[Apache26]

I've recently started painting headsculpts with Pastels. I start with an acrylic skin tone base coat and apply dry Pastel details. While I need more practice, and to adjust my colors a bit, I would appreciate some help on a couple of things.

1. When I seal the pastels with a clear dullcote, I lose the texture and detail. The dullcote also seems to make everything blend together three shades darker. If I don't seal it, the pastels rub off. What can I use to seal the pastels without ruining them?

2. This is a point of philsophy...when I painted 1/35 plastic kits with acrylics, I used a darker brown shade to make a white face look tan. I used a lighter skin tone mixture to make forehead and cheekbone highlights. For the headsculpt painting gurus out there, do you believe in highlighting high points on the face with light fleshtones? Or do you make them dark, but "rosier" as they would be in real life?

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[der soldat]

With any types of pastel, you should expect them to look a bit darker when sealer is applied, which is why I whiched to using make-up on my sculpts, they darken too much. You may also be using too much pastel or sealer. Remember to put on a little bit of pastel, too much looks wierd.

for the pastels blending together, use thin coats of sealer. I've noticed the best sealers are teh generic type sealers, or anything without the word sealer on them, I use Krylon clear matte latex finish.

For skintone, mix up a skintone darker than you think you will need, as it looks alot whiter once its on the sculpt. I've noticed, a tan looking paint looks almost off-white once on the sculpt unless I add more brown. For the highlights areas, I have two reccomendations- Either use off-white or very, very pale tan, or don't use highlighting at all. I put highlighting on the cheeks (sometime the tops of the ears if wearing a fieldcap), as the highlights look a bit odd with a helmet on. I mostly stick to reddish colors though, a bit of brown under the chin, very subtle on the highlights, and lotsa red on the cheecks, chin, nose, and a bit on the forhead and ears.

 

[crusader1xxx]

For sealer, try future wax mixed with flat clear, 10 parts future to 1 part clear for flat. I usually go about 5-6 to one, it seams to give me a nice flat finish with out losing the details. For more info go here.......

http://blog.castlebrimstone.com/?p=499

and for info about the clear........

http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html

give the future a try...it really works well.............

 

[Apache26]

Thanks guys.

 

[rogerbee]

I use Winsor & Newton Artist's Fixative. I used it on my James Bond bash and if used carefully gives great results.

CHEERS!