crazmadsci Retrospective

Nova Open 2025 Recap

I am definitely riding the high from this year’s 2025 Nova open. And what a treat it has been to go to and see my friends. I always walk away full of inspiration, a bag full of goodies and a mind full of creative endeavors to do for next year.

Heading to the event I had a mix and a flurry of feelings. I’m was immensely excited to catch up with friends that I’ve made last year. And made new friends while experiencing new things. I always feel anxious and guilty to take time off, to be away from my family. The Nova Open is turning into being a very special time of year for me. Most of my year is spent focused on playing games and growing my local community specifically for Age of Sigmar. However, I approach the Nova open specifically to grow and listen to experts for painting my models.

I have never quite considered myself a creative person. I see myself as an optimizer. I struggle to see something in my mind’s eye and then recreate it visually. So I spend close to an entire week surrounding myself with painters who are better than me. Surrounding myself with experts to get constructive criticism and feedback helps me grow leaps and bounds faster than what I would have if I was aimlessly scrolling through YouTube hoping to find the video with the piece of feedback that I need. This is my second year going to the Nova Open volunteering to work the capital palette. This large-scale artistic painting competition allows me the opportunity to see close up all of the incredible, beautiful models that others have created. It is an incredibly humbling experience.

My Capital Palette Entry

I submit a model to the apprentice category where this year I will be submitting my very first bust I’ve ever painted, which is a Baba Yaga bust by abysmal alchemy. And was something that I found from a fellow community painter called Evans paints. I stumbled upon the model as he was trying to reduce his pile of shame or opportunity, depending on how you think of it, and I decided to tackle it. I’m really, really proud of what I have accomplished. I think that I have improved on feedback that I was given from the previous year, and I’m interested to see the feedback that I will get now, I definitely want to write its own post and where I started and where I’ve gone and what my dream for this piece has been. But before I get biased and the lens of my mind’s eye changes, I must write and note that while I have not painted much this year due to prioritizing other activities and life above my miniature painting and playing hobby, I have done enough where I am not embarrassed by the model I am submitting. I am trying to stay open minded about what feedback I will be giving, and I hope that the fact that I rushed it two weeks before the event does not quite show as much on the model (it definitely showed in feedback)

The Feedback

Below is the notes I captured from the feedback session with the judges.

It was really good, okay. The issue is a lot of this is pretty so we just need more.

  • Direction of the face itself needs some more.
  • Same with a hair we should see a halo up here, and a little lighter around here
  • The little ropes each one of those ropes has a texture you want to, like, go in and find that texture, that stuff out.
  • With things like the necklace, you can bring that up a little bit
  • Make sure with your skin tone, you’ve got to just add more

Generic Bust Feedback:

With busts is you just have to go so much farther than you do with the normal model. Like the baseline fork is so much higher because everything is zoomed in.

The Positives

The little birdie looks great. He’s absolutely fantastic. That’s really nice.

Fedback Conclusion

“I have a feeling you’re like, you’re you’re gonna rock and roll it next year” – Vincey V

Classes

One thing I’m most proud of myself this year is that already knew the areas I needed to grow on specifically with color and doing “more” with my model. That I took some fantastic classes from some phenomenal painters. Overall I feel like I grew as a painter but it will definitely take a considerable amount of time to fully absorb the information.

Understanding light and color composition by Krzysztof Kobalczyk

This was by far my favorite class and we worked on color theory from just three primary colors. I selected Orange, A teal green and Magenta.

The Hidden Layer: Fast Underpainting Techniques by Francesco Farabi – Kimera

This was essentially teaching that using hues of grey helps reinforce highlights and adding color for improved volumes. Of which was applied as essentially a study of non metallic metal which I’ve never done before.

Deciding Color Composition & Palette Selection by KAHA – Katarzyna Gorska

This was the most interesting class for theory but the most frustrating for paint. I found myself struggling with a hydrophobic primed model and couldn’t put paint on the model. This was really fascinating as it was sketching out colors on the model before really applying the paint to see how you want to finally set the tone and composition of color on the model.

Composition in Miniature Art with Chris Suhre

Suhre just gave a lecture here with no paint. We listened to theory of art and compoisition of dioramas. A lot of the information is similar to that from his book “The Art of Chris Suhre” made with Dave Taylor but talking about it in the class really helped reinforce the information I started to absorb reading the book.

Shopping

One thing I know for certain, going to Nova is that I definitely could not go into the exhibitor Hall without walking away with something new and inspiring. Some things I’ve been waiting for years to buy and waiting for the perfect opportunity. Other situations were well more spontaneous.

One of the largest purchases that I acquired at this year’s exhibitor Hall is not one, but two, A-cases for my miniature hobby. I have had plastic totes with cut metal and epoxy carrying cases for a long time, but I have considered consistently encountered issues with different size pieces, damaging those models, and I want something that I can carry on my back, walk into an event and not have my hands completely full. Getting the A-case also allows me to put my books and my dice inside the backpack to reduce the overall load of what I have to carry. My giant backpack doesn’t necessarily have to be as giant anymore, and I’m, frankly, really, really excited. I also ended up purchasing a carry case from a case, it’s one of its smallest bags to provide an alternative if I’m just doing a small war band for frost grave, you know, Blood Bowl teams and those types of things to not have to require carrying something absolutely massive. This was such an exciting purchase for me, as I have been trying to purchase one for quite some time. I even went to a case last year at NOVA, and they were completely sold out. So, I’m excited to walk away with something that I know I have been really, really thinking hard and long about for quite some time. I’ve kind of really fallen in love with the brand after listening to the interview of the founder of a case and what he was trying to achieve on the listening to paint dry podcast.

Another big purchase that I ended up making for this year was P3 paint I have been a long-time user of P3 paint. It is one of the first brands of paint I have ever used for my miniature painting hobby going back to 2018. It’s been really hard to buy P3 paint over the course of the years, since Privateer Press has sold and edited the line and gone out of business, but seeing Steam Forge games bring this paint back to life with a Kickstarter last year, it was the first time I’ve ever seen the paint for sale in retail. I decided not to back the entire Kickstarter last year because I told myself I didn’t need the whole line and I only wanted a few paint, but going to the booth, talking to them about the colors, the pigments, what’s new, what’s different, I found myself wanting to replace some of my favorite paints, but also I wanted to try new things, and before I knew it, I had way too much paint, and I ended up buying the whole line because it knew it was cheaper in the long run. Yes, do I potentially need intervention because I already have too much paint? Do I even have the storage capacity for this paint? Yes most likely need the intervention and definitely don’t have the space.

I’ve also purchased long needed upgrades like a new wet palette and several art books.

I have also been always looking for new models, new experiences and new challenges. ZabaArt is one person who has such an incredible, enthusiastic and positive personality. I just had to support him. I bought not one, but two of his models. I’m so excited to get the opportunity to paint them. One will be a large scale model, and one will be a bust. It was very cool to see them in the cabinets, as well as he paints and sculpts his own models to submit for competition, which is really cool. And I’ve also gotten a few models from other sculptors and companies as well.

