Snow Day

Two feet of snow on the ground, at least, and yesterday we got another six inches or so, with another six or so planned for this morning.  Rather than drive to work in a whiteout, I took the day off.  Fortunately, my condo complex has landscapers, do I didn't have to do shoveling other than digging the car out.

A benefit of a snow day is that I have some some to paint up some miniatures, so I was able to do up these two guys yesterday:

I know that two isn't much, but I guess I paint slowly. I'll take what I can get.

The Miniatures Disease

It's been six months since I've bought any miniatures, a fact that shocks and awes me. Due to various other factors, I've had to put down my paintbrushes and do other things for three months.

But recently I've been able to get back into the game, albeit slowly. I've painted a pair of miniatures, and I'm approaching completion of my Brazen Claws company--a long term project.

When I spent those three months not painting, it was easy to forget about it--or rather, I'd think about 40k, but not too deeply. Yet as soon as I started painting again, I started thinking about it. New projects to work on, new ideas for armies.

I still have many projects to complete, and a mountain of miniatures still in boxes unpainted. But I can't help but think of new things I want to do. It's amazing how quickly the addiction consumes you once you get back into it.

• I still need to complete my Brazen Claws.
• I still need to complete my Ork Land Battleship.
• I still have my Space Hulk minis to paint
• And tons of other miniatures lying around....

And yet, I see a picture like this:

The new Shadow Spectres from Forgeworld, and I want to start making that new Eldar Army I've been dreaming of for a while.  The theme of the army is very ghost-like, and as such the Shadow Spectres would be a perfect fit.

And then the Grey Knights are coming out soon, which is exciting...

And to top it off, I still have lots of ideas for my Warhammer and LotR armies too...  Sigh.

Knight of the Raven

This past weekend I did something I haven't done in over three months: painted a miniature. Real life has been pretty busy recently, and I simply haven't had the time to sit down and paint since October. It feels good to be back. This doesn't mean that I'll be pounding out miniatures left and right again, but at least I'm back in the game a little bit.

I always thought that the Knights of the Raven chapter looked pretty cool. It seems clear to me (although it's stated in the canon that it's not definitive) that the Knights of the Raven are descended from the Raven Guard, which has always been a favorite of mine.

I had originally thought that their paint scheme was essentially the opposite of the Raven Guard, that is, white with black markings. But upon closer inspection, it's actually burnished silver with black markings. Pretty cool. So just for fun I decided to paint up a test miniature in this scheme.

Not the best work I've ever done, but passable, I think.

Sometimes real life gets in the way...

Things have been crazy the past few months. I'm currently caught in a vicious cycle of sickness--catching a cold from my daughter, only to reinfect her and vice versa. This has been coupled with some home improvement projects. All the family is moving in with my mother-in-law. And work has been busy too. All of this has conspired together to mean that I haven't had time to sit down and paint for ages... :( And there's no end in sight. Perhaps in a few months things will settle down, but until then, I'm stuck taking care of other things. There's no question I'll get back into it, but it'll take some time. Out.

The End is Nigh...

For a long while now I've been working my Brazen Claw army--specifically, the Brazen Claw 2nd Company. It's been a long road filled with distractions due to other projects, as well as burnout painting so much red and blue quartered paint schemes.

Recently I've been trying to inject some self-discipline into myself and not buy any new miniatures for a while. Then I saw my Brazen Claws sitting on the shelf. The company is almost done, mainly just the above miniatures left to go. Painting the whole company seemed like almost an insurmountable task in the beginning. But now, I think I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Finishing the company before I buy any more miniatures seems to be a reachable goal. Also, as it's going to take me a while (at least a few weeks) to find the time to finish these guys anyway, it'll also help my wallet a bit too.