38 Search Results for: dreadtober

Dreadtober Challenge 2: Build Your Model

Build Your Model a Dreadtober Challenge

This is it. We are starting to actual begin working on your Dreadtober model! The challenge this week is to build your model. Glue, knives, and magic may all be required. Well, hopefully between your fellow Dreadtober participants and the helpful tutorials below we can skip on the magic part. But I do hope that as part of this challenge you are trying new things to push your hobby skills a bit further. As a reminder, these weekly challenges are only meant to be guidance and milestone markers to provide encouragement along the build. If your model is already built or you prefer to paint on the sprue, don’t let me stop you from your hobby style! Challenge: Build Your Model This week’s challenge is pretty straightforward: create your Dreadtober model! It doesn’t matter if your model is still in its box or already partially assembled, the goal is to have it fully assembled by next Saturday. For those who like to paint the model in sub-assemblies, magnetize the crap out of the model, or have …

Dreadtober Painting Challenge

Dreadtober: The Participants

The Dreadtober build and paint event is officially started! Last week, I posted a pre-event challenge to have the participants plan what they will accomplish for the month. The idea was to organize and prepare for the month. I challenged each of them to make goals for not only the finished model but what steps they would need to accomplish along the way. As the challenges progress, the Saturday Showcase will highlight their progress. For this first week, it’s more of a meet the participants and have them share what their plan’s are. So check out their blogs, give their social feeds a follow, and cheer them on. The Participants Listed in no particular order are the Dreadtober 2016 participants. (ok, it does relate roughly to when they sent me their info!) If you missed the initial launch and still want to join, just fill in the form below and I will email you all the details. As there isn’t a competition but rather a fun thing to do together during October, there isn’t a penalty for …

Dreadtober Challenge: Planning Your Hobby Project

Here it is! Dreadtober begins today! Well at least the first challenge: planning your hobby project. I think I just hear about a third of you grown about having to plan. “I’m an artist, not a cube-man!” “It’s just a hobby, planning is for work.” Or something along those lines. But the truth is, projects (even artistic, hobby ones) have a much better shot at being accomplished if you put together a simple plan. Notice, it doesn’t have to be a giant Gantt chart, 90-page operating plan, or even anything formal. Instead, the point of this challenge is to prepare so that the project goes smoother, and you can spend more time building, painting, and interacting than worrying about what color to paint it. The Challenge: Plan your Dreadtober Project One of the best pieces of advice for planning is: write down what you want to achieve. Start with the end in mind and we will work back from there. Do you have a Space Wolf Dreadnought missing out on battle honor by sitting in …

Dreadtober Introduction – What to Expect for 2016

Dreadtober is three things: fun, productive, and starting soon! Maybe you took part in it last year, or at least saw it take over your social feeds, or maybe it’s brand new. Either way, I want to provide a Dreadtober Introduction for you here and invite you to join in. Do you have a dreadnought, Deff Dread, battle suits, Carnifex, Warjack, or anything along that size? Does it need painting AND you want to join in with a ton of other community members to get it done in a single month? Then Dreadtober is for you! Greg (last year’s host and originator), has handed me the torch for this year’s community challenge. I am super excited for this opportunity and hope to make it both productive (paint a dread!) and fun (community!) What is Dreadtober But before we get too far along, what exactly is Dreadtober? I hinted at it above, but the goal of this challenge is to paint a dreadnought-sized model in the month of October. By teaming together with a bunch of …

Dreadtober Painting Challenge

Dreadtober is Coming

Can you believe August is already over? That brings a few things: the end of summer for us in the north, Nova Open, and anticipation for Dreadtober! Due to exciting things in Greg’s life, I’ll be hosting the month-long painting event this year, and it’s going to be awesome! And Lo! Dreadtober is coming! For those who missed it last year, Dreadtober is a community challenge to build, paint, and show off a dreadnought sized model during the month of October. There isn’t any competition or reward other than getting one of your models finished. But the participants had a blast last year and some amazing models got painted. I’m still working on the details for the challenge, but if you are interested, sign up below and I’ll keep you up to date. I’ll be using email to keep in contact with all the participants, but don’t worry, I don’t spam and I won’t automatically add you to the newsletter (though I hope you check that out too!). Stay Tuned for More to Come! A more …

A Look at Sticky Tack and its use in the hobby

Cool Tool: Sticky Tack – and it’s many uses for hobby work

Ready for a Cool Tool I think you should have on your hobby desk? Expecting something big and fancy? How about something simple like sticky tack! Yup, I want to highlight the different ways you can use it for your hobby. OK, while not the coolest thing on my desk at the moment, I have found that sticky tack (silly putty, Blu-Tack, poster putty, etc., ) is a must have. Below I listed a few tricks that I use or have seen other hobbyists use. Holding minis while painting The most common way I use sticky tack is to create a handle while I paint the miniature. This not only makes it easier to hold the model while painti but also prevents me from rubbing off layers of paint with sweaty hands. I found that corks from whiskey bottles make great handles and a big blog of sticky tack holds the miniature in place. One of the benefits (as compared to glue) is that it works on odd surfaces like the banner here. Holding Still …