Where have I been?

This year, I struggle to make time for myself. Make time for my hobby and everything in life always took precedence, taking care of the family, doing house chores, with the added stress from work. There’s always something, some reason, some excuse that takes over, and I found myself in a state of life, survival mode. And in doing so, I sacrificed time for myself, in painting, in models and playing table top games. I even stopped going out and seeing my friends and talking to my friends online. Which they are endlessly giving me crap about as good friends should.

All these areas, I found myself lacking, and it was definitely very evident when I traveled to Nova this year, only submitted one piece. I think it’s the only model I finished for the entirety of the 2025 year so far, it was rushed. It was not finished in most places. And I acknowledge that I have lots of room for improvement for myself and desire to hold myself accountable for my projects, hobbies, dreams and so on.

I found myself struggling and not being as caught up or well versed in what was going on with my friends and what they’re experiencing in their life, checking in on them, and I’m ready to be better.

I’m ready to make myself a priority. And in doing so, I found myself really thinking and processing and deciding that in writing these things down, I have a significantly increased likelihood chance of following through with it. I like looking back at my mental state throughout the years as I hobby, it shows a lot of self-growth, where I’m at and how I perceive and think about each and every project. And part of me really considered, do I need to continue to write this blog down. Do I need to publish for the world to see and the world to read? So much of our consumption and media these days are videos? For me, I enjoy being able to go back look at my things, look at my thoughts, look at my write ups, no matter where I’m at in the world, I can Google and pull it up. I can see it on any device, and I can also be dynamic in what I post and how I organize it, as opposed to a very linear book, like a journal. I have so many things that I link and embed and cross reference to let myself dynamically consume my own projects and publications, and so after coming back from Nova, I’ve decided to really try to resurrect the site, resurrect who I am and how I choose to become an artist and an analysis, analyst and observer of what I am.

Thank you for taking the time to catch up with me and I’m looking forward to all the projects to come.

Happy Hobby,

crazmadsci

crazmadsci Goals, Retrospective

Janurary 2024: Hobby Roundup

,

Can you believe that 1/12th of 2024 is already over? Where does time truly go? Since i’m trying to become better at documenting my hobby collection, I have decided to attempt to create a “Hobby Roundup” summary and overview of each month of my hobby. This will include notable collection changes, painting project, and my goals for the next month. While this is something very methodical, I am testing to see if it helps me be more self aware of how I am hobbying and my overall pile of potential changes over the course of the year.

This year I have two primary goal.

  1. Be mindful of my collection growth.

While I want to grow my collection I want to grow it with models that I deeply desire to paint and play with. The goal is to remove models from the collection that will not be loved by me and give them to another home which will be loved. Using those shifted models I’ll sell off or trade for other models that I will use.

  1. Significantly reduce the overall “In Progress” project list to Painted.

One of the most insightful things i’ve noticed about cataloging my collection (iCollect Everything Minaitures Edition) is that I have as many if not more in progress models than I do completed models. This is both due to lack of confidence in having the final model not living up to its potential as well as getting distracted.

Collection Additions

For this month I have been adding a significant number of models to my collection as i’ve started the Escalation League (2024 New Year, New Army: Escalation League Begins) with one of my local friendly game stores. Finally starting my Cities of Sigmar army I have always dreamt of.

I have also decided to subscribe to the Stormbringer magazine which delivers 4 weekly issues a month and often paired with models to help you grow your collection. I intended to share more about this magazine in the future to be sure to stay tuned.

New Additions to the Collection

UnitModel CountSource
Daggok’s Stab Lads4Purchase, new underworld warband for Kruelboyz
Wildercorp Hunters11Purchase, split Warcry box with a friend
Lord Imperatant2Stormbringer Issue #8
Swampcalla Shaman2Stormbringer Issue #9
Xandire’s Truthseekers4Stormbringer Issue #10
Total23two purchases and subscription
Xandire’s Truthseekers- Stormbringer Magnazine
Swampcalla Shaman with Pot Grot
Lord Imperatant
Wildercorps Hunters
DeathGorge Daggok’s Stab Lads

Photo Credit: Product Images shown above from the Warhammer community/store pages.

Models Sold off

To help pay for the models i’ve added this month and try to keep my total model count down, i’ve been trading models and selling them to other people in my local community.

Gutrippaz X 10, Killaboss with stab grot x2, Hobgrot Slittaz 10x, Kunnin Crew x6, Shaman & Pot grow x2 (gained this month).
Total model count: 30d

Overall I am really proud of the fact i’ve kept pretty event with my total models coming in and out. I have even been on top of selling off models from the Stormbringer magazine off as they come in. Since my current primary army is Kruelboyz many of the models are duplicates and therefore unneeded.

Janruary Model Net= -7

Paint Projects

While for Janruary I have not finished many models I have certaintly started them. Starting with my Cities of Sigmar army I am definitely doing what I can to get as much dones as I can before the end of Phase 1 (February 18th) for the league. Stay tuned or follow along on my instagram https://www.instagram.com/crazmadsci/ for periodic updates.

Models Completed: 2

  • Scatter Terrain Portal
  • Dwarf Ref Bloodbowl

OnWards to February

The month of February will probably be my most ambitious month ever. If I accomplish it then it will gain a significant amount of momentum for throughout the year. We are almost halfway through and i’m starting to get nervous.

However this weekend I am giong to be stretching my tabletop experiences further than ever before and be heading to Nashville for an Age of Sigmar teams tournament i’m going to help run as their designiated score keeper. I have a feeling that this could impact my game and how I am as a miniature painter for some time to come.

Are you keeping up with your goals this year so far?

Crazmadsci 

Previous Posts

crazmadsci Goals, Retrospective, Review

iCollect Everything: Miniatures Edition, A Review

Have you ever gotten to a stage in your hobby journey where, you have forgotten what models you have? What about where they are located? How much do you have painted vs new in box? What about the giant pile of grey plastic you are too afraid to look at closely?

January 2023 I realized that I have hit the peak of my problem. Models were in my shed spread out in boxes, thrown together and were resulting in getting damaged, shattered and broken miniatures. Something had to change. I have always dreamed of a good way to organize and catalog my model collection but only had only a few failed spreadsheets to show for it. I needed something more robust than a spreadsheet.

Since I’ve started 3D printing and especially since I’ve started collecting models for Age of Sigmar I realized that I had no idea what was truly in my collection. I decided to figure out what I truly own and am working on.

When you cannot remember everything you own to be able to play with things without accidently buying or 3D printing more then there is a problem.

How my collection was stored in Janurary 2023

What I needed

I came up with a list of things I needed or desired in my database collection of my models. I also realized that I most likely would have to find something to fit my needs and not build my own. My time was limited.

My Needs:

  • A consistent catalogging system
  • Something that will display an image of the model
  • Filter searching
  • Capability to set my own catalog parameters
  • Cross platform compatability
  • Sharable with friends and family
  • If a product such as an app, have ongoing development and not a project that is half finished.

