Leo Martínez
There are many ways to paint bones, and one popular method is to use washes. When it comes to painting bones with washes, some people compare different brands such as Army Painter, Citadel, and Reaper. Army Painter is known for its affordable prices and offers a Skeleton Bone Primer that can be used for contrast paints, while Citadel's Wraithbone is a lighter shade. Reaper's Learn to Paint Bones Kit is also mentioned as a potential option for beginners. For those looking for a quick and easy bone effect, a generous amount of Contrast Medium is recommended as the first wash, followed by other steps to achieve the desired bone colour and texture.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Paint | Corax White spray primer, Seraphim Sepia wash, Ushabti Bone, Ulthuan Grey, Screaming Skull, Zandri Dust spray, Agrax Earthshade, Vallejo's Sepia Ink, Vallejo Tan Earth, Terminatus Stone, Reaper Master Series Ancient Bone triad, Vallejo Game Color Khaki, Off White, Army Painter's Skeleton Bone primer, Deep Shader, Nuln Oil, Administratum Grey, Pallid Wych Flesh, Wraithbone primer, Coelia Greenshade, Ahriman Blue, Naggaroth Night, Druchii Violet, Xereus Purple, Screamer Pink, Carroburg Crimson, Pink Horror, Stormhost Silver, Spiritstone Red, Thousand Sons Blue, Skrag Brown, Ryza Rust, Leadbelcher, Runfang Steel, Hyek Yellow, Gorthor Brown, Citadel, Wyldwood, Skeleton Horde, Reaper MSP series, ProAcryl Ivory, AK Interactive III Deck Tan |
| Technique | Prime white, shade with sepia, dry brush, stippling, dry brushing, Zenithal prime, basecoat, highlight, varnish, gloss |
| Tools | Brushes, varnish, spray |
| Tips | Use a lot of Contrast Medium, be generous when applying the wash, soak up any excess to keep pooling to a minimum, use light brown or yellow ochre and slowly build mid-tones and highlights until you have the look you want |
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What You'll Learn
Using Army Painter's Skeleton Bone primer
The Army Painter's Skeleton Bone primer is a colour primer spray that can be used to paint skeletons. It is designed to save time and provide perfect coverage when painting hordes of skeletons. The primer is available in a 400ml spray can and is an acrylic spray undercoat for miniature painting.
To use the primer effectively, it is recommended to spray in short, even pulses instead of holding the spray down to avoid clumping and achieve a smooth matte finish. This product is a perfect match for the Army Painter "Skeleton Bone" paint colour, allowing for a seamless painting experience.
The Skeleton Bone primer can be used as a base for painting skeletal bones, followed by shading and dry brushing to create the desired bone effect. For example, one user suggested priming with Corax White, painting with Ushabti Bone, and then washing with Seraphim Sepia to create a dirty, "out-of-the-earth" look.
Another user recommended priming with Skeleton Bone spray for Deathwing Terminators/Knights, which they found gave a great effect. This primer can also be used for mass painting skeletons and provides a good base for contrast paints, similar to the Grey Seer primer.
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How to get a bleached look
To get a bleached look for bones using Army Painter washes, you can try the following methods and techniques:
Firstly, you could try using AK Ivory as your base colour. Wash this with a sepia shade—a user on Reddit recommends Vallejo's Sepia Ink for a more concentrated look. Finish by dry brushing with a lighter colour, such as tyrant skull or screaming skull.
Another option is to use a light brown or yellow ochre as your base and slowly build up mid-tones and highlights until you achieve the desired bleached bone look. You can also try Zandri Dust as your base, followed by a wash of Agrax Earthshade and a dry brush of Ushabti Bone for a nice, dirty look with some lighter bone colour shining through.
For a more controlled application of Army Painter washes, you can mix them with the Wash Medium. This will allow you to tint metallic paint for a surreal shimmer or create interesting effects on fleshy models. You can also thin the washes with the Wash Mixing Medium to achieve a lighter shading effect, which may be useful for a bleached bone look.
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Using sepia wash for a dirty, earthy look
When painting bones, a sepia wash is a great way to achieve a dirty, earthy look. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to use a sepia wash for this effect:
First, prime your miniature with a white base coat. You can use a spray primer like Corax White or a paint-on primer like Army Painter's Skeleton Bone primer. This will create a bright base for your sepia wash to tone down.
