From the Warp: Basing and Weathering

In the off chance that someone reading this blog doesn't already know about "++ From the Warp ++ let this stand as a long overdue plug. "From the Warp" is one of two hobby sites that I visit daily. It includes original posts from a small collection of authors, an incredible blog roll (of which I am a member), collaborative posts, a massive archive of tutorials... and more.

Come January 2010 FTW will also have a regular dose of misterjustin. I'm joining the author roll to post a monthly series on basing and weathering techniques. This will cover a variety of products and methods for weathering models and/or putting them on unique and expressive bases.

My hope is that readers will barrage me with questions and that my series will become a reflection of tutorials based on community request.

I'll post an update here when the series launches - and in the interim go check out FTW and bookmark it if you haven't already!

++ From the Warp ++

Secret Weapon Miniatures

++ From the Warp ++ just posted an "In depth review: Secret Weapon Miniatures" that I'd like to recommend.

You can also head straight over to Secret Weapon Miniatures to see the latest, greatest thing in resin bases. All of my commission pieces, and my army, are based on Secret Weapon products.

Rumor has it conversion accessories are already on the way.

Go. Spend money. People will find you more sexually attractive if you own Secret Weapon bases.^*





* This does not constitute a guarantee that using Secret Weapon products will make you more sexually attractive but, really, why not buy some anyway. It can't hurt.

About my commission work....

I am currently accepting commission work. I quote a firm MAXIMUM cost prior to starting work. If I go over there is no charge for the extra time - if I'm under my estimate you keep the difference.

All of the models I paint are individually painted and detailed - I will never "dip" or mass drybrush your models. My goal is to give you something I'd be happy to have on my own table every time. Even "lower tier" models get layered highlights and detailing.

Check out the "Testemonials" label to see what folks have said about working with me -- and the pieces below are fair representations of what I do on commission these days.

If you have a project you'd like to discuss please email misterjustin at gmail with the information. I'll get back to you as quickly as I can and, if you like, get a current or former client in touch with you so you can talk to them about their experience.

Hello Toycutter

This is just a quick hello to anyone coming to the site for the first time via TOYCUTTER. Thanks for the write-up of my commissar!

http://www.toycutter.com

http://www.misterjustin.com/2009/05/commissar-01.html

I'm adding this blog to the BoLS blog roll....

Long time no update....

I have new photos coming sometime in the next week - including shots of my finished magnetic Land Raider to Land Raider Crusader conversion.

In the interim I thought that I would share a fun piece of news: I just submit a request for consideration to White Dwarf. I have a couple of article ideas that I'm hoping they'll review. I went through the submission guidelines and hope for some feedback if nothing else.

Would be fun. Here's hoping.

Tutorial Update

I posted a new freehand tutorial,Ultramarines 2nd Company icon on a cape, on the Relic forums as part of the freehand banner contest.

NEWS: Archives fixed

The archives are up and running finally.

That's them on the right.

Army Blog Update

Scorched Archive is a new 40k resource created by Andy Pearson. He has some good ideas and really wants to create an article based community for hobbyists to share tips, techniques and thoughts with the hobby community.

I was invited to participate and will be double posting my tip/technique articles there -- but have moved the army blog, chronicling my (attempt to) return to the gaming table, over to the SA web site. The first post is up now and provides some background on the project.

Hobbyists: keep your eyes on this Web site; good things will come of it.

News and updates....

I thought that I had already posted this but a search of the posts didn't bring anything up, so....

I have entered my first painting competition. The competition is for single infantry miniatures on a 20-40mm base. Entrants are divided in to two levels -- and I have been placed (so far) in the higher tier.

I had originally entered my magnetic Black Templar commander -- but just posted a request to change models. I'm not all that pleased with my progress on the BT model whereas last night I did my best work to date... on Kharn the Betrayer. I am very inspired by the work I've done so far and really want to get this model finished.

Of course the entire thing is a bit humbling when I see the list of names in the higher tier. I will be competing directly with some of the folks whose work freqently leaves my eyes wide with wonder. On the plus side being grouped with these folks is enough to make me walk away happy with the whole experience -- even if my odds for actually winning are rather low.

I hope to be able to do a bit more work on Kharn tonight and will post a photo as soon as I can.

I will also have commission photos to post later this week -- and added a couple of links to the gallery today.

I am also working on getting the archives up and correcting the display issues on label and archive pages.

First testemonial....

After such a long break from painting (probably close to 14 years) it has been a lot of fun getting back in to this. That I was able to find a great client not long after getting back in to the hobby has only made it better. Especially when that client turns out to be one hell of a guy and says things like:

As an artist and a businessman, MisterJustin is a complete professional. His constant goal is to satisfy his customer to the fullest and he does so by his extraordinary talent, patience, and a vision to understand what the desires of his customer really are. I invest too much time and money into this hobby to have something done without real effort. After having him paint some of my pieces, I'll never look elsewhere. His level of quality and care is unrivaled.—Bill N.

Good thing I've been drinking, otherwise I'd blush!

CMON submission gets "Mini of the Week"

Whenever I have to spend a lot of time on the phone, most of it on hold, I cruise the blogs and geek sites that I frequent. My first stop today was coolminiornot.com (as geek as it gets for me, that) when I noticed the following in the news section:

Ainu's Mini of the Week: Scratchbuilt G-Scale Billboard by misterjustin

For me, this week's miniature was a dead giveaway. Misterjustin is a highly active painter and hobbyist, bringing us new, inspired submissions with each week. But for me, the painted and scratch-built Billboard that he built for his step-father in law's birthday stands out.

The freehand paintwork is nothing below professional, and should make this piece the focus of the railroad track. What I can really appreciate besides the freehand, are the small touches that add a sense of authenticity to the piece. Buckets of paint, spatters of paint on 'Bill's clothing, the excellent graffiti, and especially the lights up above.

There is, however, room for improvement. The billboard seems too small at this scale, as the painter could merely jump down from that height which isn't quite accurate. But this still does not overshadow the details of the piece, though it should be taken into consideration considering that the whole board is being built from scratch.

This 'miniature's basing (not sure if something this large qualifies as a miniature!) was done very creatively without being unrealistic. The trash and sheet metal fit in well with the construction site feel exuded from this piece.

To conclude this week's mini of the week, I'm sure that his step-father in law will be one very happy man.

Ainu's Mini of the Week: Scratchbuilt G-Scale Billboard by misterjustin receives 8.1/10.

I am just about as pleased as I can get. This site gets hundreds of submissions each week and is the most active miniature painter community online -- so this, this made my day.

Launching the painting blog....

After much hemming and hawing I have finally decided to move all painting and related content from my personal blog and give it a new home here.

This means that my portfolio site has come down, obviously. I will work to get some of those resources back online over the coming days. If anyone out there on the Intarweb is actually said resources a gentle nudge would certainly speed me up.