Good Reads 47

Good Reads 47

Need a dose of awesome hobby reading? Then get ready for my picks for Good Reads 47 and be prepared to spend a few hours enjoying some excellent content. Painting Black A few weeks back I wrote an article on painting black using some quick and dirty methods. For those looking for a more advanced discussion on the topic, check out David Powell’s post on painting shiny black. Squaduary Finished While my Squaduary pledge was a failure, plenty of other hobbyists fished their squads in this final showcase. With at least 40 participants and 205 finished models, I think Rory created a fantastic new event. I can’t wait until next year (I really will complete something I promise!) Monster March If you haven’t seen it already and enjoyed Squaduary or Dreadtober, Swordmaster is hosting Monster March! As the name implies, this event is all about completing a Monster this month. So far it looks like 19 people have started, so grab your nearest monster-on-the-sprue and join in! Titan Maniple There are times I wish that I had …

Building Tutorials with Conversions, Sculpting, and Kit Bashing

Tutorials for Building Wargamming Miniatures

Before the miniature is off the sprue, each of us is dreaming of what we could build with all those beautiful bits. Even if it is straight from the instruction or perhaps a brand new kit-bashed creation, learning how to build a miniature help get you there. Below you will find a list of Broken Paintbrush tutorials related to building wargamming miniatures. From basic skills, tools, to sculpting and advanced kitbashing. At the bottom, you will find a further reading section for even more tutorials from other great hobby bloggers. Improve Your Skills Series: Building This is the first part in the How to Improve Your Hobby Skills series with a ton of tips on how to improve your building skills. Sculpting Tools and Putty Part I of Mr. Pink’s tips for improving your sculpting skills, focusing on the tools and putty options. Sculpting Tips and Tricks Part II of Mr. Pink’s conversation in sculpting with tips and tricks to improve your sculpting skills. Building a Custom Miniature I wrote this tutorial as part of …

Catching Up – Squaduary, Posts, and Looking Ahead

You know those crappy weeks where Real Life ™ destroys any hobby or personal time? Yeah, that has been the last two for me as I put it way too many hours at work to get projects completed. Finally wrapped up on Friday, only to come down with the flu. Whoa is me right? Anyway, you came here for the hobby, and while it’s been super quiet for me, I do have some updates, news, and looking ahead. Squaduary – Fail (but barely) First, February I was supposed to complete the Ork Blood Bowl team for Squaduary. I was off to a great start with having half the team highlighted. After getting the highlights on, I was really happy with the purple and orange scheme. I was waiting to do weathering and the base once the whole team was completed. Over the weekend I was able to get the other half base coated and washed (though I forgot the metal bits). This was great progress, but still long ways off from completion. With it being the …

Reviewing 2016 and Looking Ahead to 2017

Broken Paintbrush 2016 Review and Looking Ahead

Ah, the time of annual hobby reviews and thoughts on 2017. Not a popular post for many to read, but, as with many others who write one, this post is mostly a reflection for myself and introspection on what I want to do next year. If you believe the internets, 2016 was a shit of a year in many ways, and as one put it, much of the low points will setting us up for an even tougher 2017. Call me an optimist, but I think 2016 was a remarkable year, and 2017 is going to be unbelievably awesome. For Broken Paintbrush, I know this is true as this was my best year yet regarding painting quality, blogging consistency, and community growth. And yet, I have some plans for 2017 that have me giddy with excitement. So let’s get started, shall we? Looking Back on 2016 Hobby Accomplishments While 2016 wasn’t my most prolific year regarding painting, I am happy with what I did get done as I spent more time focusing on improving techniques, …

Best Inspirational Hobby Articles of 2016

Good Reads 2016 – Inspirational Articles

Sometimes you just need fantastic looking models to look at. Be it to spur a new level of creativity, break the boredom of work, or inspire a brand new idea for an army. The Inspirational collection is by far the biggest, so take your time and come back for more! These are my collection of Good Reads 2016 Inspirational Articles pulled from my bi-weekly Good Reads post, emailed in links that I missed, and a few posts of my own. Click through and check them out, bookmark it for later, and don’t miss the other Good Reads 2016 Collections: Good Reads 2016 Main Page Good Reads 2016 Building Articles Good Reads 2016 Painting Articles Good Reads 2016 Gaming Articles Good Reads 2016 Humor and Story Articles  Exalted Vermin Lord The Skaven are an incredible army in a talented painter’s hand and Mihalis’ Exalted Vermin Lord is proof of this. Between the raw scars, sickly bruises, and glowing Warpstone, it is incredible to look at. They Pilgryms of Iron Sleet The team at Iron Sleet are constantly putting some …

Best Articles for Building Miniatures

Good Reads 2016 – Building Articles

Step 1: Build an Awesome Model. Not everyone likes to convert their model, but this collection focuses on those who go all out to make unique or brand new models from spare bits, lots of putty, and pure imagination. These are my collection of Good Reads 2016 Building Articles pulled from my bi-weekly Good Reads post, emailed in links that I missed, and a few posts of my own. Click through and check them out, bookmark it for later, and don’t miss the other Good Reads 2016 Collections: Good Reads 2016 Main Page Good Reads 2016 Painting Articles Good Reads 2016 Inspirational Articles Good Reads 2016 Gaming Articles Good Reads 2016 Humor and Story Articles Dark Eldar Incubi Conversions The clever and amazing NafNaf has put together yet another crazy cool unit for his Dark Eldar, a carnival themed army of creepy clowns and circus monsters. The new unit is a fantastic conversion of Incubi with top hats. In fact, NafNaf is making such creating stuff, that Thor from Creative Twilight also featured his Incubi in a Blogger Showcase. Thousand …