Friday 16 December 2011

Restoration - stage 2.



















For those of you with extremely long memories, I started work on this fortified farm almost a year ago (!). My recent foray into a building has prompted me to try and make some meaningful progress with this great Hudson and Allen casting.
The building has been black undercoated using Humbrol enamel. The stonework has had a basecoat of Pelikan Plaka Yellow Brown and black, mixed to about 50-50. Then the drybrushing has begun. This model is so well detailed and so finely cast that this is the best method for gradually bringing out all the immense detail. So first has been a neat Yellow Brown drybrush. When fully dry I've gone over with another layer of Yellow Brown mixed with light grey, again about 50-50 proportions. I plan two other lighter layers will be added to the stones to pick out the details. Plaka's Yellow Brown has been one of my 'go to' shades for stones for many years, as I love the warmth of the colour, a bit of a Cotswold stone finish I guess. Regretably, for reasons that aren't clear, it's recently been removed from their Plaka acrylics range by Pelikan and getting hold of a few pots in the UK in the late Summer, to put aside for projects like this was a bit of a challenge.
I want the woodwork to look old and to contrast with the stone - so I've gone with a grey - starting with Vallejo German Grey over the black undercoat. Over this I've highlighted up with Vallejo Grey Green. Again at least two more highlights will be added.
The black and grey on these photos has come up very blue which doesn't show how it looks to my eye - I'll ensure that the next pics are taken in daylight.

6 comments:

Steve h said...

Cool, looking forward to seeing this one finished!

Stuart said...

I see what you mean about the detail, I shall have to get my hands on some of these castings. I think you have the wood effect spot on.

Jehan said...

Hello Simon,

As I know you're a medieval english armies history specialist, I'd like to ask you one thing ! Do you know when the (white and red cross) national livery appears ? And do you think I could use it for a Formigny-Castillon english army (my next project) as we can see on the Graham Turner drawings ?
http://www.studio88.co.uk/acatalog/Battle_of_Formigny_and_Castillon_paintings.html

Thanks a lot,
Cheers,
J-B

Sire Godefroy said...

Haha, you haven't heard of the many half-finished terrain pieces piled up in boxes right after I bought them years ago. ;-)
Thus a year seems quite reasonable, the more when it gets a treatment like the pics here a promising!

Cheers
SG

painterman said...

Jehan
I'm afraid I'm not an expert, but from what I understand the English wore white tabards with red cross from at least the mid fourteenth century, when campaigning abroad. I would say that it is certainly OK for the end of the HYW. I think that the 1475 English invasion force wore them too.
Those Turner illustrations looks very good and I'm looking forward to the Osprey book that they're done for, out early next year.
Hope it helps,
Simon.

Jehan said...

Thanks a lot Simon !

To be honnest, I just begin a Formigny to Castillon english army and I'm waiting for "The fall of english France too" ! ;)

J-B