RE: Dry Brushing for Dummies (was: KV paintjob)

>Thanks for the input!

No worries. Thanks for the jpeg.

>Drybrushing: I have tried this, but failed utterly. I guess that I have
too

>heavy a hand or use too thick of paints (even if I thin them
substantially).

A-HA! No, you have it all wrong! For Drybrushing, you want THICK paint.
Really,
Really thick. "Take a brush, dip it in paint, then without cleaning it,
wait
for a few days, then scrape most of the paint off" -type thick. OK, I
exaggerate,
but not much, and have had good effects from exactly this technique.

Here's what I do:
Take a fairly large brush, maybe size 1, 2 or 3. Dip it in some thick
grey acrylic
paint. If neccessary, dip in a bit of sprue to get the gooiest stuff
from the
bottom of the bottle, or (better) use the semi-solid scum that's coating
the
inside of the bottletop.
Now get a piece of packing foam or cloth, or even the bottom of a model.
Paint
this, until you're getting only a moderate very uneven discolouration on
the
highpoints rather than a smooth coat. You want almost no paint to be
left on
the brush, so don't put too much on in the first place.

Your dry brush is now ready to go, and by using many light strokes, you
can
get a professional appearance.

For the heavy-handed (LIKE ME), do the same, but wait till you only get
a slight
discolouration, removing 99% rather than 97% of the paint. You can then
slap
it all over the model, just brush it over the whole thing without
worrying too
much where it goes, with fast strokes like you were attempting to remove
dust
from it. It may take 20-30 strokes to get a visible effect, but you'll
get one
if you haven't removed ALL the paint. This brings up all the detail, and
even
gives highlights.

I'd try this with a brush with no paint on it first (as in, try to get
it all
off *without using thinner*), then gradually increase the amount till
you get
the effect you want. Thinner is your enemy, the brush should be really,
really
*dry*.

Dry-brushing is really, really easy following these directions. It's far
easier
than trying to get a thin, even undercoat, about as easy as......

>Washes: I do even worse with washes.

With washes, I just thin the paint by 20:1 or more, then slap it all
over, a
100% cover, before I do the detailing. I usually use a cheap artists
Sepia ink
for this, diluted 2:1 with water, though I have been known to use more
advanced
techniques, even *gasp" coloured washes. Red/Orange really brings up
yellow
for example, while sepia just makes it look dirty.