Searching for apps, I tried several different things with the closest to what I was looking for is Figure Case, Hobby Progress. However it did not appear robust enough to sustain all the data I was looking for. It could be an opportunity for some if they want something more straight forward.

The Long story short…. my Winner

Overview:

iCollect Everything is an app on Apple, Mac, Android and PC products as a way to catalog and collect all your collectibles. While there is capabilities for barcode scanning and pre-generated collections such as Legos, Wine, Movies, Games, Puzzles, Shoes, Model Trains, etc. There is not a category yet for Miniature Figures in tabletop gaming.

However the real power and utility in this app is in its custom collections section. I have begun using this app for over a year now and have had the time to really consider the pros and cons of the system, I believe that this is a tool that could make a major difference for other miniature hobbyists out there and is currently flying under the radar. This is providing so much utility and tools that other companies have attempted at but lets you cross until multiple brands, platforms, and more.

The Setup

Before I go into more of the pros and cons of this app and how I have made it work for my immediate needs let me give you a glimpse of what it looks like.

Left: PC desktop computer UI, Right: Android Mobile phone UI

Example Entry: Kruelboyz Killbow (Android perspective)

The Full Breakdown

Overall I am really happy with the app but understand that there are definitely growing pains associated to this app. With a very limited development team progress is slow. However credit must be given to the designers as it is extremely obvious of their commitment to their endeavor.

Lets start with the first obvious question. How much does it cost?

Con: iCollect everything does have a higher barrier to entry for the full app than almost any other app in its category I could find. Although advertised as free. It is extremely easy to fill up your “free entries” resulting in needing to fully purchase the app. From last glance I believe the pricing is as follows but is subject to change as the app further develops. I believe when I started using the app it was a one time purchase of $10 or so, for transparency.

1 collection fully unlocked: $30, Completely Unlocked App: $60

  • Note: I did have to purchase for each platform Android & PC as PC was not released when I started using iCollect. I do not know if this is still the case

Pro: Using the custom collection I can set my collection anyway I want. Any order I want and with any field I want. There are limited rules such as only allowing one quantity field and value. I’ll do a full breakdown of my collection setup at the end.

Con: To input all your data it is a massive time commitment. There is no bulk editing, no bulk copying and uploading from your own csv is currently not functional for custom collections. This was probably the largest reason why it took me a year to input all my data so far. I have found it significantly easier to input from a computer than a mobile phone. My data entry skyrocketed once desktop on PC was released. Also a major pain point is that every data field required a value even if I didn’t have any data associated to that field.

For example there are several fields in my collection to mention if the model was 3D printed and data associated to that such as material volume and print cost. If the model was purchased from a manufacturer I am required to input any value and $0.00 was not allowed. Almost all fields with 0.01 are desired blank fields for my collection.

Pro: With embedded images associated to each entry on my collection it is incredibly satisfying to see the images associated to each thing. Currently most of my images are product renders or photographs but one day I hope to replace all with images of my personal stuff. You can currently associate up to 4 images per entry.

Pro/Con While iCollect Everything will let you export your collection to .csv, it currently does not let you import your spreadsheet to iCollect for custom collections. Even though there is no statement in the app that this functionality does not work for custom collections. I only found out by attempting to import collections and was told via email that the functionality is not supported.

To Summarize:

ProsCons
* Complete Customizable Catalog
* Visualization of your collection for easy scrolling
* Filtered Search on Every Category
* Can export collection to .csv		* High Cost
* Large Time Commitment for entry
* Require Data for every field
* No multi tagging system
* No Import functionality for custom collections
* Limited sharing visibility for custom collections
* Have to buy Android and PC separately

My Wishlist:

1) Of my largest desires the capability to add multiple searchable tags to each entry in the same data would be by far the largest one. Being able to search for models in the collection by potential D&D class, weapon, race, etc. And with multiple parameters would be an incredible boon to help me dynamically pull models out of the collection for player characters and things like Dungeons and Dragons.

2) Improved sharing visibility for custom collections. On the Android app you are capable of generating a URL of your collection to share with others but I have never been able to have it work for me with custom collections. I am hoping that this utility would be improved in the future.

Summary

All in all I’d rate this app a 4 out of 5 stars.

While there are a good number of cons I cannot overlook and could turn off others and/or be current growing pains in regards to the app being in active development. I do not think that this app can be overlooked in its power and capability to help catalog and organize your miniature collection. While there are smaller features and sites to help track your model journey being able to have such robust capability to give an incredible perspective into my collection. Check out my 2023 summary below! All data was pulled from my custom collection.

Do you catalog your models? If so how do to catalog your models? What do you think? Let me know in the comments below.

I also will write up all the fields and data types I use in my custom collection if you’d like an idea of where to start if you decide to use iCollect Everything.

My Custom Collection Parameters

Here is the settings and parameters i’ve used to setup my custom collection.

Field NameData Field TypeDescription
TitleTitlename of the model
CategoryText ListMiniature, Bust
Terrain, Scatter
Model CountQuantityThe quantity of how many of that model I have. Can only Have 1
Model NumberText Fieldused for personal library reference
Damaged CountText Fieldlog if that model needs repairing
StatusText ListModel progress; New, In Progress, Painted etc
Army, Team, CategoryText Listsubcategorization such as army name
Game SystemText ListWhat game the model is used for
Total ValueValueEstimated Value
Digital LocationText Fieldfile path of STL location for 3D printing
Storage LocationText Fieldlocation of model in physical storage
MagnetizedToggleTrue/False
Date Added/CreatedDate PickerDate of model purchased or 3D printed
Date FinishedDate PickerDate of when model was finished (or 2030 as a palceholder)
ManufacturerText ListName of producer of the model
SculptorText ListName of who sculpted the model if known
Source URLText FieldURL of where to find reference to the model
MaterialText ListWhat is the model made out of
Amount Material UsedText FieldIf printed how much material was used
Model CostText FieldIf STL how much did the digital file cost
Print CostText FieldHow much the print cost (based on material used)
NotesLong Textadd misc. notes
Hours InvestedText Fieldestimate of hours invested in model
crazmadsci Retrospective

State of the Crazy: Happy New Year? Jan 22, 2024

Where in the world has time gone? I cannot believe it is already 2024. Another year is gone. The last year has been such a blur I almost can’t remember everything that happened. Also to be honest I don’t nearly have the data and understanding of the last year as I did in my 2023 and 2022 New Year posts.

So what did I accomplish of my goals for the 2023 year?

  • Finish more projects than I start
  • Finish more models than I buy/print
  • Limit the amount I print for others and focus on my own hobby
  • Paint more models in 2023 than I did in 2022 (42 in 2022)
  • Focus on improving the skills of my painting

Overall for the year I think I accomplished more goals than I failed. I painted more models in 2023 than 2022 >42. While I don’t have the precise number I definitely know there was more than 42 as I did complete a set of 60 hobgrotz for my Kruelboyz army. However the goals that I repeatedly didn’t succeed is a problem I have started to see year after year…. finishing projects and models. I appear to keep starting new things and not finishing what I start.

