I figure the best way to start is to get the bad news out of the way first. I will not be able to enter in GD this year for a humbling reason. I did not pay close enough attention to what I needed to do before Adepticon and I missed the registration period. While there is a waitlist, which I joined, I don’t think that there’s a chance I will get “called up”. I thought I had a good grasp on how this all worked and was obviously excited about entering but I simply didn’t pay enough attention/didn’t check Adepticon’s page early enough and so this opportunity is not available to me this year, unfortunately.
While it is disappointing to work hard for the competition and not be able to enter, I think there is some silver lining. The first of which is that I don’t think I was going to get this mini done and done well in the time left. I’ll show an update of where I’m at shortly and I’ve still got a ways to go. Some of the painting I’ve done more recently isn’t as strong as I would like too so I don’t think this mini is quite my best work in certain areas. I’ve also been feeling burnt out on this project this week and realized that I need a break from it to finish strongly and so I started painting something else today and already feel much better about hobbying than I was recently. Finally, when this mini is done, I think I’ll be really proud of it and I came up with the color scheme on my own so there’s still plenty of growth to point towards here even if this isn’t going to be a competition piece.
Here’s a look at where the the mini stands now.
The hammer has more details than seemingly all of the previous parts of the mini combined which made it a chore to work on. It really took a long time to paint and I had do the same painting on both sides. The real pain was edge highlighting, especially on the hammer’s hilts. I was sloppy at this and truthfully, edge highlighting is something I’m not as good at as I want to be. These parts show me how much further I need to improve if I want to paint for competitions. Having said that, I do think the mini is still coming along and it represents the best I can do right now so I’ll just have to keep trying to improve until I get where I want to be.
So that is the state of things currently. I probably won’t have a normal update this weekend like normal but I am nearly done watching The Book of Boba Fett so I might do a review of that and a discussion of the state of Star Wars this weekend instead. We’ll see what I manage to get done the rest of the week and thanks as always for your support!
Kuribo's Painting 
The figure looks great mate and the quality of your work is incredibly high. Missing out on the competition isn’t the end or the world. There is always the next time and if you can enter other comps via clubs and shows it would provide a good test for you in the meanwhile. 🙂
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Thanks, mate! I appreciate your kind words and I agree that missing the competition isn’t the end of the world. I made a mistake and have learned from it. Unfortunately, I don’t think the US has the club scene that your country does. I don’t know of any here and I live in a pretty big city. There are plenty of other shows though and if I’m able to travel for them, I certainly will 🙂
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That’s a shame on the competition Jeff, but from what you wrote about how you feel, maybe it’s a good thing. Getting burnt out, is never a easy thing to get past, and sounds like a break is just what is needed, so you can enjoy your hobby. What you’ve already achieved on the model looks great, and once finished will be another stunning piece for your cabinet. Remember next year to give yourself more time, to allow for burn outs and the ability to just paint something for fun, and it should hopefully go smoother.
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I think both fate and myself had arrived at the decision that it wasn’t going to happen this year. Managing burn out on big projects is a skill too. I’m getting better at it but it is not easy to avoid at the same time. I will certainly try to give myself more time in the future. I wish that GW gave more warning that the competition would happen this year. I think if I had another month’s notice, I would have been able to do better with it and be done on time but oh well. I’ll get this thing done soon enough! 🙂
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Ah, man, that sucks! Sorry to hear that you won’t be able to enter the competition after all the hard work you put in, but on the upside the painting you’ve done is stunning in every way: the colours, shading, highlighting are all excellent and the colour transitions are superb.
Sometimes I’ve got burned out painting a mini after just doing the basecoat, so I can only guess how this one made you feel. But look at it as practice and an experience you can build on for next time.
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Thanks for the kind words as always, Matt! It is a bummer but I’ll get this project done and it will look really nice in the end so that is a silver lining. I usually like to focus on one thing until its done but sometimes the tedium of painting certain parts just becomes too much! I’ve certainly learned plenty along the way which should come in handy in the future so its not a total wash 🙂
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Bummer. You have accomplished quite a bit towards this model considering the time constraints you have had. While it is disappointing you won’t compete this year I feel that you weren’t going to be totally happy with your entry.
Waiting to see what base you were going to do.
Again, bummer.
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I think this mini is more time consuming to paint than I expected as well but all is not lost. I will get the project done soonish so I can move on to other things that I want to work on more. Assuming GW comes back next year, maybe I can paint something MESBG for GD like I originally intended too.
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I am not keen on competitions myself but if it disappoints you to miss it, then I will share your pain mate.
The figure looks ace to me!
And I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Boba Fett as well as… “The State of Star Wars”. Good blog post title that!
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They’re certainly not for everyone. I waffle a bit on whether I want to be involved in them or not. I think painting for gaming is a different “genre” of the hobby and painting for competitions is another. Trying to do both is asking a lot and maybe too much of me. Time will tell on that.
I just finished the last episode today and there is a lot to chew on and think about before I write it. What a strange and uneven show Boba Fett was.
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Bummer on missing the competition, but as far as I am concerned the miniature is a winner anyway. Great work on it 🤘
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Thanks, mate! I appreciate your support 😀
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I am gutted! You’ll miss the competition, so I feel your pain! On the plus side it means this mini will be ready for next time round (and it does look absolutely spot on)! And I’m sure the chance to work on other bits and pieces will be a good thing so looking forward to what you get done!
