There’s no two ways about it, I mostly have things completed or nearly done that you’ve seen before in some shape or form. It has been another odd week in that I ran out of supplies for a couple of things and am trying to find things to work on that will keep me motivated or excited to paint and it has been challenging at times.
In a perfect world, my order from Games Workshop would be here by now so I could work on that but it seems to be lost in the postal system. I’m going to contact them tomorrow about it as I think I’m past the ten day delivery window. I have no idea what they can do about the order or how much longer it will take to get it which is certainly a bummer.
With that said, I did get one thing completely finished and that is my fifth Neanderthal. It isn’t quite as good as the last one I painted but still done to a satisfying standard.
I have one regular Neanderthal left that has some real issues with the casting so I will skip painting it and just need to finish the leader of the group. As far as I can tell, having six Neanderthals will be enough for Palaeo Diet so I’m nearly there. Not so long ago, I thought, it will be a long time before I’m ready to paint any of the prehistoric animals and now I’m very close.
Next up, I finished painting a shipping container for Fallout that has been sitting unpainted on my desk for a while now. Unfortunately, after finishing it, I realized that one of the three rust paints I use is no good so I ordered a replacement and am waiting for that to put the finishing touches on it. This picture is nothing special and really just proof of being 75% of the way done. Having four of these nearly done is good though and brings me closer and closer to being able to have some kind of a junkyard table layout.
And finally, I managed to just about get my second piece of street terrain done. This is also not a great picture but all that’s left to do is rust up the manhole cover which I will do when the paint arrives. If that doesn’t give it away, the newer one is at the bottom of the picture. I wasn’t entirely happy with the paint stripes on the first one and I was thinking about redoing them but honestly, it doesn’t look too bad now that I got the second one done. I managed to center the paint stripes better on the newest one which is great to see. I will redo the street cracks with a brighter highlight to match the newer one though.
I did some double-checking and it looks like I need to do all five of the straight roads that I bought to cover a 3×3 board across so while getting two done is great, there is more work to be done. If anything, I’m impressed by how much Fallout terrain I’ve completed so far this year. Its like I’m actually following through on the promise to get a lot done this year!
Finally, I have no idea what I’ll work on next. I’m tired of working on terrain (though I will finish these two pieces whenever the rust paint arrives) and I haven’t played Hellboy in long enough that I’m not super motivated to paint anything from the game. The same is true of Fallout miniatures. I don’t need to paint any new ones and I have tons and tons of Survivors to paint when I should really focus on rounding out other factions in the game. I tried to start on a new display project today but am foiled by some technical details that I need to sort out. I will figure something out but its also possible that I will take next week off from posting if I don’t get enough finished. I thought I wouldn’t have enough to make this week’s update interesting and well, maybe I didn’t! I appreciate you reading anyway, especially as I’ve noticed that several of my fellow bloggers are posting less recently. No shame in that and perhaps change is inevitable but it makes me appreciate everyone who has and continues to be involved in the wargaming blog community!
Kuribo's Painting 
Nice work there, and I know exactly what you mean when you say you’re not sure what to paint next. I have had a number of ideas since finishing my collection last year, but ultimately I haven’t picked anything up to paint at all.
LikeLiked by 5 people
Thanks, Dave and I’m glad to hear it isn’t just me. Sometimes making a decision and commitment to new miniatures is the hardest part!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Great work on the stuff you did paint. I have one dwarf left to finish and am wondering where to go next… another Mordheim gang, goblins, undead or diorama bits.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks, mate! All of your options for what to paint next sound great to me. I wouldn’t mind painting something undead myself if I had some minis ready to go.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Looking good as usual mate. You always bring your miniatures and terrain to life. I may be one of those bloggers you mentioned blogging less. If you are curious, it has to do with some unpleasant interactions with some folks online. I have pruned a number of posts/threads I have made online and generally withdrew a bit. I keep meaning to post something about it on my blog but just struggle to find the enthusiasm to do so. I do try to still keep up with folks, like you, that inspire me with positive attitudes and great art.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Thanks, mate! You were definitely someone I had in mind who has been quieter in 2023 thus far. I’m sorry to hear that you ran into unpleasantness online as well. Hopefully it wasn’t on your blog. I’ve found that forums and online communities where anyone can join (like Reddit) can be difficult places to safely and enjoyably express one’s opinion. One nice thing about having a blog is that you can basically run it like a tyrant and squelch any dissenting or rude opinions and that’s not really frowned upon. If you find that you run into negative opinions or people who aren’t kind, I would stay away from those people and places and focus on the places where that bring you joy. That is a large part why I only interact with people on here. Well, that, and because my time is not infinite!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I have made the mistake of volunteering my time and enthusiasm to others too often. Not every interaction has been as positive as what we have exchanged mate. I am thankful for people like you, Bret and John. But other folks just drain me like Colin Roberts does to folks on What We Do in the Shadows… which I find to be a funny show although it surprises me that my wife and I enjoy it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can certainly understand that. Online interactions are harder than in-person ones, I think. I’m glad that we all take time to treat each other well and give encouragement. It really does make a difference.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was wondering if you were still posting on the forums you frequent, I have been delinquent on visiting them. Sorry to hear about your interactions, but please keep your blog going, I miss your terrain and also recommendations on what to watch!