I have seriously improved in my painting and think that army painting actually has helped me a bit by improving brush control of doing the same model over and over again. So instead of learning the model I focus on my brushwork. It is amazing because I have had friends and family actually be able to separate painted models in the historical order of which I’ve painted them simply due to visually looking better over the years. It is a great feeling every time seeing them comment even as someone who doesn’t know miniature gaming or painting.

Post: How To Gauge Growth in Miniature Painting

The other large victory of my year is that I have significantly pulled back in my commission printing for other people and focused on my own hobby. This has been incredible for my mental load and allowed me to really focus on my own self.

So what are the highlights of my 2023 year?

One of my largest highlights from the 2023 year was going to my very first Age of Sigmar tournament at my old game store in Nashville Tennessee. It was an absolute blast and although I didn’t finish painting my army and went 1 – 2 I felt proud of my gameplay. I did win best opponent which made me feel good that people really enjoyed playing against me.

Post: Trying New Things: My First Warhammer Tournament

I have also returned to playing Dungeons and Dragons and am hosting a game at my house. It has been a blast and I have really missed the experience. Plus our games have been looking amazing with the amount of detail we are putting on the tabletop.

Also the Carrie of several years ago would never have had the confidence to join not one but two new game store communities to play tabletop games along with joining several leagues of games for both BloodBowl and Age of Sigmar. It has been a blast and I’m making new friends in my new home and learning new games.

Lastly I have finally accomplished a multiple gear goal of mine. I cannot wait to share the project and all the work that went into accomplishing it. I have successfully cataloged my ENTIRE miniature model collection (well 99%). I have a working database, app integration, search functionality and so much more. I think I found my permanent method to share what I have with others and maintain what I own. Before I show it how do you keep track of your collections?

As for the upcoming year…. well my primary goal for this year is going to be the blog. I am ready to keep writing again and maintain a journal of my projects and goals. I really look forward to the up coming year and hope you are as well.

I know its late in January but how did your 2023 go? Do you have any goals for the upcoming year?

Crazmadsci 

Previous Posts

Family bonding time painting miniature figures
crazmadsci Retrospective

State of the Crazy: When You Get in Your Own Way, October 23, 2023

I have been struggling to come up with a good way to write this post for a long time, which is inevitably made the frustration and procrastination of this post even worse. So let me get the worst out of the way and say it….

Life is constantly getting away from me and has made it incredibly hard to post and work towards my hobby goals. But lately its been worse than just life. I’ve been getting in the way of myself.

Between all of the major life events this year including but not limited to; having a baby and moving 500 miles. Everything has been incredibly overwhelming, all the way down to the day to day scheduling and activities. I’ve yet to set a consistent daily routine for myself to help which I desperately need to pursue my own hobbies, mental & physical health. I’ve started to see my own family begin to thrive and succeed in their new environments and yet I am still struggling.

Over the last several months and even years I’ve seen people self advocating, pushing themselves, putting themselves out there and not afraid to talk about their own mental health.

So here I go. I discovered late and as an young adult that I struggle with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Discorder (ADHD) along with extreme anxiety. This has been apart of my entity my entire life and has lead to me feeling broken and that something is wrong with me. You see as a female ADHD can exhibit differently than the classic jumping around the walls then boys and was often undiagnosed. While I can certainly be easily distracted, bored, and impulsive I have found that my ADHD comes with so many positives. I have learned that along with the negatives it has been crucial to every aspect of who I am and what I have called a success in my life. While my ADHD can be used sometimes as a super power it does lead to a few downsides. This includes but not limited to perfectionism and the need to understand everything at a foundational level. Also and most importantly the marriage of my ADHD to imposter syndrome.

For those who are not aware of imposter syndrome:

“It’s characterized by chronic feelings of inadequacy, incompetence, and fraudulence despite objective success. It’s hard to internalize success and genuinely hold the belief that you’re competent and capable.”

Audrey Ervin, Delaware Valley University

I never endingly feel that I am not good enough in my actions, don’t deserve the victories I have and hold myself back from truly embracing the positives I have done myself. My frustration with myself, questioning the validity of any advice I could provide other hobbyists has prevented me from being able to move forward in my goals and even posting regularly. I want to change that.

Finding My Self Care

I created this blog as a way for me to work through my personal mental health issues and create a digital journal to look back on my journey. In my life I have learned a few things that can significantly helped with my imposter syndrome. But are also things I must be diligent to continue working on.

  1. Being Self Aware

Being aware that I struggle with impostor syndrome has helped me navigate what is actually true and what is irrational doubt. Although I still struggle everyday I know that a good amount of it is unwarranted concern.

  1. Writing It Out

The reason I created this site is to document my journey and growth. Writing it down and going back on my thoughts and feelings of the past have helped me see how far I’ve come. Seeing how I grew in the hobby, improved my skills and tried new things brings immeasurable joy. This is the primary reason that this blog exists

  1. Embrace All of Me

This I need to be better about doing. I tend to hate the “messy” stage or partial stage and get distracted and never finish my immeasurable projects. This leads to beating myself down about not finishing things and increased negative feelings. However, embracing the messy stages and documenting it out is immensely therapeutic for me. I need to do this more.

The tabletop gaming hobby has been the outlet I’ve needed both for getting out of my comfort zone along with meditative time to think about everything that has happened in my day and find a way to settle down from the hyperactivity and over stimulation.

The miniature tabletop hobby and painting has also helped in several key ways that I plan to continue.

Finding Self Expression

Printing, Painting, and Assembling miniatures is one of my favorite ways to settle down from the day and learn how to express myself in how I view the world all around me. Every day is better if I spend time to paint or work on models, I need to keep reminding myself that every time I don’t. I feel like I am better at tackling projects & problems if I’ve had sometime to sit at my incredible new painting desk.

For My Isolation

Since graduating college and “settling down” I have found myself becoming increasingly isolated. With small kids, a global pandemic, and a variety of at home jobs working remotely or being a stay at home mother to three children its increasingly difficult to interact with other people. This hobby through gaming has provided me more friends in my adult life than any other activity. It is also one of the only ways to engage with people that I see some of their most authentic selves.

I want to make sure I am capturing all the memories that I do not want to forget.

Community picture of most recent RTT at the Game Keep, Nashville TN September 2023
Games are bringing together a community of friends. My first RTT in Nashville TN September 2023
My first in person D&D game since early 2019!

For My Kids

Lastly, I need to get out of my own way and continue on my journey here on the blog for the most important thing in my world, my kids. As someone who works on a computer I know that screens and doing things digitally does not have the same permanence or rewarding feeling as the tactile nature of the art of painting and feeling of playing games.

