Source
r/Warhammer40k•
Harlock

Any tips for making painting less stressful?

Hobby & Painting

After finally getting the time to build (most) of my 2k point army, I'm not facing the final challenge - painting.

After a week of agonizing over simply priming them, I've started to actively put brush to plastic ~ and boy howdy am I stressed about it.

I'm trying to live by the "it's OK to fail" mantra, because at the very worst I have some ugly ass models on the table, but I can still play the game.

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Is there anything that people have done in a similar situation?

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https://preview.redd.it/grp1nlqyb1r91.jpg?width=884&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d579fb51847e09d4e064947ba3e123604de30000

https://preview.redd.it/3jegskqyb1r91.jpg?width=884&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eea738ad7ddce0b48c5b43b870802f7fc2f1417b

Posted Sep 30, 2022, 5:57 PM UTC

119
SteinKyoma:guard:•

Turn on some music or a podcast and paint. Take 10 dudes, line them up, and put paint to plastic. Get the base coat on one (it's ok to be a little messy) then move to the next. When you have all 10 base coated you can either move on to details, or do the base coat for another 10. Take your time, and take breaks as needed. It can be helpful to paint one guy to completion to use as a guide for the rest. You've got this!

7
HarlockOP:deathwatch:•

Thanks for this! I think just putting paint on model will do a lot for breaking that stigma I have around it.

2
SteinKyoma:guard:•

I was in the same boat not too long ago. Sometimes you just need to break the inertia.

2
GladimoreFFXIV•

I was honestly the same as you. I was terrified of painting my first model thinking I’d ruin it. To be honest? I kinda did. I didn’t know half the shit on my model even was. In fact it’s in my post history. Hell i painted my purity seals all gold and everything I didn’t know? Gold. It was just a red and gold model that lacked any actual detail work and it was messy and not thinned correctly.

After painting every day for 3-8 hours a day.. because I got hooked and over my anxiety, I actually just painted a full 2k army as a commission for 1500$. I’m going on year one in 10 days!

Point being.. it’s okay to be timid. If I with practice can get better and good enough to commission an army for someone then anyone can. It’s okay to fail. It’s okay to sacrifice a few models to get better. And worst case you can always strip them.

2
Rautia•

Only focus on a single Squad, vehicle or a couple characters at a time. Keep the rest out of sight. Tune in to your favorite streaming service/podcast/Spotify for some "background noise" and start painting. Giving some forethought to your color scheme can help too.

4
Visible-Expression60•

Exactly this. The main problem is your tackling an entire army.

1
Ok_Magician485•

What I do is. Find a squad or "big" model. Put it on the desk and only paint that. When its done pick something new. This way you are not getting stressed about all the grey

3
amadong•

Aside from "paint more," I'd have to remind you that you can fix whatever mistakes you make, just paint over it. That's how high level painters grt those sharp, crisp highlights and things - there's the first line that's fine but then they go back in with the previous color and clean up the lines.

So yeah. Paint more, use a big brush, clean up your mistakes.

3
HamBearPig•

I was the same way when I started out. I'm still no Picasso or anything, but little by little I've noticed I've gotten better. Just keep up with it and you'll get better over time. Listening to music or an audiobook helps me when I'm painting.

2
Right-Yam-5826•

Put on an audio book or music in the background, and just get started. After 1 or 2 you'll see there's nothing to be stressed about, and you can achieve great results with just a handful of paints and a wash, it almost feels like cheating.

Don't compare your projects to anyone else's. Most of the stuff on here is from people that have been painting for years if not decades.

2
Solaratov•

Personally I like to alternate between doing small details and assembly-line style larger part painting, as well as alternating between small models and large models/terrain. That keeps things fresh and interesting for me and makes it feel less stressful because if I don't want to worry on details I can switch.

2
SvenSeder:chaos:•

I reward myself with something positive right before I paint (for me it’s a fatty THC dab) and I keep coffee by me (another dopamine boost for me) and find a Netflix show I can pay attention to by only listening.

All of these things create a pleasurable experience and, I would say Pavloved myself to enjoy painting. I try to get 1-4 hours in a day depending on stress level and time constraints.

I also keep a few nicely painted models within eyes sight to give me motivation.

Currently painting an NMM iron warrior army and a commission Votan for a friend

2
greystuff2•

Set obtainable goals for what you’re going to paint in one sitting. Finishing five bolters, helmets, or shoulder pads is measurable progress that won’t be so overwhelming. Its also a good practice to stop when you are “over it” that’s when I end up making the most mistakes.

2
amipal24•

Remember that perfection is the enemy of good enough. Sometimes you need to step away, take a good look at what you've accomplished, and say to yourself - that'll do.

2
VoxCalibre•

Don't worry so much about mistakes. You can always go back and retouch. Listen to music, take regular breaks and don't feel like you need to do too much at once.

2
Dragshisballsz•

Just think about why its stressing you and if that reason really matters at all. At the end of the day youre just starting so try your best, but dont catastrophize or anything.

1
LivingClone13•

When I first started I picked up a couple 20 dollar ebay space marine boxes and tried a bunch of different techniques and color schemes just to get a feel for the process. Having some to paint that you dont really care about ruining will take away a lot of the anxiety or at least it did for me.

After painting 10 or so marines and getting better each time, I finally started on my actual army and was loads more confident.

You'll also be amazed at how quick you improve.

1
tcdaddy6969•

Pick necrons lmaoooooo I joke indo it I'm mass assembly mode and listen to lore and relax

1
Pigvalve:tau:•

Some painting tips

Just go one or a few at a time. Try not to look at the huge pile. You don’t have a deadline, quota or anything. On a day off I paint a little then walk outside or go for a run, do some push-ups. Play a video game or something. Come back and paint some more. Breaks it up!

1