Hello all,

I trust everyone is full to the brim with Christmas food!

In a spectacularly unoriginal attempt to make a blog post, I’ve decided to look back at 2018.

I’ve been much less productive this year than last (hence no collected shots like last year) but I did manage to churn out a few more characters for desert fantasy and 15mm sci-fi.

This was also the year that I really got stuck in to using Instagram more – check my sidebar for those bits – which is partly why the blog went a bit quiet. I prefer the blog to have neater, finished shots and use Instagram more for WIP. I might change that up a bit in 2019, so it’s less quiet round here.

2018 was also a year of renewed interest in 28mm. In the past 18 months I’ve really solidified my painting style, and coming back to simple, nice 28mm sculpts I found them quicker and easier than I had in the past. I am slightly worried that my 28mm sci-fi covers very similar ground to my 15mm, but that’s life.

As ever, 6mm ticks along in the background (weirdly, it’s the scale I always feel most productive in) and there’s a few bits coming up in the next week or two too.

I’ve noodled a bit this year though – started lots that I need to finish, and experimented with a few bits too. I’ve definitely got a chunk of stuff that is reaching ‘critical mass’ – so I’m aiming to finish loads off by March.

For 2019 – my main focus will be the delivery of the Westwind Forged in Battle dark ages Kickstarter. I’ll be receiving 300 odd minis. For my desert setting I’ll be getting a load of the arab miniatures, but I’ll also be embarking on an actual Dark Ages project – revolving around Vikings I think. We’ll see….

I’ll also be expanding my shop page (possibly with a range of minis at some point) and I’m thinking of taking on some commission painting.

I’ve also decided to make use of a few blog tools, for some hobby pocket money – mostly ads and affiliate stuff – so if you do spot something you fancy or that sounds useful, do click through.

Talking of which, this year I’ve made great use of:

Vallejo Extra Opaque paints – really great 1 coat paints, that genuinely work. I tend to use them as the shade tone of my triads – they dry a little darker over black – or mix them in to make another tone a little fuller bodied. The ‘Heavy Grey’ is a particularly useful mid-tone khaki colour. Give ’em a good stir mind.

My Sparmax Max-4 Airbrush – although a lot of my hobby output isn’t airbrush friendly (I don’t do many vehicles or much weathering) I have enjoyed getting to grips with it, even if just for easy varnishing. Don’t forget the cleaner – I prefer the Vallejo.

Talking of cleaning, I found this Ultrasonic cleaner really useful for cleaning the brush, but also for my Rogue Trader-era mini-shopping. It makes paint stripping a breeze.

So – a less productive year in terms of finished output, but lots of fun and I hope it lines me up for a very productive 2019.

See you in the new year!