Free GM Resource: Awesome Paint Job

There is always more than one way to accomplish any given task.  In the past I've covered a Miracle Mini Wash which I've always enjoyed.  That wash is a pretty quick and easy way to shade miniatures, but I wanted something a little more polished.....pardon the pun.

By this time next year I'm going to be waist deep in miniatures thanks to way too much money spent on the Reaper Kickstarter.  I was considering buying some of that Army Builder Quickshade, but holy crap, have you seen how much that stuff costs?!  If you apply it the way they recommend you end up throwing away a significant portion of the can.

No...I need something cheaper, easier to use, and a little adaptable.  Paying $75+ for three little cans only to fling off half the contents is not frugal at all.  I don't mind spending money as long as it is money well spent.

I started looking around the web for some replacement product.  Heck, I thought I could probably just mix up some Miniwax Polyshades and call it good.  That may still work, just that I haven't experimented with it yet.  Early in the process I was turned on to Les Bursley and his website Awesome Paint Job.  Now I think that his work is pretty good, but the name of his site is a little presumptuous.  There shouldn't be anything wrong with taking a little pride in your work, so I'll just chalk that up to a personal preference.

Les used to sell some of his washes, but the required testing to get Federal approval really priced himself out of the market.  The cool thing is though that he has shared his methodology for making affordable and customized washes that anyone can use.  He goes through the process and even gives several formulas for different effects.  You'll still need to clear-coat the finished miniatures, but that is  a good idea anyway.  Instead of just copying over his information, you should just go over to his website and check it out. 

I got my material a couple of weeks ago and I'm just waiting for a good time to sit down and start painting all those Kobolds I bought at Origins.

While you are over at Les' site, take a look around at his recommendations for equipment and look at some of his other videos for tips and techniques.  They may not work out for you, but they are bound to give you some good insight that won't take a lot of time and money to learn first-hand.