I am doing my best to show my children that they should embrace their passions. Explore their creativity and not be afraid to have fun, or get a little paint on their shirt. Perfect is overrated and the act of doing is just as much fun as the end result. Some of these messages I’m still trying to learn myself but they do not need to know that, yet.

Son learning about dungeons and dragons models
Hobby with the whole family.
Family bonding time painting miniature figures

My Personal Call to Action

This week I have decided to pull off the band-aid and attempt to get back into the routine of not only doing stuff for the hobby but also writing on the site. I am writing for the one day my kids want to see their mom’s personal growth and perhaps I can touch someone else out there too who stumbles and finds my ramblings.

Picture of the messy hobby desk
My hobby desk is a true reflection of the status of my mind. Too many projects going on at one time.

Overall, I feel like in many ways my hobby is a direct reflection of my mental state in life. When my life becomes chaos in the hecticness of doctors appointments, sickness, repair work, jobs, being a parent etc. I feel pulled in so many directions and it visibly shows on my hobby table with partially finished projects all over the place. However, lately it has lead to a deeper and deeper rut where I can’t find time in the chaos to organize my mind and finish the projects which would make the life easier to handle. My hobby is my meditative time and yet even at that I’m torn. I feel so split in my goal at the table. Am I painting for the joy of painting, collecting or just get models on the table to play. I am feeling so lost and overwhelmed leading to a state of exhaustion. I wish I knew how to tackle it.

-myself, crazmadsci

I am ready to attempt to do what I can and begin the process of moving forward. I don’t know what that looks like yet but we are going to find out. For those of you that put up with my cathartic self lecture/teaching, thank you. Even though the community is small I appreciate every one of you.

How are you really doing today?

Crazmadsci 

Previous Posts

crazmadsci 3D Printing, Retrospective, Skills

Top 10 things to Consider when 3D Printing on Commission

Skies of Sordane Airship

Over the last several years of 3D printing as a hobby I have had my fair share of people approach me with an idea, an easy project, or something random they found on the internet they wanted printed for them. In general my typical response has been, “absolutely no problem” and taken the mantle of the challenge as a new way to challenge myself in 3D printing. However some of these “easy projects” were of course the most difficult tasks I’ve ever encountered in the hobby. General rule of thumb, just because there is an object file or STL in existence and someone has found it does not necessarily mean that model is actually printable, but I am getting ahead of myself… let’s start at the beginning of one of these “easy projects”. 

An idea of the complexity and size of the Skyship

In July 2022 I was commissioned to print the LARGEST 3D and most time consuming project I have ever attempted. This project was the Sentienel Light Cruiser by the Skies of Sordane kickstarter in March 2020 which raised over $280K CA or $208K USD on kickstarter. The reason why I say how much it has raised is that there are very few 3D printing stl crowdfunding projects to have ever gone over the 200K mark let alone this early in the 3D hobby printing revolution.

I remember vividly this project releasing and the waves it has made in the community. I even have a ship or two in my own STL collection that have been given to me as cross-promotions over the years even though I never backed the main project. So being asked to print the largest of the medium class ships from the core bundle of this kickstarter, I immediately felt it was safe enough to agree to the project with such a wide community backing it, instantaneous name recognition, and enough time has passed since it’s initial launch that surely there is strong documentation of the project and troubleshooting. 

So using this project as an example I thought I’d share the lessons I’ve learned with you.

Skyship with the elemental ring attached

Since completing the project, I have completely changed my view and approach on commission 3D printing through trial and error. Here are my top 10 lessons/rules and takeaways from the project if you are considering 3D printing for commission.

#1 Know your Value

One of the largest things I struggle with personally is making sure I receive payment for my services and time investment. I’m the type of person who significantly undervalues myself with the goal of bringing things and being as accessible as possible to others. I typically only charge printing cost in materials and file cost in almost all of my prints with an expectation of people tip what they are able to. Letting them pay for the print in what they value it as or can afford. This of course breaks down as you need to do much more in order to make the model print.As a result i’ve had to set a value per hour or minimum service fee for a product i’ll be printing. If a file requires work before or after printing put it in your service fee. Be transparent of your cost breakdown and expectations up front. Your time should not be for free.  

Make sure you have a point in the clause where cost could change if you over estimate or under estimate project. 

Post processing support removal

#2 Know the Terms of Service

I am not a 3D printing studio or have a merchant license to print and am merely a printer as a service for people that do not have a printer but find files they are strongly interested in. My first rule is that the person asking for a file to be printed is always either 1) buying the STL and send it to me to print with proof of purchase or 2) I purchase the file and add the STL cost to the final cost breakdown at the end. This ensures that the original creator always gets paid for their work and its single use print and purchase. Always make sure you are reading the terms of service for your files before printing them to verify nothing you are doing is breaking terms, General rule of thumb, I only print something once per purchase of a file for personal use.

#3 Determine the Scale, Commitment and Cost of the Project

In some cases this is incredibly hard to estimate without seeing the files beforehand and diving deep into the project but here are the

The moment I realized the true scale of the project I accepted to do

5 primary cost factors in a print commission. 

1) Digital Model cost

Discussed in the previous bullet but if you are buying the file for the client then make sure you add it to your total.

2) Material Cost

Most of the time you will need to put the file into your software to get an estimate of total materials used in the print job so this can be difficult to blindly estimate unless doing something similar in scale and scope frequently. Oftentimes keeping track of slicing estimates or using software like Octoprint for filament printing can help give estimates but only after you have gotten the files in your hands and are deeper in the project. I have also found that you should never be cheap on the materials you purchase. You’d end up paying more for it in the end. Use materials and quality of products that you would be happy with. In which case I am always a perfectionist.

3) Print time & Printer maintenance 

Some individuals and print shops charge per hour their printers are running as business. Often if the print commission is a singular print that takes an hour or two I consider this negligible. But in the case of this project I estimated over 31 Days of non-stop continuous printing. Perhaps including costs for new nozzles, print beds, etc should also be factored into the equation. 

4) Tip for service

Most often when buying 3D printed models from sites like Etsy tips are not often considered. But when working on one off projects such as these and their customization in nature it is strongly encouraged that you ask for a tip for your time. If you are not comfortable asking for a tip think the question of “what is the minimum amount you will do this project for.” Add that value to your print cost.

I often use tips as a method of which I can gauge the satisfaction of my client on the project. These I consider as icing on the cake and a bonus and not part of my rate.

5) Shipping

Shipping can be an extremely tricky factor when working on 3D prints as well as keeping your print safe and secure. I have come to depend on USPS priority mail system and their free flat rate box. They come with a default insurance value of $100 a tracking number, arrive in a decent amount of time, boxes are free, and are the most affordable shipping options. Their prices are also transparent:

Box NamePriceSize
Small Flat Rate$10.208 5/8″ x 5 3/8″ x 1 5/8″
Medium Flat Rate$17.1013 5/8″ X 11 7/8″ x 3 3/8″
or
11″ x 8 1/2″ x 5 1/5″
Large Flat Rate$22.8012 1/4″ x 12″ x 6″
USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate Boxes

#4 Agree upon Deadline


One thing you will hear commonly regardless of type of commission is that they can commonly hang over your head as something you “need to do” and detracts from other aspects of your life or even your own hobby time. Setting a deadline can help eliminate the “when will it be done” questions and force you to focus on getting the project out the door and no longer hanging over your head while also building consumer transparency. 

