From time to time I get questions from readers. I have decided to put these online so I can share the answers with all of you instead of putting the time in an answer which is sent to one person while it could be helpful to other as well.

For this first Q&A post I have two questions. If you have questions of your own do not hesitate to contact me through a comment on this blog or by sending me an email.

The first question has been asked by Chris:

"Just stumbled across your site while looking for Deathwing Tutorials. Loved the paint scheme on your termies. I see you use a lot of Vallejo colours so was just wondering what colours you used to paint them? Looks like a white basecoat but what steps came next, washes etc. Big ask I know but they are exactly how I imagine Deathwing, gritty and weathered!! I know it was a year ago you posted it but hope you can remember how you did it."

Yes it's a year ago (here's the original post), but I write most paint recipes down in a small notebook. I have painted this using Vallejo paints entirely. Here's what I have written down about the armour in particular:

• primer: white
• basecoat: Vallejo Extra Opaque Heavy Brown
• first wash: 4 parts Vallejo Wash Umber Shade, 1 part Black Shade, 2 parts Black Shade
• second wash: 1 part Vallejo Wash Umber Shade, 2 parts Black Shade, 1 part water
• clean up everything with a mix of 1 part Vallejo Extra Opaque Heavy Brown and 1 part Vallejo Model Color Iraqui Sand
• first highlight: Vallejo Model Color Iraqui Sand
• second highlight: 2 parts Iraqui Sand, 1 part Vallejo Model Color Ivory
• third highlight: 1 part Iraqui Sand, 2 parts Ivory
• last highlight (edges only): Ivory

To achieve the gritty, striped effect you should paint using the striping technique. This means using the tip of the brush to paint small stripes next to each other, starting from the bottom, going to the top. Each highlight is applied using the same technique, each layer covering about 75% of the previous surface. I hope this was helpful!

The next question is asked by Michael from oldguyrpg.blogspot.com.

"Hello! I found your site through a search looking for the differences between Winsor Newton's standard Series 7 and the miniature. I'm a D&D gamer and I also paint minis for fun and play. I've been doing some painting and blogging and looking for ways to improve. "

"With regards to the difference between the two, I was hoping you could help? As far as I can tell, it's the diameter of the brush, but I was curious if the standard #1 and miniature #1 made a difference and which was more like the brushes I've been using (Loew & Cornells mainly). Have you used the miniature brush?"

Michael, you have come to the right man with this question, since I'm a huge Winsor & Newton Series 7 fan! I even own a couple of Miniature variants. The difference does not lie in the diameter (although the miniature may indeed be a bit smaller) but in the length of the brush. The Miniature simply has a much shorter tip, about 60% in length when compared to the regular. This allows the painter to have much more control. The point is about as sharp as a regular brush, but it appears a bit stiffer because the hairs are shorter.

Therefore I rarely use the miniature brush, only for painting eyes and things like freehand designs. A regular brush has a much larger "body"meaning it can soak up more paint, ideal for painting normal surfaces.

Here's a picture of a regular #1 next to a Miniature #1:

So this concludes this first Q&A, I hope it was helpful!

About a year ago I made the switch from Winsor & Newton Series 7 brushes (which I was using for several years then) to Rosemary & Co Series 33. I was very pleased with the brush, even with shipping included they were less than 75% of the price of a W&N brush. The only thing that I had had to get used to was the shorter and thinner handle. Loyal readers of my blog might remember I positioned the Rosemary & Co brushes on number 6 in my top 10 of 2009. Shortly after writing that article I ordered some more Rosemary brushes.

I've been using them intensively over the past few months but for some reason I wasn't as happy with them this time. From the 3 brushes I ordered one of them had a point which was splitting all the time. The points of the other ones weren't as crisp either. One of my retired W&N brushes even had a better tip still! And picking up that brush again was such a difference: the slightly thicker and longer handle really makes a difference when handling it.

This made me decide to take W&N in consideration again. Okay they are expensive, but quality comes with a price. And since the brush is the most important tool for miniature painting I'm prepared to pay for the superior quality of a W&N Series 7 brush. I've ordered a batch of 4 #1 brushes (depending on how much I paint my brushes last about 6 months) from Ken Bromley Art Supplies today, since they are running a 50% deal this week. I've also thrown in a some brush cleaner and color wheel.

Lessons learned? For me: "never change a winning team" sounds very appropriate. I was completely happy with my W&N brushes in the past so why did I switch to another brand?

The lesson I have for you is don't save money on a brush. It's the most important tool on your desk and yes, you will paint better with a good brush. W&N Series 7 are probably the best brushes out there. If you do not want to pay the price be sure to check out Rosemary & Co, they're actually very good and far better than anything you will find in the average gaming or modelling store.

EDIT: okay some comments and I want to add one important thing for those who want to buy Rosemary or W&N brushes, which aren't cheap of course. If you know you won't take proper care of your brushes, this means washing them out after every painting session, storing them properly, handling them with care while painting, then don't waste your money on them. They wear out as fast as any other cheaper brush, it's only when they're in perfect shape that they perform as they should be.

People who follow me on Twitter will have noticed I've been experimenting with green stuff press molds for the last couple of days. I also blogged about this technique some time ago.

Well I finally got round trying it out for myself and I'm very pleased with the results! I decided to test the mold making with some very small bits (from the Space Marine commander sprue), and a larger one (from the Space Marine drop pod sprue). I used some round Warhammer 40K bases to make the molds.

A couple of years ago I experimented with this technique to make small rivets. The results were quite good, so I want to use them for larger objects too. I've been looking for some more information and there are some very good resources on the internet about this.

• Green Stuff Molds on Youtube (part 1 of 3)
• A Guide to Green Stuff Casting on Warseer
• Green Stuff Mold-Making on Heresy-Online

My plan is to decorate some of my Space Marines with additional heraldry, and to avoid buying a load of Command/Dark Angels/Black Templars upgrade sprues this technique might come in handy.

Vallejo recently released two new products: washes and pigments.

The washes are obviously to compete with Games Workshop's latest line of washes. But where GW has a complete range of colors, Vallejo only has 2 so far: black and a sepia tone. There is a rumour that a third color will be added: a beige-brown.


Their other new product is a complete line of pigments, similar to MiG pigments, which is very popular among military modellers. But the Vallejo variant is cheaper and holds a third more powder than the MiG jars. I decided to pick up a red-brown tone to test it out on a base.


I'm currently working on a Space Marine Terminator and decided to use these new products on it. I will post a WIP picture very soon.