Fixing Your Mini Painting MISTAKES! 

I got a tip :- Turn that mistake in to a feature. I was recently painting a grey suit on a mini and managed to get some dark red on it. I hadn't even noticed until i was mostly done. The Wife pointed it out, as she so often does when checking out minis i've painted. She said "Wow, the blood on this mini looks great!" and pointed at this little red blob. After i'd stopped crying, she helped me figure out how i could put blood splatter on the model as if she had just punched someone and the blood had landed on the minis suit. The person that the mini was for loved it. Bob Ross, happy little accidents. It's a thing.

you forget the most important fast fix, the good old "licky licky, paint no sticky!"

Fun fact: A Gargoyle is only a Gargoyle if it has rainwater drainage feature, otherwise it is a Grotesque. :)

This is a must watch for any painter of any experience level. Eraser brush is soooo clutch. Last two methods, calling the mistake intentional, or covering up with weathering/battle damage.

that new shirt is STRAIGHT 🔥🔥

0:02 "I'm in this video and I don't like it"

One preventative trick I learned from Vince Venturella is to use varnish as a kind of “save point”. So after doing that beautiful blend on the cloak, apply a layer of Matt varnish. That will stop the fix from ruining things - sometimes when trying to brush the mistake away it can damage the fragile paints underneath... the varnish layer prevents that!

I was painting while watching this. Painting a face. The face was going well until Jon's scream. Then, I ended up screaming too...

That face after he says “fingers close at hand.” I lost it!

the "inside out" is a brilliant idea. never even thought of that. i always paint without method :S

I’m actually going to be backing this Kickstarter later today! Very informational video. I love that purple and orange skin so much!

I just started painting. I've been watching a lot of videos on technique, etc. This was one of the most informative videos I have watched so far. I really enjoy your production value as well with well timed comedy. Keep up the good work.

Oh man! The eyeballs on Space Marines are the bane of me. I always get it to the point where I'm like, this is good. Now, let's make it perfect. FUUCK!

Re: Inside-Out painting, your second point Sometimes its actually easier to *not* do it. Specific example is chaos space marines. It's so much easier to paint the trim and fill in the armor panels than paint the insides and then do the trim. The key to deciding which "layer" to paint is often the volume of painting involved.

Slay the Gray shirt. Your nerd friends will think you like painting miniatures but everyone else will think you have a grandma fetish. Good video.

Another tip for preventative mistakes is start with your darkest colors and work your way to brighter colors. The worst mistake that I've made is accidently getting a noticeable black mark on yellow. It took me ages to put enough layers of yellow just to cover up the black mark.

That intro was great. lol I just started miniature painting and I've had to fix eyes countless times already!

The introduction is a summary of every space marine eye lens I've ever painted

Never thought about the inside out method. So simple. Thanks Jon!

Know when to say 'when'. Sometimes you overcorrect for a folly, and make it worse. When do you draw the line?

6:53 made me laugh like a crazy person. The joke plus the face where so bad that it was good.

you, scott miniac, and the beard guy always motivate me to paint more often

Fingers always close at hand... I paused the video, starred at the screen for about five minutes, walked out into the cold night for several more... Thought a lot about my life, how I have wasted it to fall to a point of hearing that pun. Liked and subscribed, you monster.

I like that your videos are letting you act out all that weird stuff that's clearly going on in your head, must be therapeutic! Oh and it's entertaining to watch too 😂

Amen! If your not fixing your paint job at some point then your not trying hard enough! New shirt looks epic, might have to invest in one.. to help slay the gray of course!! Great vid ❤

I’m new to the hobby, and I wish I had watched this before I painted up my Thousand Sons. Especially painting inside to out. That would have helped me immensely. Love your simple explanations and sense of humor. It’s so cringe, but in a lovely way ❤

Videos like this push me towards the end of the process of painting my little ravenguard army

Nothing that ever starts with "You got this, you got this!" ever got...got.

That opening skit is basically me painting anything ever.

I can't simply specify the BEST moment here.... first couple of seconds made me think it's basically me EVERY TIME i'm painting details (eyes specifically), but 6:53 made me laugh so hard!

