I am brand new to napoleonics and 10mm. Does anyone have a guide to painting mainly white uniforms that looks good?
Welcome....Austrians arent easy, I'd suggest using a good quality acrillyic and a light undercoat although I last did them with black undercoat. You may use a slightly darker colour for the cross straps so offwhite maybe.
Experiment !!!!
The Austrian infantry uniform really wasn't white at all but undyed wool, called perlgrau, or pearl grey. When in barracks there was a daily cleaning regime that required the soldier to whiten his uniform with chalk and brush it. On campaign it would not have been easy to keep it clean and it would have got have dirty very quickly.
I haven't painted Austrians but I have painted Dutch and plenty of Spanish for a Peninsular project, both of which wore white uniforms made from similar material and the first thing to say is don't use white paint.
I usually undercoat in white, because it reveals blemishes better than black, and if you thin the top coat slightly, the highlights show through. With white subjects, though, I use Vallejo Neutral Gray 70.992. I then use an off white for the top coat, such as Vallejo Off-White 70.820, and when the figure is finished and properly dry I give it a wash with Vallejo Sepia 73-200, diluted 50/50 with water. When that is dry I highlight with off-white and then pick-out things like straps with the same.
Limit the use of white generally, it is too stark and white clothing and equipment wouldn't stay white for very long anway. The same goes for black. Use Vallejo Black-grey 70.862 rather than pure black.
Leather brown, sepia wash, leather brown highlights, dun highlights, then Vallejo ivory
I undercoat white, basecoat in pale grey and then highlight in white
This is my painting instruction table for Austrian (German) Fusiliers:
UNDERCOAT WHITE
212 Dark Grey (Officer – coat)
211 Light Grey Coat, breeches (Officer – collar, cuffs)
FACING FACING Collar, cuffs, turnbacks (Drummer – swallow-nests)
219 Chestnut Brown Flesh, musket, canteen (Drummer – drum) (Officer – sash)
529 Beige Brown Backpack
231 Mid Grey Greatcoat
212 Dark Grey Helmet, pouch, scabbard, gaiters
524 Tan Earth Base
211 Light Grey Crest, belt, straps (Drummer – hoops)
VGC 007 Yellow Crest (Drummer – hoops)
219 Chestnut Brown Helmet plate (Officer – crest) Ensign – finial)
504 Panzer Grey Musket-barrel, bayonet
(Drummer – diagonal hoop-stripes, sticks) (Officer – sword) (Ensign – staff)
HIGHLIGHTS
214 Flesh Flesh
101 White Coat, breeches, belts, straps
525 Uniform Grey Helmet, pouch, scabbard, gaiters (Officer – coat)
VGC 057 Bright Bronze Helmet-plate, scabbard-fittings, musket-lock (Drummer – drum) (Ensign – finial)
VGC 055 Polished Gold (Officer – sash, crest)
VGC 052 Silver Musket-barrel, bayonet (Officer – sword)
504 Panzer Grey Crest-centre, helmet-peak
BLACK INK WASH
101 White Belts, straps
That's the order I paint and the colours used - all Coat d'Arms paints and washes unless noted as VGC Vallejo (obviously facing colour varies with regiment).
And looks like this in 10mm
(https://live.staticflickr.com/7639/26425704234_6b19b68ea8_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Gg9Ddf)
Austrian Fusiliers Regiment - IR 56 Colloredo (https://flic.kr/p/Gg9Ddf) by Zippee Jerred (https://www.flickr.com/photos/zippee/), on Flickr
Quote from: Zippee on 31 May 2023, 10:23:56 AMThis is my painting instruction table for Austrian (German) Fusiliers.....
Well, that seems to work. One thing, the woodwork on Austrian muskets was blackened.
I know John, but painting the musket black just "looks wrong" to me.
Its just one of a myriad of inaccuracies but that one is at least deliberate.
All figure painting is impressionistic - if it looks right it's good.
Disagree entirely. We might as well just have a univesal figure for everything, one generic tank and one generic gun. No thanks. Infinite variety is what keeps me interested, and has done for the last half century.
Quote from: John Cook on 01 June 2023, 12:41:30 AMDisagree entirely. We might as well just have a univesal figure for everything, one generic tank and one generic gun. No thanks. Infinite variety is what keeps me interested, and has done for the last half century.