Next, apply the sepia wash. You can use a product like Citadel's Seraphim Sepia Shade or Vallejo's Sepia Ink. Depending on the concentration of your wash and your desired effect, you may want to dilute it with water or a medium like Lahmian Medium. Apply the wash liberally over the bones, allowing it to flow into the recesses and create depth.
If you want a more yellowish bone, you can stop here. However, if you want to add more depth and create a dirtier look, you can continue by dry brushing with a bone colour like Ushabti Bone or Skeleton Bone.
For an even more pronounced effect, you can finish by adding some stippling and streaks of darker washes or inks, like Umber ink, to add final touches of dirt and grime.
Using a sepia wash is a simple and effective way to create a dirty, earthy look on bones. With some experimentation and practice, you can achieve a variety of effects with this technique.
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Using a brown or yellow ochre base
When painting bones, it's important to consider the desired level of detail and the specific colour palette you want to achieve. Here's a guide on using a brown or yellow ochre base for painting bones:
Starting with a Brown or Yellow Ochre Base
Vallejo Game Color Khaki Base
Start with a base of Vallejo Game Color Khaki and wash it with a shade like Agrax Earthshade. Then, highlight it with Vallejo Game Color Off White to create a grittier look.
P3 Meaty Ochre and Menoth White Highlight
Mix P3 Meaty Ochre with Menoth White Highlight to create a realistic bone colour. Lightly brush this mixture over bone armour details. The Meaty Ochre adds depth and realism to the bone. Thin coats are essential when working with small details to prevent muddiness. Gradually add more Menoth White Highlight to the mixture and work your way up, slowly bringing out the highlights.
Vallejo Model Colour Ochre Brown and VMC Deep Yellow
For a yellow bone colour, start with a Vallejo Model Colour Ochre Brown basecoat. Then, apply VMC Deep Yellow on top to achieve a vibrant yellow bone.
Light Brown or Yellow Ochre Base
Start with a light brown or yellow ochre base and gradually build up the mid-tones and highlights until you achieve the desired bone colour. This technique allows you to control the final look, whether you want a bleached bone appearance or a richer, dino fossil brown bone.
Army Painter Flesh Wash
If you're using the Army Painter brand, try their skeleton bone colour. While it may not be the best option for pure bone colour, you can enhance it by applying a flesh wash over it, creating an interesting effect.
Remember, when working with washes and highlights, always use thin coats and gradually build up the colour to avoid overdoing it.
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Applying a dry brush finish
When applying a dry brush finish, it is important to understand the different brushstroke types and their application. For instance, the PULL, SIDE, and PUSH strokes are used in basecoating, shading, highlighting, and blending.
To achieve a dry brush finish, it is recommended to use normal white or other light-coloured acrylic paint to highlight the texture, and then go over it with speedpaints to add colour. If you want less colour, thin the speedpaints with water or speedpaint medium.
To use the Masterclass Drybrushes from Army Painter, apply paint to the tip of the brush and distribute the paint, wiping off the excess by wiping the brush on tissue paper. You can then stipple and dry brush as desired. These dome-tipped dry brushes are designed to give ultra-realistic results and very smooth coverage.
For a weathered brownish look for skeletons, one user recommends priming white, painting a layer of ushabti bone or karack stone, and then using a wash of Vallejo's Sepia Ink to control the textures. This creates a "decaying in humid earth for weeks" sort of shade.
Another user recommends painting the entire model with Zandri Dust, covering it with Earthshade, and then dry brushing with Ushabti Bone.
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Frequently asked questions
For a more bleached look, you can use AK Ivory, washed with sepia, and then dry-brushed with tyrant skull. You can finish with some more ivory. For a brownish look, you can use Zandri Dust, Agrax Earthshade, and Ushabti Bone. For a yellowish bone colour, you can use Skeleton Horde. For a darker shade, you can use Wyldwood.
The key to this technique is getting the first wash right, so be generous when applying the wash and take your time. Soak up any excess to keep pooling to a minimum, and you will end up with a smooth result. You can also use an ink wash of umber ink and matte medium with a few drops of flow improver to add dirt and grime.
You can use Reaper MSP series or Citadel paints.
You can use a lot of Contrast Medium to let it do most of the work for you and get a lot of Skeleton Warriors or Grave Guard done quickly.
