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Colour Guide for Painting Desert British Infantry
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Colour Guide for Painting Desert British Infantry
By James Brown The dust-coloured Khaki Drill fabric of the British Army’s tropical uniform was rapidly bleached and faded by the desert conditions. To reflect this, I have chosen quite a pale finish. I have started with a black undercoat because this approach is familiar to most painters. Feel free to use a white or coloured undercoat – some people prefer it, particularly when dealing with light colours.
Paint references are for the Vallejo Model Colour range.
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Flesh (faces, arms, hands and legs) |

Stage 1: Beige brown (875)
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Stage 2: Flat Flesh (955)
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Stage 3: Basic Skintone (815)
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Face Detail
5-o’clock shadow is a quick, easy way of giving a miniature’s face added character and realism. I used a very thin glaze of 816 Luftwaffe Uniform WWII, mixing much more water than paint. I also used a similar technique to apply a hint of 984 Flat Brown to the lower lip.
5 o'clock shadow wash/glaze: Luftwaffe Blue (816) Lip wash/glaze: Flat Brown (984)
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Gear
Base coats
Bayonet Scabard: Black (950) Water bottle and entrenching tool handle: Beige Brown (875)
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Stage 1 Rifle Butt: Flat Earth (893). Stage 1 Bayonet Handle: FGerman Camo Medium Brown (826).
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Stage 2 Rifle Butt highlight: Beige Brown (875). Stage 2 Rifle metal: Oily Steel (865) + German Grey (995)(50/50)
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Stage 3 further Rifle Butt highlight: Light Brown (929) Stage 3 Rifle metal highlight: Oily Steel (865)
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Stage 1 Socks: English Uniform (921). Stage 1 Boots: Black (950). Stage 1 Shirt and pants/shorts: Khaki (988) Stage 1 Helmet: Dark Sand (847)
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Stage 2 Socks highlight: Khaki (988). Stage 2 Shirt and pants/shorts highlight: Iraqi Sand (819) Stage 2 Helmet highlight: Pale Sand (837)
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Stage 3 Shirt and pants/shorts: Dark Sand (847)
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Weathering Adding a few paint chips to the helmet is a good way of making your figure look a little battle-hardened. Carefully paint small chips and scratches, first with German Grey (995), then with Oily Steel (865). If the chips look too stark, you can soften the effect with a very light drybrush of Pale Sand (837). |
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