#5 Set Expectations of Product Quality


One of the hardest things about printing commissions from files others have found on the internet is the simple statement that all files are not created equal. Not all files SHOULD or CAN be printed. A render for a file could be absolutely breathtaking but it doesn’t mean that the considerations of 3D printing the model are taken into account and could make your job extraordinarily more difficult. That on top of expectations. How much post processing are you expected to do? If printing in PLA do they understand that layer lines are going to be visible? How much support scaring is acceptable? Is the model going to have to be assembled on your own time? These things should be asked or you determine as a result of your product if you open your own store. Often times it might take more than one print to optimize the quality of a print due to the design of the model itself or your print settings. Proper calibration as well as familiarity with the company helps tremendously.

Poor print quality due to support removal and print orientation. Required a reprint

#6 Keep Track the Project as you Go

There is nothing worse than finishing a large project and then having to go back and calculate the time commitment and cost breakdown for final billings. Make sure you are breaking down what you did and why as you go. If you had to manipulate a file on your own, presupport a file, any reprints etc. Trying to remember what you did months ago can be incredibly challenging. If the scope is extremely large.

My print progress tracking: part, material usage, print time

#7 Don’t be Afraid to Say No

If this is not your primary form of income and it is merely for fun on the side. Don’t hesitate to turn down projects that you don’t want to do or necessarily have the time to do. Sometimes these things can massively take away time from your own projects and hobby time. People can find others to print projects or wait until you are ready. 

#8 Maintain Communication of progress and project Status

As a way to help build confidence, keep everyone honest and on track. I commonly find that sharing work in progress pics is fantastic to maintain positive energy on the project. Their excitement helps keep you motivated while also making sure that they are still invested in the project.

One of many project progress pictures

#9 Account for time variance for printer repairs and real life situations

Not every project goes as expected. There are times when you will have to spend days repairing, troubleshooting, replacing parts on your printers which can be incredibly frustrating. Account for taking time off. The printers do not have to run 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

#10 Make sure the process is still fun

In the end of it all this is most commonly your hobby and enjoyable past time. Don’t focus so heavily on making a profit from it and become a professional hobbyist. This is for fun and not a job. If it isn’t fun don’t do it.

Conclusion

Every project you undertake you can learn a lot about yourself as well as your hobby. Do you print professionally? Do you buy printed projects? What takeaways have you made?

As always Happy Hobbying,

Crazmadsci

Fun Facts

Skyship project

  • Total Filament usage: 6.348 kg
  • Resin usage: 247.38g
  • Filament length 2,094.87 meters or 1.30 miles
  • Print time: 748.66 hr or 31.2 Days
  • Total number of pieces: 98
  • Estimated post processing time: 30 hr
crazmadsci Retrospective

Sometimes Life Gets Away From you: July 12, 2023

I cannot believe, well maybe I can, that it has been 6 months since I recently posted something to my blog. Sometimes I truly cannot believe how much time can fly, especially when tangled by major life events.

Where have I been over the last few months? Well the answer is simple life has truly taken me by storm. We have accepted a new job for my husband, packed up, moved twice (one temporary living), sold a house, bought a house, had a baby, lost a beloved family member, shipped a world wide launch to a game I was working on and adapting to our whole new world and routine. Let’s just say I’m ready for a bit less life events and more just sitting at my hobby space and painting away at projects.

Although life has taken hold I haven’t stopped painting and trying to maintain momentum, although not what i’d like it to be its still forward.

Saying Goodbye to My Old Space & Community

While I absolutely loved my old hobby space. It was definitely cramped and a bit noisy. I made do with the space I had available and it was definitely used as you can tell. One of my favorite things about moving is that I was promised I get my own dedicated office and hobby room. No longer will I share with our TV, Laundry room and guest bedroom!

However in order to move it required a lot of organizing, getting rid of old things and cleaning. Thank goodness my local game store let me set out a pile of 3D prints and models I no longer wanted in wanted in my collection.

I even gave a new painter my old 3d printed paint racks as I wanted to upgrade in the new space. I’m glad they will see another life (paint not included)

The biggest thing I’m going to miss about my area is how amazing and wonderful the Age of Sigmar community is in Nashville. If you ever go through town on a Tuesday night the Game Keep is where it is out.

Hobby Space Evolution

There was a very long period of time when I had all kinds of temporary painting setups. I will say that those who have to paint at a kitchen table, clean up, put it away or have temporary setups I feel for you. I was starting to go crazy myself not having a consistent meditative space.

I couldn’t articulate how excited I was to have a massive clean slate for my new space.

Although far from done I have been making significant progress on the new space.

Hobby Progress

Also its not complete without some progress on the painting desk. Including a notable completion of 60 hobgrots for my Kruelboyz army, significant progress on 30 gutrippaz and plenty of starts on others like my Gobsprakk and Frost Giant

Completed Projects: 60 Hobgrots

Conclusion

I am sorry that I have been gone so long. I’ve deeply missed writing for the site and putting it back on the regular routine.

What have you been up to in the last 6 months?

Happy Hobby,

Crazmadsci 

Previous Posts

crazmadsci Retrospective

State of the Crazy: January 9, 2023

Good Day and Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a productive first week of Janruary. Life for our household went back to “normal” with full work schedules and of course with it the wave of sickness as everyone traveled all around to see family for the holidays. I guess this is what happens when you don’t travel that as soon as we got back to our routine we immediately got hit with a round of colds. I myself amd nursing a cup of tea while writing. However that has not yet stopped me from hobbying. 

As for the past week I have been immensely productive for both completing a multiple month long project, being extremely close to doing so in another, working to clean up the hobby space, and get organized for the projects that are going to hit the hobby bench in the upcoming month or so. 

Success and Final Handoff!


As you can expect this week a full story of the lessons I learned from this project. I am happy to say that I have completed a 4 month long 3D printing project and the largest one I’ve ever attempted. Taking over 31 non-stop printing days and consuming more than 1.3 miles of filament (6.4 kg) I can say I’ve handed off the Sentinel Light Cruiser from the Skies or Sordane. This mammoth of a project definitely got out of hand and is a 3D print commission I’d never attempt again. Lets just say it was a strong life lesson for me. 

The Way too Large Batch Paint


This week I have also completed the painting process of my hobgrot slittaz from the Kruelboyz army in Age of Sigmar. This batch of painted grotz was 4 units strong or 40 individual models making it the largest batch paint I have ever done at one time. Due to its size it was definitely slow at times and motivation was definitely draining. I now just have to varnish, add basing bits and resin pour the swamp and these models will be 100% completed. Fun fact these models alone are just 2 shy of completing my 2023 hobby goal of painting more than 2022! Do you think it is cheating to have a goal that was so close to being completed already in the new year?

