making a wash

[lotsa_terminators]

For starters, I have no clue how to make one, or how to properly even use a wash, so um....HELP!!!!!!!!

 

 

thank you to all "HELP!!!!"ers

[Blakky]

err....ink wash? :D

[Progenitor]

If you're referring to an ink wash then it is used to provide depth and shading to an area of a model, normally using a darker version of the main flat colour, although this is not always the case. Personally I buy my inks rather than making my own and mix them with a little Glaze medium to give them a more even flow, the idea being that as you move your brush over the model the ink (being a much thinner version of a regular paint) will flow into all the nooks and crannies to give them impression of shadows on your model.

 

If you wanted to create your own inks then you can thin the paint (a lot) with water and add glaze medium if you've got it or instead use some washing up liquid, this will have the same effect. If you thin it too much then you'll lose the colour though, personally I'd recommend buying pots of ink rather than making your own unless you are after a VERY specific colour to wash with.

 

Just take a look in the hall of honour and you can see some great examples of people who've used inks. Although this is by no means the only way to shade your models. (Painting from a black undercoat for example adds shading before you've started).

[Hemal]

or if you just want to "wash " an area - you can use very thinned down paints to work their way into the shadows and add some shading without inks

 

Generally washes are made from inks, which are translucent rather than "solid" colours, and which add depth to a base colour rather than just covering it.

[mario]

Take paint that you want to use as a wash, add distilled water(better than normal tap water). Depending on the paint and your needs you can use anything from a 5:1 to a 15:1 water/paint ratio. Now you have a wash. Easy, isn't it?

 

How to use it? Well you can use it as a glaze and apply a thin layer on some area that you want to tint. That will change the hue of the underlying layer a bit.

 

You can use that to add a bit of life and a less sterile look to some areas (with many applications).

 

If your wash is less thin (so it's modifying the underlying layer a bit more) you can use it to tweak blendings and remove "steps" that appear when you layer more "rough".

 

And if you wash has a even higher pigments ratio then you can use it to not just change the hue a bit or repair blending (and other similar stuff) but you can use it to change the value of your area. Value is the darknss or brightness of your paint. That's the traditional miniature painting use of a wash. Apply that paint to the areas that are to be shaded and you will still have the underlying layer show through but the wash should settle in the deeper areas.

 

That's why some people use FFF in their wash in addition to water. It reduces the water part in your mix and helps you to avoid some of the surface tension that water has. Some people just add a little drop of dish washing liquid to their water resource (read: plasitc cup or glass with pure water). But add just a little bit. If you get bubbles then you have oversaturated the water. And some people use acrylic paint thinner. ANd some use a combination of these or even all.

 

Try out what works for you but pure water with some thinner or FFF or dish washing liquid should be enough.

 

And good brushes hel a bit because they make the application of a "water heavy mix" easier. These brushes don't bloat as easy as for example GW brushes when you have a much water in your mix. When you apply your wash then you normally don't want to flood the area so draw your brush a few times through the paint/wash to gather it (a bit like drawing with the brush in your mix). Twirl your brush while drawing in through the mix to gather the paint more equally. And then in a short twirling motion draw then brush through a tissue. That should remove a bit of the excess paint/water and help you to get a nice pointy brush tip. Now apply the paint/wash. It should not flood the area now and be easier to control.

[Brother Chaplain Ginn]

www.brushthralls.com

 

Go forth and make beautiful minis...

[CRasterImage]

Some info here:

http://hobbyhawk.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=218

[lotsa_terminators]

ahhhhh ok....that makes sense, thanks brothers!

 

I use gloss paints alot when I want to create shadow effects, so I should bepretty good...but I might use washes on weapons or something....thanks again!