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Its not ideal to work on something so long and not get full use out of it, for sure! With that said, I’ve really enjoyed taking a break and painting something else so I’m excited to show that off when its done as well 🙂
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That is a really shame you missed out on being able to enter. But I must say the mini is looking excellent to my eyes and I do hope you still manage to get it finished.
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Thanks, mate. I will certainly get it done. My break will be a week or less and then I’ll get back to it. I’m eager to finish this mini so I can be free to focus on other things so that should see me through to the end 🙂
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Well that’s a bummer and no mistake! 😦 Still, well done for looking on the bright side – you’re doing a really nice job with this one, so perhaps you’re better off enjoying it and learning from it, rather than turning it into a stress. As TIM suggested you can always enter smaller competitions through clubs and other model shows, and then go for the big one next year. Glad to see you’ve gone for the masked face and double-handed hammer by the way, by far the better configuration for this model!
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Thanks, mate! For me, it was becoming a struggle to keep forging ahead and it was starting to affect the quality of the paint job so pressing on would have meant certain disaster, I’m afraid. I’m glad you like the build out of this mini too. For me, it was the only way to do it so I’m glad to hear someone else agrees! 🙂
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Competition or not, he still looks pretty damn good to me.
The colour choices are superb and the light blues, as used on the lightning bolts, draw the eye around the figure. I think you’ve done an outstanding job so far, despite being a bit down on yourself, but we’re all our own worst critics aren’t we, I think that’s part of painting and what pushes us along to improve.
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Thanks, Justin! I’m glad to hear the paint choices are working for you 🙂 When it comes to creative endeavors, from what I’ve seen, being hard on yourself is the best way to improve. If you’re not, you often don’t have an effective way to push yourself. So that is why I am this way and why I embrace it in my creative processes 🙂
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Foiled by the fine print eh? Too bad. I know you were looking forward to it but good for you to see the bright side. Are there other painting competitions coming up that could entered? I don’t know anything about painting competitions except that I’d be laughed out the building…
You are doing a great job on the miniature though. Every time that I look at it I see yet another detail. 😀
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I absolutely was. Well that, and not paying close enough attention… NOVA has painting competitions though not on the same level or prestige as the Golden Demon. Its also in DC which is not that close to Chicago so I’d have to make travel arrangements for the competition specifically. I have some other travel plans for this year so I don’t think that will likely be on the cards. Thank you for the kind words as always! I think you like it even better know that there is a rough skeleton to it 😉
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Absolutely beautiful work on this model so far! I can see how painting that hammer to such a high standard can be annoying to deal with, but it turned out beautifully to my eyes! Love the colour choices across the model, as I’ve said before I’m not really a Warhammer aesthetic person but I love the ones you paint. 🙂
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Thank you for the kind words, mate! Having to paint the same details twice is never fun and but the hammer requires it, unfortunately. I like some Warhammer sculpts but I only paint the ones I love because they take too long for me otherwise 🙂
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Oh no! It’s really sad that you can’t participate for administrative reason, but as you say it gives you a bit more time to do your very best work. The mini itself continues to look incredible and I am really enjoying watching the progress.
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Thank you for the kind words as always, mate! I’m glad that seeing the same mini week after week hasn’t bored you yet too! I do sometimes get a bit tired of seeing it myself but I suppose that’s what breaks are for!
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That is too bad you didn’t get to enter but the miniature certainly looks great, so I guess in a way there is a win/silver lining in that you had the experience of painting a miniature for the competition even if you didn’t get to enter and next year you’ll have that experience to take you into the next competition if you decide to do it.
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It is good practice to be sure! We’ll see if this particular competition becomes a regular thing here in Chicago or not. Games Workshop is unpredictable and hasn’t held many competitions in the US in recent memory so its hard to say what will happen. That is perhaps the greatest risk of missing out on this year’s competition.
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As everyone else has said – a shame you can’t enter this year but the model does indeed look great. I will add the little point that there’s no reason you can’t still enter that model into a GD or Crystal Brush, etc, in 2023 – and just take the additional time to not rush, refine, add freehand after practising on other models, etc. Not to mention a fancypants base! – Again, with time to practise your skills on display basing….
Don’t see it as a cancellation, but a 12-month extension.
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I don’t quite know the rules on submitting stuff but it seems like it is generally frowned upon to submit things that you didn’t paint recently. I’m not sure why that is though. Truthfully, if I do paint more display stuff between now and 2023, there’s no reason to think I might not improve even further and be better off painting whatever I come up with later on. With that said, I’m not deflated about missing out and I see the kind of opportunities you’re talking about too 🙂
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I think it’s pretty safe to ignore that sort of thing, unless there’s an entry quiz to ask when you painted the model. Not to mention the fact that some painters really only do complete a couple of models a year. All you need to do is not entirely finish it until closer to next year’s GD and you’re golden! 😉
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Haha, now there is a thought! You’re probably right and it is food for thought as well. I should probably work further ahead in advance if I’m going to enter in future competitions.
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I actually watched a YouTube video from a guy called NinJon today where he showed and talked about entering something he finished several years ago that got through the first round, so I don’t think you have anything to worry about…
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