Now that I have 40 less models on the table and several square feet of space in my hobby room. I also had the opportunity to spoil myself with a new paint rack! This is my very first rack that I have not created myself but rather purchased and I have to admit that I am not an expert in my craft like this fantastic Etsy store. I can now officially store all my turbo dork paint, speed & contrast paint in my collection all in one place. It really feels good to get organized. Its still on my to do list to create paint racks that go on a peg board for some of my larger supplies. Pictures of updated hobby space are coming.

Benchmark 2022

Since the 2022 has wrapped up it is that time again to repaint my Benchmark Model from 2022. I am excited to see how much i’ve grown in my painting hobby especially with the airbrush. Although I know I could have put in more time all around I am hoping to see noticeable improvement. This week I 3D printed the rest of the model, assembled it, and green stuff sculpted the steams to try to improve its final appearance. Paint hits the model this week. 

Do I finally tackle the scary shed?

As some know I have two minions constantly running around my home and not necessarily a ton of storage space. In the past when I rapidly needed more space in the house or got too overwhelming working on too many things. I’d throw all my in progress projects into boxes and just stuff them into our outdoor shed. Well as I am working on completing more projects then I start this year it is safe to say that this shed is slowly being taken over by a dishealved disarray. Everyday I am attempting to organize and categorize just 1 thing in an attempt to tame the mess as well as make things easier to find. I’ve also been playing around with apps and software to help me keep track of my collection. Everything highlighted by a red square are part of my unorganized collection.

I normally don’t have this successful of a week but it does feel really great to get some big things off my shoulders so I can start working towards other things. I am excited for the projects the new year brings and I already anticipate this upcoming week to also be pretty productive. 

How has your hobbying been going? Trying anything new? As always let me know if you have any questions and Happy Hobbying,

Crazmadsci 

Previous Posts

crazmadsci Goals, Retrospective

2023 New Year, New Ambitions?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Yes as we all know its time for that annual breakdown and preview of what is to come with our hobby goals. People have set New Years Resolutions and of course always end up broken and I am absolutely no different. For 2022 I set upon myself a list of lofty goals and have accomplished very few if you are curious on my track record check out my past write ups 2022 Hobby Goals & 2021 Hobby Goal Retrospective. 

“Yes I know what you are thinking, hobby goals, showcases these yearly posts are cliche and exhaustively overused.”

2022 Crazmadsci

But I inevitably find it incredibly useful in seeing my personal mentality from year to year. So bear with me as I gauge how my mentality and goals in the hobby have shifted.

What did I accomplish last year?

My universal motto and approach will be, “Improve my skill, output and performance over the previous year.” So I am planning on using last year as a benchmark of comparison so I can more definitely see how I match up. I’d argue that my performance is ehh comparable to the year before because so much of my free time shifted to actually playing games rather than just preparing for them.

Of my entire list of 2022 hobby goals I only succeeded in two hobby goals.

Success!: Paint more models than 2021
Success! Play two new tabletop games.

Group photo of my 2022 Painted models.

For the past year I have painted 42 models to 100% completion this is greater than the number in 2021 which was 26! Yes I know it still does not feel like enough but for me building a routine and navigating my perfectionism in models it is harder to accomplish. I do have easily do have easily double this number with only a few hours of paint time left. This list includes a Snotling Bloodbowl team (20), my 2021 benchmark model, my 2022 benchmark model and 2 units of hobgrots from the Kruelboyz army in Age of Sigmar (20 models).

I have spent a very long time assembling, gathering, priming, basing and painting a Kruelboyz army for Age of Sigmar in 2022 but tended to jump around quite a bit and didn’t finish as much as I would have hoped. As you can see a lot of progress has been made it just requires a bit of focus to knock it out.

As for playing two new tabletop games I actually count playing 3 games. The first two are Age of Sigmar which has been my primary go to game for the year, Gloomhaven online (which still counts in my book), and Dungeon Bowl.

Game of Dungeon Bowl in Progress

New Goals for 2023?

While I have a lofty list of goals for the upcoming year I have decided to boil it down to five “simple” items

  • Finish more projects than I start
  • Finish more models than I buy/print
  • Limit the amount I print for others and focus on my own hobby
  • Paint more models in 2023 than I did in 2022 (42 in 2022)
  • Focus on improving the skills of my painting

Some of these definitely sound easier said then done especially the reduce the backlog goal of painting more than I buy. With the new Cities of Sigmar book coming later this year I need to do a ton of painting to reduce the model count. But overall I think its more doable than past years while also tackling the backlog of projects.

Conclusion

What do you think? Do you set annual goals for yourself? How did you do last year, let me know in the comments below.

As Always Happy Hobby,

Carrie the Crazy Mad Scientist

2022 Hobby Goals
Frost Giant Final Photo Black backdrop
crazmadsci Developing Skill, Goals, Retrospective, Skills

2022 Benchmark Model: The First Attempt

For 2022’s benchmark I have decided to paint the giant model from December 2021’s CastnPlay release Adventurer’s Guild. This included a group of adventurers coming in from their days dungeon crawling and drinking at the tavern resting and relaxing. The models also include an amazing tavern bar build and a quest board which is on my painting agenda. The giant in question I do not think was sculpted with “Frost Giant” in mind but rather a friendly giant adventurer. However I painted a Hill Giant last year and wanted to accomplish something different. Applying one of my goals for the year of trying to paint in different skin tones I decided to approach the model with a blue skin for Frost Giant and do something I’ve never done before, apply paint to a model that wasn’t primer via a brand new tool in my arsenal.

Printed, unassembled Frost Giant Model
Frost Giant printed and unassembled.

While painting this model I was faced with a few hurdles that I am sure you are familiar with.

  • psyching yourself out
  • burn out
  • being paralyzed from self imposed extreme expections

Well in my 2022 Benchmark Model I encountered all the above. I have had such a difficult time trying to articulate everything that I felt, did and aspired to do while painting this model that I even have been procrastinating in writing this post.

Regardless I am incredibly proud of this years benchmark model and can’t wait to see what I come up with in improvement for the year. But before I get ahead of myself, what the heck am I talking about?

What is a Benchmark Model?

A benchmark model is essentially a painted figure or model which you can use at a later time as a form of measure of standard to compare to. Therefore a benchmark model is my attempt at gauging my personal growth in the miniature painting hobby. The rules are simple I’ll paint a model to the best of my ability and then I will paint a second version of the same figure (thank you 3D printing) in one year to see how I’ve grown in that year. 

Can I See My Growth Two years in a Row?

