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…