October 29 2007 | Let's do the rust...

To prepare the rust, i need some pigments (Windsor & Newton) as well as "leather" coloured paint + black. I use Vallejo.
I also need the top of a DVD case, why? because when you mix your pigments you tend to blow a biot of air here and there, and the borders are here to help you not to tint your working surface.
the colours are: yellow, red, van dyk brown, black, sienna and burnt sienna. i try at each diorama not to use the same ratio -sop this time i went high with sienna and Van Dyk Brown + quite a bit of red for the highlights.

October 29 2007 | How to apply the rust..

I use the same technique for 15 years!
first I roughly mix black and leather paint with a bit of water -quite a bit in fact, the mix is pretty liquid, then i apply the dark mix precisely where the rust will be. then, when the paint is still wet, i blend some leather coloured paint unevenly on the top of the mix.
then -with a paint still wet -I load some pigments on the brush that i dried more or less with a tissue, and i lightly touch the surface.
The trick is done!

October 29 2007 | Clear rust on dark paint.

In my Tsushima diorama, i had to apply the rust on a white paint -this went quite smoothly, but if I had to apply the rust on a black or dark coloured ship the things would have been different.
I have been observing the fences near my home and it seems that before attacking the metal, the rsut, first discolour the paint near the rust's borders.
So here's my discoloured green mix; I added some yellow for the discoloured areas that will be situated in full sunlight.

October 29 2007 | Applying the discoloured parts

Now this discoloued mix is thinned quite thoroughly, I apply it with a brush near the rust's border, and with a water filled bursh, I *push* the colour near the border so that it makes  a real discoloured border.

October 30 2007 | A last rusty trick

Now a last rusty trick -I pick up a Vallejo paint and i *don't* stir it, so what goes out of the tube is only some thinner.
I apply the thinner and I sprinkle some pigments.
When the whole is set, no doubt that a small proportion of the pigments will still be in a dusty shape -so I create some run offs in the right sense with a dry brush!

October 30 2007 | The holes on the gun craddle

Talking of tedious things to do..
Using a small and old 1/0 brush, I dipped it in rust coloured paint and passed it through most of the holes in the craddle!
In some cases, I first did with some dark rust coloured paint, and then did it a second time with a less loaded brush with a lighter shade.

October 30 2007 | The boat is finished! (for now)

Here are all the parts of the boat painted..

October 30 2007 | A close-up of the texture I wanted to achieve

.. which works so far.
Now of course, it's okay on the paper, I might be adding a bit of colour when the diorama reaches completion as I must think of these elements as the part of a whole of course..

Now on to paint the ground cover...