Painting Miniatures - Mixing Colors - Step One

Painting miniatures can be a tricky process. Deciding what colors to mix and use can be harder than you think. All colors must be reduced and balanced so detail is not lost. This is the process I use after the white base coat is dry.

First, I inspect each piece to be sure there are no problems in the base coat. I then custom mix each color as I go. I apply the colors in steps, one at a time on every piece. Sometimes this gets a little hard to do. Applying the same step over and over again on so many pieces can be a challenge at times, but this is the best way to paint the entire edition so that they are all the same.

I use Alkyd paint, which are fast drying oil paint. I custom mix each color into these small plastic containers that have lids so they store good while the edition is being painted. They will usually keep for about a week before drying out so I must complete the painting step in that time or remix if needed. These are the colors I mixed so far and I am only on step one.

Here is "Blast Off" and "Ice Cream" with the first painting step applied. This one step alone took me two days. I was mixing colors and that took extra time. This edition is going to be harder to paint than I first thought.

I always try and mix the next colors in advance and test them on a few pieces before I paint the whole edition. Here are the next five steps on three pieces. I then look at them and make sure they are good before I proceed to the entire edition. This gives me time to correct something before all that work is done on the edition. I have learned to be careful with paint because it is easy to make a mistake. In the past I have had to start over on pieces and that is a big set back.

Stay tuned for more updates to follow. Thanks for reading.

Randall Zadar
Sculptor/Zadar Studios
www.zadarstudios.com