Same here...my goodness, it really is almost exactly a half century!
As long as everyone playing knows what the thing is I don't care if it's right.
Nice to have the right model nicely painted but far from essential IMHO.
Well, it isn't mandatory. I suppose it depends whether the game is all that matters or not. There was a bit of a moan on here recently about the Confederation troops for the Peninsular range being without plumes and that they wouldn't be suitable for the 5th Coaltion 1809 range, so detail is importan to some people. I don't get deliberately painting Austrian musket brown, when they were black but I doubt it would gate anybody drummed out of the Brownies. For me the game is almost secondary. I get immense pleasure from research, collecting books, prints and other documents, I even have a large collection of period drill regulations (I know). I could pursue the research aspect of the hobby and paint moidels without even gaming I think.
One of the many things I find fascinating about this hobby is the infinite variety of ways people find to enjoy it :)
Quote from: John Cook on 01 June 2023, 02:18:48 AMWell, it isn't mandatory. I suppose it depends whether the game is all that matters or not. There was a bit of a moan on here recently about the Confederation troops for the Peninsular range being without plumes and that they wouldn't be suitable for the 5th Coaltion 1809 range, so detail is importan to some people. I don't get deliberately painting Austrian musket brown, when they were black but I doubt it would gate anybody drummed out of the Brownies. For me the game is almost secondary. I get immense pleasure from research, collecting books, prints and other documents, I even have a large collection of period drill regulations (I know). I could pursue the research aspect of the hobby and paint moidels without even gaming I think.
you'll be taken with the irony that I am the same person commenting on the Rhinebund plumes as painting muskets brown - to be honest at this scale at playing distance the brown is so dark its not noticeably brown, just dark. Black* however is too stark and "looks wrong", dark grey is worse. That's my viewpoint, and I'm happy with the look, which frankly is all that really matters these days. :D
All my 'black' is actually panzer grey anyway
At half a mile away on the battlefield, doesn't everyone just look grey anyway? Plus there is the frequently noted factor that smaller scale figures need to be painted a shade or three lighter to get the right effect. So what colour we actually paint our figures becomes a matter of aesthetic preference.
Quote from: Zippee on 01 June 2023, 08:16:13 AMyou'll be taken with the irony ...
Was it indeed, I couldn't remember. Fortunately I have no interest in the white hordes in a wargaming context so it isn't an issue.
Anybody else fed up with predictive text?
I agree with you Chris. 10mm Austrian figures at a distance will appear white regardless of how you painted them last SYW Austrians I painted were simply three different shades of white, Trousers Off White, Coats Gris-blanc and belts pure White. The differences were visible up close but on the table they appeared
just white.
QuoteAnybody else fed up with predictive text?
It has just been a nonce that the creature of autocarrot has dyed. His funfair will be on sundial. :)
Quote from: Ithoriel on 01 June 2023, 10:53:13 AMIt has just been a nonce that the creature of autocarrot has dyed. His funfair will be on sundial. :)
Ehhh watttt ????
QuoteI am brand new to napoleonics and 10mm. Does anyone have a guide to painting mainly white uniforms that looks good?
A guide to how I painted some Pendraken Austrians with contrast paints:
http://www.michaelscott.name/1809/blog2020/1809post228.htm (http://www.michaelscott.name/1809/blog2020/1809post228.htm)
Plenty more on the subject in the blog for both old and new. Also a restart in a new location:
https://projects.supremelittleness.co.uk/category/journals-of-1809/ (https://projects.supremelittleness.co.uk/category/journals-of-1809/)
Cheers, Michael
Quote from: WeeWars on 11 June 2023, 11:18:11 AMA guide to how I painted some Pendraken Austrians with contrast paints:
http://www.michaelscott.name/1809/blog2020/1809post228.htm (http://www.michaelscott.name/1809/blog2020/1809post228.htm)
Plenty more on the subject in the blog for both old and new. Also a restart in a new location:
https://projects.supremelittleness.co.uk/category/journals-of-1809/ (https://projects.supremelittleness.co.uk/category/journals-of-1809/)
Cheers, Michael
I was just going to put a link to your advice, as it worked for my Kaiserlichs...
QuoteI was just going to put a link to your advice, as it worked for my Kaiserlichs...
Really good to hear that, Ben. Makes it all worthwhile!