The problem with redheads ( Anna Katanic )

I received a new color in the mail the other day and have put it to use on the next round of miniatures. I was having problems getting a good flesh tone and a decent red with the inks I had, so I ordered Vermilion Amsterdam ink. It seems to blend better than the flesh tone ink I have. It holds color better when blended with white or brown, and I was able to get a good auburn color after some experimentation.

There were female figures in some of the sets I've purchased and they bear some similarities with each other so I decided to paint them as red heads so I could use the same player character in different games and eras just for fun. 

I also painted a wizard, wraith, and Slayers from Blue Moon .

These are 2 from the Slayers set from Blue Moon, now Old Glory Miniatures. This is the first of the red head, Anna Katanic. This was the first Anna I painted and didn't quite have the auburn hair color down yet (seems a bit pinkish).While the crossbow and lantern make for any interesting figure, the casting of the face leaves a lot to be desired in regards to femininity. The Splintered Light minis that follow have finer facial features, but I also ran into a lot of setbacks when painting them.

These are from the Splintered Light wizard set. I painted them as Anna Katanic and still have one more on the shelf I am working on. The red hair was 2 pts vermilion, 1 part burnt umber and just a touch of naphthol red. I think it came out great, but created issues with the rest of the figure painting.

Red head should equal pale skin. I used a very light skin tone since she is a red head which took a bit of time to figure out a good color mix. It came out good, but I had major issues on shading the face, eyes. The standard sepia wash which works for medium and dark skin tones was too dark. I tried various shades of light brown, light sepia, dark orange and even though I knew it wouldn't work - black. Before I blocked it out it looked like she was wearing sunglasses!

The closest success I got was on the mini holding the crystal ball. The mix darkened the eyes but not too much of the face. The mini with the staff's face was redone four or five times and still couldn't get a result. I went ahead and sealed it, but I will experiment some more and try to go back and finish the last little touch it needs. 

Reverse.

I think the vermilion is a helpful color, and the Slayer overcoat and the Anna's cloaks and dresses utilized the Naples yellow, and were much easier to blend and recreate greens and linens, compared to using a lightened brown, yellow mix. 

A wizard and wraith from Splintered lights. Yes, I know, another gray wizard. The next one will be brown.. I promise. That makes 26 figures painted in July so far. I have 3 others in various stages so I should be able to accomplish the 30 minis in 30 days.