how to paint marble?

[Narse]

Any idea how to paint something so it looks like marble?

 

I acquired a Forge World Avatar with a broken Spear and wanted to add some detail to the replacement. I thought a marble spear would help make him look more statuesque. :huh:

[puck]

I've never used it but I've heard of something called "crackle paint" that cracks as it dries exposing the paint beneath. May be what you're looking for

[Narse]

I've never used it but I've heard of something called "crackle paint" that cracks as it dries exposing the paint beneath. May be what you're looking for

 

 

I think I can get the idea from this demo.

 

http://muralsandfauxpainting.com/faux-painting-marble.html

[karn888]

i would say sponging the paint is probably your best option

[Subtle Discord]

Damn, I feel like broken record, but... Washes are your friend.

 

Have a look at some marble examples, (the link you provided is a good place to start) and you'll see two things that make marble look like marble. First it will have some strong veins of colour passing through it. Second, there will be a soft 'mottling' of colour over the entire surface.

 

As with trying any new technique, practice on something disposable to get the right technique. I'm not sure if you'd want to do the 'veins' before or after the 'mottling', so practice runs will let you see which is better.

 

What I'd try first is;

 

Add some random vein-lines. Be sure to add the odd 'fork' in the lines, and make them 'wander' a bit. Think 'flowing river or stream'. You'll want to work slowly, and layer these lines up a bit. If you look closely at the 'veins' of marble, they tend to be blotchy and mottled, while still being darker lines running through the base. Once each layer is dry, follow the vein-lines 3+ times (more times = darker vein) but don't be exact. You want a 'ragged' look to the lines edges.

 

Once you're happy with the veins of colour, just do a few very broad and light washes of colour over the entire surface. Dapple and stipple these washes to give the look of mottled marble. In a few places, do a subtle concentration of some of the base colour near the vein lines, for added effect. The base mottling and veins should blend and look very marble-like.

 

You might want to switch this up, and do the base first follow by the vein colours on top.

 

If you want 'bright' veins, doing them second is your best bet, but that means working with thinned 'white' colours, and those can be very tricky to get good results with. If you do try 'bright' veins, a very light wash after they are down will help them merge with the background, but you might need to go back and add a tiny bit of highlight to the veins, to make them pop again.

 

Hope that helps.

[Narse]

Here is how its looking at the moment.....

 

The hat turned out really well, the Spear isn't as impressive. As my wife pointed out it looks more like wood then marble.

 

 

 

 

++Although Xenos are not allowable content on the board, the idea to discuss the methods to paint marble is still viable, but we do ask that it be brought in-line to a more SM themed discussion++

[Hemal]

Not really board relevant...