LikeLiked by 3 people
+1 to what Bret said. I may give up on TV shows and movies, if you don’t!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Cheers mate. Hopefully I will feel motivated to post something on my blog soon.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have begun cutting back on my various forum threads. For now I will keep my blog going. Show wise, my wife and I have been enjoying the final season of Voyager and of course the Mandalorian is back for season 3!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m not sure how invested I am in The Mandalorian so I’m curious to hear your thoughts on it when you get around to your next update.
LikeLiked by 1 person
All the bits on show look great and the two that are close to being finished, really don’t have far to go. As for your missing order, GW should be able to contact the courier and be able to give you an update. As for what’s next, it sounds like you have plenty to choose from, you just need to find the piece that you want to paint.
LikeLiked by 3 people
If there’s one thing I can say about this week, its that it was productive! I just emailed GW a few minutes ago so we’ll see what they do. I may have to wait six days for their response which is not too encouraging. I may have stumbled into something to paint for this week so we’ll see how I get on.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Nice job on the Neanderthal, keen to see how you get on with the animals, that’s going to make for a great looking game when you have it all done.
Work has been hammering me lately and my hobby productivity is way down since the start of the year unfortunately hence the drop in posting! Stuff is still happening although this week my wrist gave out from RSI at work! So another painting break for me sadly. Hope to get back on track over the next few months, I have a lot of new models arriving that will need painting.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks, Nic and I’m certainly aiming for a good looking game when everything is done. I’m sorry to hear about work being busy! I’ve been busier in 2023 than I was in 2022 for some reason. The wrist injury is quite possibly even worse though. You can’t paint when that happens. I hope you heal quickly and I’m curious to see what new stuff you have to paint as well!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I think you had quite a productive week, especially compared to mine. I got sucked into playing another playthrough of The Last of Us.
Did do some minor painting but like several of commented, hard to focus on what to do next. Not waiting on postal issues like you but weather to prime something.
I like how your Neanderthals are coming and your roads/shipping containers are looking good.
Keep the rest of us inspired by doing something every week!
LikeLiked by 4 people
It was only a matter of time until the Last of Us bug (or should I say fungus?) strikes! Make sure you play LoU II, if you haven’t. I think its even better than the first one. I would love it if the weather warms up enough to do some priming too. Its been in the 30’s and 40’s here so I’m a long way off from that, I reckon, unfortunately.
Thanks for the kind words and I’ll see what I can manage. I’m a pretty habitual painter so I’d probably find it harder to stop than to keep going, if you know what I mean!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Caveman looks good. First animal should obviously be a saber tooth cat. 😀
How do you keep running out of supplies? Do you get one bottle of paint at a time? I usually get mine in twos so there’s always one ready to go. I also get my terrain stuff from online model railroad shops where it usually comes in greater quantities.
As for the next project I always ask myself what do I want to game the most and go with that. Still no big deal to fluff about for a bit. Plus since I don’t enjoy painting all that much I never have to find something I want to paint. It’s always just what needs to be painted. 😝
I have you know that my blog has been going strong all year at 2 posts per month. That’s always my goal. Might even get a third in there this month. Bonus madness. Though no harm in skipping here and there. Like last year when I took 3 months off. 😀😀
LikeLiked by 4 people
I’ve got one or two sabre tooths to paint so I hope you’ll be excited to see them!