I did a benchmark model comparison for 2021 and it was actually really quite incredible as a way to Gauge my Growth in miniature painting. I never thought i’d be able to see my growth yet let alone have people actually comment guessing the areas of growth I focused on for that year. Interested? Read More from 2021’s Benchmark

Front view 2021 Benchmark Model first painted January 2021, left. Right benchmark model painted January 2022 to see personal growth in hobby.
Left 2021 Benchmark, Right 2022 Benchmark

Battling your Worst Enemy, Your Mind.

So if I successfully set a benchmark last year and could see my growth, why was it so intimidating this year? Well to put it simply I kinda felt surprised that I could see growth in the last year as I didn’t paint many models and put as much time into gaining skills as i’d like. My mind is my enemy married to my low self esteem that I could pull it off again. 

I also suffered from burnout. Painting to the best of my ability two models in a row was exhausting. Sometimes not seeing much completed on your hobby table can make you feel like nothing will ever get accomplished. Spending so much time on these really exhausted my desire to paint and push through. It also didn’t help that I decided to paint one of the largest models I’ve ever tackled. A frost giant. 

On top of that I have decided to focus on areas of painting that are difficult or out of my comfort zone. This has resulted in more anxiety in my color palette, techniques, etc. 

So What am I working on this year?

2022 Painting Goals

While I did make a lengthy list of things I want to work on for my 2022 Hobby Goals. The goals for painting this year are simple….

Master the airbrush

Having just receiving an airbrush I have barely started utilizing it to the best of its ability or know how it can help me in painting. I am aiming to get started in airbrushing and making it a regularly used tool in my toolbox.

Learn more Skin Tones

Learn how to paint non Caucasian skin tones. This includes different colored skins like green, blue, purple, red etc. for monsters. I have recently started my airbrush journey and am still not confident in my knowledge.

Paint out of my comfort zone

I am tired of painting generic fantasy character with a green or blue cape. I need to stretch my imagination beyond and try more color schemes.

Gain a better understanding of volumes

I want to understand how light hits various shapes and be better at highlighting models. This will start with muscle groups but I hope to go beyond that and especially show in armor.

Color Theory?

Begin my long long journey into a greater usage of color theory. 

Painting Hair & Fur

I am ready to build on the above statements and paint hair and fur to a more realistic mentality and result. 

Utilization of Environment & Basing Methods

I deeply believe that a base can drastically change the story of the model, its tone and really elevate figures. I am going to try to improve my basing game while also improve model storytelling.

Setting the Standard: Benchmark 2022

Now lets get into the painting of the model.

Breaking Out the Airbrush

I received an airbrush for Christmas 2021 and up to this point have only primed a few miniatures with it. I have gotten better and have to say that I am immensely proud of the zenithal highlight of this model. It might be the best I’ve ever done.

Frost Giant Zenithal Highlight
Frost Giant Zenithal Highlight
Frost Giant in airbrush booth primed
Frost Giant in airbrush booth primed

After priming I applied a blue contrast paint for the skin to see how contrast paint would go through an airbrush followed by various browns that make up the leather of the body. My goal was to try to go from largest areas of the model to smallest in the attempt to improve my aim via practice. I have never used my airbrush to apply base coats to a model before and am genuinely surprised and thrilled by how fast it was to get a model base coated. 

Frost Giant Side
Frost Giant airbrushed blue skin front
Frost Giant front
Frost Giant airbrushed blue skin back
Frost Giant back
Frost Giant leather airbrush front
Frost Giant leather front
Frost Giant leather airbrush side
Frost Giant leather side

The entire time I was doing this I was being supported by my friends of Goobertown hobbies as the continuously encouraged me to Paint Bravely. I pushed through and worked up the various layers of skin. I definitely feel like I should have pushed this highlight more but alas I did not get to it.

Frost Giant building up skin color
Frost Giant Midtone
Frost Giant building up skin color
Frost Giant Skin Highlight

To finish off my spray basecoats I painted the tree and did my best to not have too much overspray. An area of improvement is definitely improved aim, masking off areas of a model to prevent overspray, and gaining a better understanding of how to angle my airbrush to help me in highlights and volumes. 

All in all I feel like this was a pretty strong showing and attempt for using an airbrush to paint for the first time. It definitely helps that I choose to paint a large model knowing that my aim was not going to be very great and wanted a place to practice before I paint a standard miniature.

The Devil is in the Details

Once I put my airbrush down I set to work on the details. Picking up a brush to paint the model was actually really exciting and I felt a significant sense of relief now that I am using tools that I am familiar with. I set forth to do colors and choices I have not used before, namely in trying to not use brown hair and fur. So I decided to go with a blonde head which was mostly a dirty blonde. I know air is on the agenda and perhaps i’ll learn how to do different colors better this year. I also wanted to try to contrast the bright blue of the skin and went with a dark black, grey fur for the areas of clothing that had fur. 

Frost Giant starting painting blonde hair
Blonde hair addition
Frost Giant Fur beginnings
Painting fur and textured hair

I then started to work on details such as leather work, skulls, pouches, etc but… I got worn out. I spent several nights at this point painting the figure and I walked away from it. And it sat on my shelf for probably about two weeks before coming back.

Just Calling it Done

Seeing that all motivation to keep pushing through the model and feeling a significant thread of diminishing returns I decided to base the model, varnish, and flock with snow to call it done. At this point I was truthfully disappointed with myself because I always feel like I can do better. I could catch more detail, improve a highlight but there is a point when you should just call it done. 

Frost Giant final paint job
Frost Giant final paint job

It all comes together!

Know how I mentioned that I want to improve my basing game and telling a story in my basing. Well I feel like this model is  the perfect example for that. I felt for so long that the figure was missing something and that wasn’t until I added the snow. And oh boy did it feel great to see everything just slowly come to life. Adding the snow to this model and its base really had a great marriage between the two. However I couldn’t fully realize it until a friend recommended that I add snow heavier on the feet like he has been wading through the snow. Boy did it really make a difference. I think the snow was one of the most commented aspects of this paint job.

Added Snow effect on frost giant
Added Snow Effect Added
Heavily applied snow effect on frostgiant
Heavily applied snow on boots

Final Photoshoot

A benchmark would not be complete without a good ole photoshoot of the figure. And this has been an aspect of the hobby that I think is super important to capture the full detail of the model to convey to readers, inspire others, and capture mistakes. I worked on taking photos of this model in both black and white backdrops (poster paper). I think the black backdrop was the better choice in the final shots. What do you think?

Frost Giant Final Photo white backdrop
Frost Giant Final Photo white backdrop
Frost Giant photoshoot
Frost Giant photoshoot
Frost Giant Final Photo Black backdrop
Frost Giant Final Photo Black backdrop
Frost Giant Final Photo Black backdrop
Frost Giant Final Photo Black backdrop

On to 2022

While I am happy with this model and would be a fantastic figure to put on my table I still desire to grow and improve. I tried many new things and even color choices on the figure such as the skin, fur and hair that were well outside my comfort zone. Now that the benchmark is set. Lets see what we can accomplish for the rest of 2022.

Happy Hobby,
Carrie, Crazmadsci the crazy mad scientist