Squidmar is here again with another one of his great tutorials, this time on painting Horns, Bones, Skulls, and Leather on miniatures! Check out how you can master these basics!
Squidmar’s channel is rapidly growing due to his great tutorials that range from full-scale models to tips and even practical physics! This time around, he slows down the pace and takes a minute to help teach us how we can try to get all the basics down pat, specifically, horns, bones, skulls, & leather.
Painting Horns, Bones, Skulls & Leather on Miniatures
The Paints we will need for the skulls/bones are Citadel Zandri Dust, Citadel Rhinox Hide, Citadel Screaming Skull, Citadel Torghast Bone, Citadel Steel Legion Drab, and any white.
First, prime it in Rhinox Hide and base the skull everywhere that isn’t the deepest shadow with Steel Legion Drab. For the first highlight, use Zandri Dust and cover less than the previous layer, focusing more on the brighter areas.
Following this pattern, go from Torghast Bone to Screaming Skull and finally, to white. Try to transition through each of them to create a stunning light effect and great details on any bones.
The Paints we will need for horns are Citadel Balor Brown, Citadel Screaming Skull, and any Ivory.
First, prime it in Rhinox Hide, then apply a sort of highlight using Balor Brown in a streaking fashion following the lines and texture on the horn. This should only cover the brighter half of the horn. Then add in some Screaming Skull and any Ivory in increasing amounts for each of the following layers to create transitions until it’s as bright as you want it.
The Paints we will need for horns are Citadel Mournfang Brown, Citadel Skrag Brown, and Citadel Deathclaw Brown.
Once again, prime it in Rhinox Hide, then apply Mournfang Brown to the upper-most half of the leather area. Go over that with Skrag Brown covering slightly less area. Follow that by covering an even smaller area with Deathclaw Brown. You can add in white to the Deathclaw Brown and go as bright as you like. Just be sure to keep the transitions consistent!
With that, you are done!
Just be sure to take your time and practice, practice, practice!
Squidmar Miniatures is a great place to learn all kinds of hobby techniques! Be sure to subscribe to Squidmar Miniatures’ YouTube channel for more tutorials.
About the Author: Andrew Schrank
Andrew Schrank
Job Title: Miniatures & Warhammer Hobby Staff Writer
Socials: Facebook
About Andrew Schrank: Over the past 15 years, Andrew has played all the games, including tabletop and video games, and immersed himself in the associated lore. Andrew joined the Spikey Bits team in 2018 and covers the Warhammer hobby and tournament scene, along with the latest in tabletop miniatures, each week.
Aspiring diplomat, Lord of Fluff, and Master of Ice Hammer, He loves Star Wars, Chaos Undivided, and Gundam. During his free time, he hunts Platinum trophies on PS5 and reads international news. On weekends, Andrew plays commander and cEDH games, often with unique strategies that push the limits.
He believes each day presents a new opportunity to grow and be challenged.
