Jumping aboard the Blood Angels hype, here’s Kenny’s take on how he paints and details his Blood Angels. Take a look at this method.
Kenny, from Next Level Painting, has painted thousands of models over the years. And with Blood Angels getting a nice rules boost, we thought it might be good to see how Kenny paints his Blood Angels. Trimming the fat and fluff, here’s the barebones breakdown on how he gets his models moving.
Top Five Airbrushes For Painting Miniatures
Step 1. Khador Red, this paint is really good. We’re using it to hit the edges. We did use this color during the air-brushing process, however, we washed it down a bit so it’s muted.
Ancient Technique: We want to do a lot of thin lines and we don’t want to go thick on the paint. Keep it thin, do multiple passes. Small streaks.
Step 2. Troll Slayer Orange, one of the best oranges in the business. We’re going to mix this in with the Khador and water WAY down. We’re going to use it to create center point highlights.
Basically highlight a smaller area of what you just highlighted.
Note: We COULD keep going with the Orange and make these highlights really pop. I, however, will be stopping here because I wanted to keep it a little more 3rd edition.
Step 3. Now, we’re going to go with a brown wash and do a pin wash the line between the two borders.
Step 4. Tire Black and Blue-Green mixed together and as a glaze. We’re making it very thin to make a smooth transition. It’s going to be very subtle. Wash, rinse, repeat using less water and less blue each time.
Step 5. Now we add a bit of white and go old school. You can see the right shoulder, storm bolter, and the tabard all have some nice white highlight. We’re also going to add it to the robe as well. Use a fine detail brush and pick out the raised surfaces of the cloth.
Step 6. Aluminum, rapid-fire edge highlight on the silver. You can see how much brighter the bolter looks from the previous picture.
Highlighting Edges on the Minis- Take Your Time
Step 7. We’re also going to use Aluminum again on the chains and all the silver bits. By using the wash and this highlight across various bits on the model we’ve created a lot of great contrast.
Step 8. The thunder hammer s going to get some aluminum silver dry brush. as well as a fine highlight on the hard edges.
Step 9. With Abaddon Black, use a detail brush and draw on some scratches and comic book-style effects. (You can leave this part out if you prefer a cleaner look).
Step 10. There’s not a lot of detail in his hair; a lot of Space Marines are like this. We’re going to have to manufacture some detail. For that, we’re going to take this Uriel Yellow and just begin to use very thin streaks up from the base of the hairline up to the upper portions of the head.
Step 11. Yellow Rust, we’re going to thin it down and use it as a glaze. It’s going to take more than a few passes to get that yellow to blend back in and we don’t want it to look like crazy lines.
Step 12. Now that we’ve blended it back in, we’re going to go back in with the Uriel yellow and get the tips.
Step 13. Sunny Skintone and P3 Skintone, we mix them together and create a nice blend and we’re going to hit the raised areas of the face like the nose, chin, etc.
Step 14. Arcana Blue: Now we’re going to blend the blue back into those gems to make it pop.
Once it’s all done, you should have taken your time on different detailing techniques on your Blood Angels and he should be more than ready for the tabletop! And that, my friends, is how you take your Blood Angel to the Next Level.
If you want to see more detailed coverage on the mini, check out the video below:
How long have you been painting Blood Angels? Do you prefer to hand-paint or do some serious leg-work with an airbrush?
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Painting has come a long way in the hobby world. You don’t have to do everything by a manual brush anymore! Check our list of the best ones out there!
About the Author: Kenny Boucher
Kenny Boucher
Job Title: Master of Miniature Artistry & Podcast Writer
Socials: @NextLevelPainting
About Kenny Boucher: Tabletop gaming since the late 1990s; Kenny joined the Spikey Bits team in 2011, communicating his vast knowledge in articles about how to paint miniatures and more.
Kenny Boucher is not just a name but a brand synonymous with top-tier miniature painting in the world of tabletop wargaming. As the creative force behind Next Level Painting, Kenny has earned his place as a respected authority in the hobby community.
Along with Rob, he co-founded and co-hosted the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes. His unparalleled skills, innovative techniques, and engaging tutorials have made him a go-to resource for hobbyists looking to elevate their painting game.
- YouTube Channel: Next Level Painting
- Instagram: @kenny_boucher
- Facebook: Next Level Painting
- Patreon: Support Kenny on Patreon
