This guide will try to help you improve your painting and create a professional finish to your miniature collection. I will be adding tips each week rather than writing a comprehensive guide all at once. If you have any comments or questions then get in touch. All feedback is welcomed.

The first step is to find some good quality brushes. Buy several of different sizes .you will need a fine detail brush, a larger first coat brush, a wash brush and one for dry brushing. Brushes wear out quickly no matter how good they are however the better quality you buy the easier your job will be. It’s important that the tips of the first coat and fine detail brushes don’t part when you apply the paint to the figure, so check them before you buy. If the bristles have started to separate in the shop don’t buy them.

The next step is to buy some paints .For painting figures use acrylic paint. There are many different manufacturers to choose from. The following are paints I use and find more than adequate:-citadel paints from games workshop, Vallejo and the foundry paint system. You will also need to undercoat your figures. To do this I find spray paints the easiest and quickest way forward. Use either white or grey, never black. The grey I use is a car primer which gives a very even and quality undercoat. The white I buy from games workshop. (the reason for not using black is that it clogs the detail on the figure, darkens the paint applied over it and makes finding detail while painting very hard).

Other tools you will need are as follows:-a quality craft knife, small modelling files , modelling drill, small flat screwdriver, a quality adhesive (I recommend a gel type such as grip red top), a plastic mixing pallet , a jam jar for clean water, plenty of card (a cereal box is ok for basing the figures to paint, artist card for basing) and plenty of clean tissue.

Preparing your figures is the next step .Take your time and make sure you get this stage right .You will need to remove all the excess flash from the figure .you will find it mainly on the bottom of the base ,the spear point and between the legs .Have a close look at the figure and make sure all the flash is removed .You might also be able to see the join marks on the figure where the two halves of the mould meet. Use a small model file and very lightly file the join until it is flat.

If you are feeling a little more adventurous you might consider moving the arms or heads a little to make the figures look a little different. If you want to replace spears or pikes first cut of the old spears very carefully. Drill a small hole all the way through the hand, just tight enough to fit the spear so it doesn't wobble. Place a small blob of glue in the hole then fix the spear in position. wait for the glue to dry then scrape any excess glue off the spear. When you're happy with the figure cut a small square piece of card and glue the figure to it. The card must be big enough to hold while painting ,but not so big that it bends while holding it when the figure is attached. Only glue one figure per piece of card .you will find it easier to paint then if you have several figures on one piece of card (strip painting). Strip painting might be faster but you will finish with a poorer looking figure.

When all your figures have been cleaned up and glued to card place them on a tray ready for undercoating. Using a white undercoat spray can, spray all the figures moving the tray round to make sure all the figures are covered. Spray using short controlled bursts. If you spray too much paint on the figures they will become bitty and make then un-paintable. When you have finished spraying the figures leave them in a dry place for a couple of hours for the undercoat to harden.

N.B. always spray paint in a well ventilated space. Outside is ideal as you will be able to see any areas you might have missed very easily

                                 The Basics of Painting Miniature Soldiers

After reading the guide on preparing your figures, you should now have a figure based on card, undercoated white and ready to paint. But before you start I’m going to explain a little about painting.

When painting 28mm or smaller scale figures there are a number of techniques you will need to use to create that perfect figure. The main key is to use bright but not garish colours. Colours that can define between high and low areas, and make a figure stand out and not to make it look dull and boring. Even if your not a great painter, following a few of these tips should make a big difference to how good your figures look.

• Always use at least 3 shades of the same colour, Base, mid and highlight colour. Each lighter then the previous one. There have been times when I’ve used 4,5 and even 6 different shades to achieve the effect I wanted.
• Try and use paint that is brighter then the real life colour of the uniform. It will add to the over all look. Also paint may dry a darker colour then it looks when wet.
• Make sure your paint is a runny cream texture. Too runny and the colours can run into each other ,or not give a good coverage . Too dry and the paint will look lumpy or bity.
• Paint in small batches of no more then 10 figures.
• Keep a selection of different sized paint brushes. The smallest I use is 3/0.The largest is size 1.The bristles must come together to create a point. If they don’t then don’t use the brush. Have a separate brush for washes and dry brushing.
• Use 2 jars for water. one for cleaning brushes, which needs the water replacing every couple of days. And one for diluting paint .Have plenty of clean tissue handy for wiping your brushes on.
• Avoid black lines. When you feel the need to paint on lines to shade low areas, use a darker shade of the colour your shading.
• When mixing colours, avoid adding black or white. eg if you want a medium red, mix dark red with yellow. If you want a mid blue, mix dark blue with light blue. I find,  that by adding black or white it can dull the overall look to the figure.
• Always mix paint on a plastic mixing pallet . Adding a drop of water each time you mix paint together.
• When applying paint, try and make your brush strokes flow in the direction the clothing hangs, or in the same direction the arms are pointing. It creates a more natural look. The quickest way to spoil a figure is to paint sideways on a long flowing coat.
• Avoid dry brushing. It kills colour. I only ever dry brush bases.
• Always paint under a lamp. You need plenty of light to see what your painting.
• When charging your paint brush ,only dip 1/4 of the bristles into the paint .The less paint on your brush allows better control over the flow of paint onto the figure.
• When diluting paint that has started to dry out in the pot .use an acrylic thinner and not water .Water can aid the evaporation process and the paint will continue to dry out quickly .

 There are 4 basic stages to painting your figures. Applying a base coat, A wash, A mid coat and a highlight .I normally paint in that order, exceptions will be dealt with later on.

With your various base coat colours, paint all the large areas. Coat ,trousers, hair and anything that’s going to be dark. Like shoes, gun stock and belts. Plus paint anything metallic. Armour , swords , helmets ect .Don’t at this stage paint any light colours like yellow, white or flesh.

 Next apply a wash over the whole figure using a black or brown  wash made from acrylic gloss ,or use a more careful wash using different coloured washes as needed over the different base colours .You will need to wait until each wash dries before applying another wash.

 When the washes have dried you can then paint the base coat on the parts of the figure that has no base coat on it. This will usually be flesh, white and yellow.

 The third stage is to paint the mid shades. Use a colour lighter then the base colour. Leaving the base coat showing in all the low areas and creases. Paint to the shape of the uniform, brushing in the direction the clothing flows .Think ' painting a small white circle inside a larger grey circle ,leaving some grey showing'.

 The fourth stage is to highlight all the raised areas. Using the lightest shade carefully paint all the raised areas, making sure you leave the previous layers showing round the edges of the highlight colour.

 Finally you can paint in buttons, eyes, badges ect . Leave a few hours to dry and then varnish.

That’s the basics of painting in very simple form. I’ll deal with all aspects of painting in more detail later on. I’ll explain how to paint faces, make armour look like armour and not cyber men. How to paint uniforms from different periods, including camouflage. I’ll go into more detail on shading and washes and how to paint horses. I’ll also be adding pictures to help show the process I’m trying to describe.

Why don’t you practice on some old figures. Have a go at using 3 shades of the same colour on a jacket or trousers.

 Painting WW2 British Paratroopers                                                    Basing 20mm figures for WW2