I generally order paint whenever I get low on a particular color, yes. I wish that I had a local store to go to but since I moved to a different part of Chicago, I no longer have that option. I didn’t buy the rust paint because I’ve had it for a couple years and it kind of just suddenly became not good. Its a bit more expensive than regular paint too. About $12 a pot.
I tend to do the same thing with painting for gaming. I’ve taken a bit of a break from gaming as I want more Fallout terrain done before I play it and I was playing Hellboy and only wanted to paint Hellboy stuff which wasn’t good for getting Fallout done. I fully acknowledge this sounds ridiculous typed out.
You have been very steady with your updates in 2023. If you keep it up, you might win a blogging award for being Mr. Consistent! 🙂
LikeLike
Well, I was going to comment on the minis, but I’ve read through the comments and like the idea of being a blog tyrant! 😉 I’m glad I just stick to blogs and don’t bother with any other social media interactions! Anyway, all that aside, you’ve made progress with stuff and that’s a good thing – Neanderthal and roads look really good and I can’t see anything wrong with the yellow lines! 🙂 Hopefully you’ll soon decide what’s next in the painting queue!
LikeLiked by 4 people
You could earn such titles as John the Terrible or even John the Despicable if you’d like as a blog tyrant 😉 Its hard to comment in more than one place to be sure. That’s why I mostly interact here as well. Thanks for the kind words and I have started on something else so I guess that problem is solved for now anyway 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
The roads and the Neanderthal look really good! Curious what rust paint you’re using? I used to have a ‘formula’ but nowadays I just wing it and grab whatever brown, red, orange, and/or yellow that is close by. Of course that means I’m not always getting consistent results, but usually it works.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Brian! I use AK Interactive’s Rust Deposit oil paints. I have all three tones that they make and generally use each one. They’re oil paints so you have to varnish the mini before using but its easy to get great results with them and I’d say they’re well worth the extra cost!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’ve heard of oils being used for weathering before but still haven’t tried them out. It’s probably like the wet palette…I’ll someday force myself to use it and then wonder how I got long without it for so long!
LikeLiked by 1 person
https://kuribospainting.com/2020/09/07/how-to-paint-realistic-rust-for-any-wargame/ – Some shameless self-promotion but this is what I follow to paint rust.
A wet palette will improve your painting even more though. I’ve used one for years and would strongly recommend it to anyone looking to improve their painting or try more advanced techniques. Even diluting a wash before applying it is way easier with one!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like the wet palette for keeping the paint from drying out too much. And yea nice for mixing, diluting, and blending. Though some people get by perfectly without them, which I’m surprised after I made the switch. If I’m in a hurry or dry brushing, I’ll usually use a dry palette, but it always dries in no time. Thanks for the rust link, will be checking that one out!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome! I would agree that a wet palette isn’t necessary if you paint to a tabletop standard. If you want to go above that, then it is nearly essential. It can also help if you paint in a hot environment as well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You paint these so well, love the look.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I appreciate your kind words as always, Mark. It is always nice to know that people appreciate the extra time and care that went into painting something.
LikeLike
Tidy work as usual my friend
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, mate! Tidy painting is something I hang my hat on 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your terrain is certainly coming along, mate.
The roads look great. I don’t know how you do it, I struggle to motivate myself with terrain and yet we all need it, lots of it, but there’s always something else on my to-do list that’s just that little bit more exciting than painting terrain – hence, I’ve not got a lot of it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Last year, I got very little terrain done and wasn’t happy about it so that is pushing me forward this year. I realized that I need terrain to play Fallout at the visual standard that I want so I have had no choice but to focus on that goal. Not sure if that will help you find your motivation though. I find that terrain is the part of the hobby that I’m the worst at and enjoy the least so it takes some extra determination for me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep, with you there. We need it, but sure don’t like painting it.
I think that, for me, terrain takes vision just like basing, and I ain’t got it so I find it difficult to do.
Practice makes perfect apparently, but on this occasion I doubt I’ll ever find out!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am slowly getting better with practice so I would encourage you to dabble in it slowly and build up your terrain collection as you can. I regret not pushing myself to make terrain earlier as it is slowing me down from playing Fallout now. You live and learn!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve just done a couple of small barricades and a few bits of playground equipment. Didn’t spend much time or effort on them but they’ll add to the atmosphere of the game, so I’m happy with that.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’d like to take some credit and think I’m a positive influence here 😀 Kudos to you for powering through as well. Your games will look better because of your hard work!
LikeLiked by 1 person