Ardennes Dio -Friul tracks and mug up

Today I did a bit of work on the M4 Sherman Friul metal tracks. Friul tracks are great, though I had to use some thicker brass wire instead of the thin and way too flexible wire that came with the kit. After trimming the wire, a painting and weathering will be up next.

I also found the time to do a simple mug up of the dio. I’m still not satisfied with the positioning of the two SS infantrymen on the left side (okay I know that circles don’t have sides…but you get the point!)

I’ve scaled the dio down a bit compared to the original idea in order to make it more compact and intense. The positioning of the trees looks a bit weird and I still need to work on that. But still, the trees in the Ardennes are planted, so they do actually stand in straight rows.

Later I’ll sand the connections on the wooden sides down to get a smooth and completely round circle. I think I’ll paint them flat black to give a bit of contrast to the snowy surface of the scene.

A quick face painting practice update

As I write in my profile, I did a lot of modelling as a kid. Back then the only techniques I know was dry brushing, washes, and a bit of airbrushing and that’s basically how I painted every thing…

During my 12 year break from modelling a lot has happened, especially with the research tools available these days, like the Internet!

Coming back to modelling I’ve discovered stuff like acrylics and basic modulation techniques, which I’ve never tried on faces before. Now I want to learn! This is a test I did on a 14 year old Verlinden figure.

Base colour: VC-876 Brown sand

Highlight: VC-876 with variable mixes of VC-815 Basic skin tone

Shadows: VC-876 with variable mixes of VC-814 Burnt Cadmium Red

Deepest shadows: VC-859 Cadmium Maroon

…and yes…I know the eyes and eyebrows suck!!! ;-) I’ll get to that later!

Ardennes Dio - Oak Leaf camo

This has been my first time doing Oak leaf camo. First I did a few test runs on some scrap figures to get the right colour mix and pattern.

This particular Oak leaf is the fall version, which was issued to German combat troops from September 15^TH to April 15^TH. The jacket and trousers are reversible with white winter camo on one side and oak leaf on the other.

As a reference I used some colour pictures from the net and Jaume Ortiz’s great painting guide http://www.timelinesforum.com/index.php?page=oakleaf1

Like Ortiz, I made the violet brown base colour mixing VC-872 Chocolate Brown, VC-944 Old Rose, and VC-950 Black in an approximate ratio of 7:2:1.

Having applied a few coats of the base mix, I outlined all the seams of the trousers with VC-822 German Camo Black Brown.

After a few hours of drying time I moved on to the leaf pattern. Ortiz recommends starting out with a mix of VC-981 Orange Brown and VC-872 Chocolate Brown in a proportion of 7:3, but after having researched the subject I went my own way on this one.

I felt that the Orange Brown/Chocolate Brown mix was too bright compared to my reference picture http://www.germanmilitaria.com/WaffenSS/photos/S027161.html, so I went with just the Orange Brown.

The dots and outlining of the orange parts was done with VC-822 German Camo Black Brown .

Sticking to Ortiz’s guide, I used light washes to blend the colours together and make them look “worn”. This was followed by black oil washes on the darkest parts.

For a "first timer" I'm satisfied, next will be better think.

Next up, field kit and face painting…