If you haven’t been painting for a while, sometimes it can be hard to know how to shade and wash a miniature, check out the Army Painter’s tips!
The Army Painter is known for having some of the best and most affordable paints on the market! But they also have an extensive collection of tutorials and paint guides. Their tutorials are perfect for learning how to get your minis on the table. If you want to see everything The Army Painter has going on, check it out here.
Today they are walking us through something that’s simple, but most of us take it for granted. Washing miniatures! This is geared towards newer people but has some good tips for veterans as well.
Just as a note, all the paints, and tools used in this video will be from them, which you can pick up all the paints and supplies here.
Let’s see how to do it!
How to Shade & Wash a Miniature: Army Painter Tutorial
In this tutorial, we will be using Quickshades from them, which are designed to get a wash down fast and look great.
To start, just take a bigger brush and dip it in the shade then apply it to the area you want. If it starts to pool more than you want, simply take a brush and move it around the model allowing it to get into the crevices, thus creating a nice shade effect.
For flesh tone, simply push a little onto the flesh areas and let the wash pick out the details for you.
A Quicker Approach
Instead of applying a bunch of different colors, you can apply a single coat of Strong Tone, Dark Tone, or Military Shade. This will still look great and give a uniform look to all your minis. Once the wash is dry, sometimes it will make the mini too dark.
If you want, you can go back over with a highlight of your original basecoat to bring the color back up.
The Fastest Way
If you want the most time for gaming and least for painting, dipping your models is the fastest way to shade. Start by opening a bigger can of Quickshade then mix it up. Then hold a mini with some tweezers and dip a model completely in the shade. It will look dark right off the bat but don’t panic. Turn the mini back upright and let the shade drip off and dry. Then shake your model in a whiplike motion to get rid of any of the remaining Quickshade.
Allow the Quickshade 24-48 hours to dry, then finish it off with a Matt Varnish.
There you have it! Some great tips on getting your models ready for a game!
Be sure to follow The Army Painter on Youtube for more great content like this.
Get Your Army Painter Paints Here!
About the Author: Travis Pasch
Travis Pasch
Job Title: Head Writer & Editor
Socials: @paschbass
About Travis Pasch: Travis has been a Warhammer 40k hobbyist since the 1990s, playing the game since Third Edition. Through extensive traveling, he’s seen a lot of the miniatures hobby from across the world, giving him a unique perspective on the latest gaming topics and trends.
Travis’s brother even owns a commission painting studio, where he’s picked up a lot of good advice and techniques for painting Warhammer and tabletop miniatures over the years, as well. Travis joined the Spikey Bits team in 2019 and has been the lead writer since 2020.
Currently, he’s working on converting all his 40k Adeptus Mechanicus models and becoming a true tech enjoyer, complete with both sad and happy robot noises!
