I did a lot of experimenting to get this wash right. It’s been so long since I’ve tried washing, and my results then were so poor, that I’d given up on it as a technique. Basically, I find gives an un-even finish. Since I spent so much time getting an even finish, this defeats the purpose. Here are my results.
Things I add to the wash.
The ingredients used are alcohol, VMC Smoke, my patented Thinning Mixture (basically a pre-made mix of distilled water, Liquitex Flow-Aid and Liquitex Retarder which I make in big batches, then suck up into an empty Vallejo bottle to use during painting), and Liquitex Retarder. The retarder is also kept in an empty Vallejo bottle. I use this when I want to really slow the drying process, as opposed to keeping the paint open on my palette longer, which is what the retarder in the thinning mixture is for.
Pure Alcohol Wash
Three levels of wash.
This was a mixture of VMC Smoke and alcohol. Unfortunately I used up all my test pieces on this, as I initially mixed it with too much colour and had to add a lot of alcohol to get it to a proper translucence. When I did, I was pleased with how fast it dried, but not that it left horrible rings. Rings are caused by the wash drying too fast, something not that suprising with paint thinned with alcohol. However, I somehow felt that this wouldn’t happen, that it would run into the crevices and stay. Also, I’m guessing alcohol isn’t that great of an emolient because the wash was very gritty looking, definately not smooth like I wanted. If you need an example of wash rings, use an alcohol wash.
Thinning Mixture, Paint Retarder, Matte Medium
The face is the above mixture, torso, below.
This needs to be mixed in advance. It goes by the premise that the matte medium, being a medium, will keep the wash from breaking and becoming girtty. Also, the medium should keep the wash dull while providing a smooth layer because of it’s relatively high surface tension and thickness. The reason it needs to be mixed in advance is that mixing tends to whip it into a froth. I’m using old contact-lense cases to mix and store these washes.
Since all the test Germans were used up for the pure alcohol wash I needed a new test figure. An old The Figure Trader test figure that I’d half-painted does well, plenty of deep detail. I painted the face with the wash and was pretty pleased with the result. It is a wash that you paint over the entire surface, not one you allow to flow into recesses. It gave a nice even coat, and I came back and brushed out the excess on the raised areas. It reminds me of a video I just washed on painting miniatures with oils and could probably be used in the same way. It’s not as dark as I would like, so will need another coat. This is a wash I would use on high-quality figures when I want to shade, and I want a lot of control. It’s basically a glaze.
Thinning Mixture, Paint Retarder, Alcohol
This was the same amount of thinning mixture and retarder with a couple of drops of alcohol. First thought: Ohhh, cool surface shimmer as the alcohol mixes. Anyway, I think this is the winner for quickly washing wargame figures. The test hasn’t dried as I’m writing this, but it appears that it hasn’t settled or pooled in any raised areas, and isn’t forming any rings. It’s not as controllable or smooth as the above wash, but it’ll work.
The only problem is that I’m impatient with washes, and on small miniatures like the 10mm Battle of Five Armies Goblins going fast results in bubbles. The only thing to do is smooth out what you can and hope the rest pop.
Tyler
