I've been feeling pretty overwhelmed in the old think tank of mine as of late. This is due to a few difficult realities of life currently, all of which should start to get easier soon enough. But I was finding it difficult remembering everything I end up painting. As I only paint and don't play, I pretty much sell every single model I paint within a few weeks of finishing it, so I don't often get to look back at what I have achieved. Whilst I obviously have my own Instagram as form of portfolio, I don't post everything on there, nor do I like using it a lot. So it's hard to track my own painting progress, despite knowing I'm improving with every model I paint.
So enter in this new idea, to create an article at the end of every month showing what I painted that month, and my thoughts on it. Thus, I am coining W.I.P.I (What I Painted In). If it provides no interest to you, then at least rest easy knowing it's provided my brain with some foundations for what I have achieved painting wise. And hey, maybe you should do something similar, a little round up of what you have painted for that month? And then we can all hold hands and run around in a circle screaming our own names, whilst caressing each others face cheeks. You'd like that wouldn't you? So, without any further suspense or rambling...
What I Painted In January 2024
1) Royal Beastflayers
I welcomed in the new year with a brand new faction and war band in the form of the Flesh Eater Courts Royal Beastflayers. I wanted to really try and work harder on my painting ability and so utilised a few new skills. I have to say the I'm so happy with how they came out, and it has caused me to want to now paint a full force of FeC beauties, as well as change the way I paint in future. For too long I haven't been patient enough to keep elevating my work, but that all ended with these guys, so I think them profusely for that. I'm sure you will see quite a fair amount of FeC miniatures painted up by myself in the not so distant future.
2) The Masque
I then painted up this little creature as a quick job to quickly sell. I didn't want to spend a huge amount of time on this one, and my lack of enjoyment over the sculpt also contributed to the paint job not being my best work. I struggled with the highlighting on the cloak for some strange reason too and just ultimately felt a little disappointed with the overall job. I have a feeling I won't be touching any Slaanesh models any time soon!
3) Abhorrant Archregent
I loved the FeC so much that I sought out this little guy to buy to fuel my new addiction to painting disgusti... I mean beautiful honourable people. He was as much of a blast as the war band, and whilst the techniques didn't apply quite as well, I think he still looks great. I' just loving this colour shcheme, with the pale skin contrasted by the burnt areas. I haven't based these guys yet until I'm sure of the world I'd like them to live in.
4) Icebrow Hunter
I was gifted this chunky fella for Christmas, so decided I would paint him up as a quick little paint job on the side. I do find I really enjoy painting resin models, as I find the sculpts to be super detailed in an old school way. I wanted to paint him using as many browns as possible, and I definitely succeeded in that, given how brown he is. I do think he looks decent, but much like the Masque, I didn't quite enjoy the overall painting experience as much as I would have liked.
5) Terrorgheist
I managed to finish this guy just in time before the end of the month, much to my relief. I absolutely adore the sculpt, but he was a real challenge to paint. Getting to some of those areas under his ribcage was a real pain in the posterior. So as a result, he's not come out as good as I envisioned, but I'm still happy with the overall job, and he'll look great when based properly. I couldn't quite copy the FeC scheme over to this sculpt, due to the lack of large skin areas and far more bone, but he'll certainly work still! I reckon I'll get some more work done on him in the future.
Well that was everything I painted in January. It wasn't quite as much as I wanted, yet was more than I thought given how busy this month has been. The next couple of months will be more or less the same, but from April, my workload should increase tenfold, and I can't wait.
Please, share with all of us what you painted in January. This isn't a competition, or something designed to make you feel good or bad about your own productivity. It's simply a way for us all to celebrate what we have achieved, no matter how big or small. Make a little collage and send it over to me, I'd love to feature what everyone painted for the month! You can send via here, plasticpreacher@gmail.com or @plasticpreacher via Instagram.
I'm looking forward to seeing what you painted in January!
That's a productive start to the year mate! Very much enjoyed your FEC guys great job.