «very old rush or even cocktail stick. Paint a layer glu onto the op ofthe model's base being ‘careful toavoidthe feet. Then sprinkle ordinary Sand ontothe glue and allow ittodry. Thissurface ‘can be painted green to represent grass, oF browa/grey to represent bare earth. Dry-brush witha suitablelighter shade tocompete the bas. my be advantageous to outline the model's fet, cor wo apply dark wash around the figures feet to lift out of the basing materi ‘Wesidallhatyou needed to do was the base? ‘Well, yes, the figure is now complet, but if you want io preserve your careful pain job you must apply varnish. The most convenient type of varnish comes in spray cans, and is applied in thesame way asawhite undercoat. Artshops sell suitable varnish in both matt and gloss forms, ‘whilst garages sell gloss varnish alongside the range of car paint. ‘The Blanchitsu school of thought, however, scoms such devices in favour of a huge tin of ‘household polyeurathane varnish and abrush. By applying several coats, a touch-protective layer is built up and the figure takes on the sheen of fine porcelain, Withallthisvamish, John Blanche ‘modelstendtoacquirea yellow tin afera while, ‘but this is quite pleasing in itself ‘The application of varnish is, admittedly, a question of personal preference, and you may refer the flat effect of matt varnish, or asomewhat thinner layer of gloss varnish. In any case, matt ‘varnish is not as good a protective coat as gloss. [you prefer a fat finish itis best to apply a thin coatof gloss andthen atin ayer ofmatt. Armour, ‘weapons and bare metal should look glossy in any ease, a small tin of gloss varnish anda brush can be used to selectively ‘gloss-up’ any detail you may choose. John Blanche and Rick Priestley REIS OME? 75