Why I Missed Sunday's Yarnblob Post

We've been on vacation, or "stay-cation" as they call it, since last Friday after work, and while I've hardly knitted at all, here's what I have been doing:

Yes, you guessed it: I've been busy making a mess. A long list of paintblobs, as it were. My Hubby got me a set of DVD's on more advanced mini-painting techniques by Hot Lead, by Laszlo Jakusovszky who is also a staff painter for Reaper Minis:

While some of the scene transitions could use some work, and the sound quality is intermittent, the quality and quantity of information presented is far more than enough to compensate. I've been wanting to improve my painting skills, so between watching the entire 8-hour DVD set and reviewing the old painting guide kits my Hubby has from Reaper as well as the other articles he's accumulated over the years, my brain is now too full to paint. Maybe I should knit something.

Gone Fishin' Yarnblob

Look! I caught one!

Note: No dolphins were harmed in the catching of this yarnblob.

Mad Painter Notes - Guild Assassin

Totally forgot to post these before:

The first one is funny because it looks like some sort of space ship. Meanwhile, I'm nearly done with my goblin ninja! Woohoo!

RPG Painted Mini - Goblin Ninja

Here he is, original unpainted mini and photo from Reaper Minis, sculpted by Jason Wiebe:

Here's my painted version:

Yes, he's standing on a wad of Museum Putty stuck to a wooden disk, balanced on two makeup sponges for height. I use makeup sponges to prop up my minis sometimes if they have to dry at odd angles, e.g. face down. The rear-view picture is uncropped to show scale: the game mat is covered in 1-inch squares and the makeup sponges are 1x2 inches. I point this out because at that scale, it's easy to make a yarnpaintblob. I didn't see this one until after I'd taken photos:

Fortunately, it was a 5-minute fix:

All I have to do now is varnish him, hopefully without over-varnishing him like I did with the Guild Assassin, and he'll be one more completed mini in my collection. Boo-yah.

RPG Painted Mini - Assassin

Here he is, in all his overly-shiny glory:

Here's the original, mini and image from Reaper Minis, sculpted by Bobby Jackson:

The crackling effect you see on the painted mini is the unfortunate result of my heaping too much matte finish on at once (it's hard to see) and probably with insufficient thinning of the finish itself. Oops.

However, Mr. Assassin here is the first painted member of my new Rogues' Guild. I have quite a collection of rogues and I notice that some have little skulls decorating their stuff, and some don't, so my plan is to paint those that possess such a rare and elite symbol *cough* as members of the Guild; the others will be free agents unless I can figure out some other symbol for a second Guild.

Next on the Mini-Painting Agenda

The Goblin Ninja, aka Flying Teddy Bear with Teeth and a Sword:

Mini and image from Reaper Minis, sculpted by Jason Wiebe:

And, of course, the requisite Mad KnittistPainter Notes:

This mini is apparently now in Reaper's "Bone Yard," which I think means they are no longer making him. Funny thing around here, when I refer to the mini of the "Teddy Bear with the Sword" my Hubby knows exactly which mini I'm talking about. I've had this mini for some time but have been too intimidated to get past the guidecoat. Now I've got a plan (see Mad Painter notes above) and I think I can make it look good. If a Goblin can be said to look "good," that is.

Mini WIP - Assassin Nearly Completed

Here he is, needing only the non-visible bottom of the base painted and clear coating:

I actually have him clear-coated at this point, but between the clear-coat still being wet and the camera batteries being low, I just couldn't get a good pic. When I can get those two issues resolved and get a good mug shot for the "Rogues Gallery" I'll post it here as well.

Going Green Yarnblob

This "green" yarn, while not necessarily planet-friendly, produced no yarnblobs whatsoever. It was such an anomaly, I just had to post it.

4th of July Cookies

Here they are, all colored in:

Okay, the two at the upper left look like they should be on a lei, but who's counting.

Ditto.

Note that I did not color any of the flags to look like Marmaduke's head.

The fireworks cookies, however, are fair game:

WIP - Mini Painting

We recently bought the updated painting book from Games Workshop on how to paint their brand of minis. We don't currently collect their minis but the book is really good, as are their paintbrushes. My Hubby already had the original book which I read some time ago, but the updated one has some tips and details that aren't in the original. After reading it through, it took me several days to find time to actually sit down and paint. Aside from doing some filing and base-coating on a handful of minis, I started painting one of my assassins:

Thanks to the zoom lens and close-up setting, you can see how unsteady my hands are. I'll obviously need to do some touch-ups later in the process, but for now I have to take a break because my hands are getting less steady by the minute. Time to knit.

Independence Day Rorschach Cookies or, Why I Shouldn't Bake Cookies after 9PM

Rocket's red glare, or Lisa Simpson?

Old Glory, or Marmaduke's head on a stick?

Yes. Perhaps 9pm is a good cutoff time for cookie-baking.

Happy 4th of July

No Yarnblob today; today we get 4th of July Yarncake!