Something that’s really been monumental to me you continuing to enjoy this hobby is to lower my expectations and realize that everyone makes mistakes. This hobby has been so good for my OCD and perfectionism even though sometimes I want to throw all my shit away because I feel like I’m garbage it’s not about that it’s about the process and having fun and being creative and getting better at something you enjoy and that’s OK it’s not always gonna be perfect it’s never gonna be perfect I should say

That blue-red-orange gradient is dope! I am definitely going to steal it

Really gonna need to see an example of that texturing fix you suggested in the slow fixes. Having a hard time visualizing how that would help. Thanks for the vid

Hahahaha love this video. Goes right nice with my "order of operations for painting minis" list I am working on.

love the tips, some i already do my self... some i totally need to work on, such as starting with perfection and not just slapping it on and refine later... also, love that almost black lite effect on the gargoyle. this may be the first KS i back from a youtube add... these minis are just so my style, i have to.

I liked all your intros, but this one I love! 💖

I supported Counterspell Miniatures a few days ago! I'm so pumped for that Bone Behemoth, which is going to play a part as a big boss in the campaign I'm planning. I can't wait to paint it. Also, shout out to my favorite technique of fixing mistakes, pretending your mistake was intentional and thus not a mistake at all.

Nice summary Jon. Your videos are great.

One technique I use is to paint small areas like eyes, small gems and doodads early on in the process that way any paint over spill that can’t be corrected immediately will be covered up in a later step. Some times it’s easier to avoid those small areas later on than bullseye them at the end

First off, I hope that your family, friends and you had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday! Second is thank you for the tips!

That Hoodie is Bangin', so I got my Order in!

Hell yeah! Love the vid and love the mini!

Preventative measure: When airbrushing or blending by hand that you just love how a blend has come out, you are about to move on and start painting differently and are afraid of ruining that finish, particularly if aiming for a very clean look, where adding wear or additional detail isn't an option. Save your layers by putting down an acrylic varnish ( by airbrush or brush, matte or satin ) to preserve these blends. Then when you go back and use that damp synthetic brush to scrub, you can actually push a bit harder to take off a mistake and even use small amounts of alcohol, without damaging the previous work. Think of it like working in layers in photoshop. The reason it is not so advisable to use gloss is that it doesn't tend toward giving your next layers of paint a micro-textured surface to cling to. Which is useful for when you want to apply a wash or contrast paint, but less so when you are trying to layer paint, base coat other parts or glaze, as you have just lowered the surface tension, the surface now has less friction for the paint and will now tend to push into recesses where you may not want it to go.

It's definitely a pain in the butt to fix mistakes sometimes. I've been learning I have to be more patient when it comes to mistakes. I tried to paint a sunburn on a mini last night and a friend told me it looked like the guy had "lesions on his skin." That wasn't what I was going for at all and I spend the next couple of hours slowly re-doing the skin and stippling on patches of pink to red and he looks so much better now! I'm really happy I didn't just rush past it and leave it as it was.

That is the trick to a good artist. Not so much reducing mistakes but how to use mistakes.

I just laughed out loud at those opening seconds 🤣🤣. Brilliant 😂

Great video! Will be using these!

Don't lie - it must have pained you just a little bit to dab that lens like that...

You're taking away all my excuses for not painting..........LOL. Great video Jon.

NinJon is the best at mistakes!!

The first 20 sec. of the video are the best 😂 Very good video thanks for share your information.

that blue and red paintjob is sweet

Fun vid: great tips for mistakes in painting minis Ninjon

Your videos are getting better. Gj

hahaha, opening skit has me in stiches, it is going to be a good one!

My wife can relate when it comes to her eyeliner. Great opening : D

Haha I am feeling that intro!

Love the “boop” and erasure brush

That intro is me every time I paint eyes on anything, lol

Ahh the old architectural design principle: wanna make it smooth? make it rough... You will never get a perfect finish, just add texture to trick the eye into it. :-) Great tips. Fun vid.

Great stuff friend 👏 👍

I was already sold on that Kickstarter, just waiting to see more minis (I mean in not artwork Form) to know which I pick

Your spiderman gargoyle looks really cool, thank you for sharing!

That blue to orange transition is strong.

Painting minis is the fine art of fixing mistakes

How do I fix the painting mistake of a judge not rolling up and handing me a crystal brush... hmmm Maybe you should show us your winning piece to see how it's done? ;)

Dude I was laughing so much at the start that I nearly MADE a load of painting mistakes!

"I don't make that many mistakes.." *intro starts with him dotting the whites of lenses* Okay maybe I do need to watch this

6:53 🤦‍♂️....👏...👏...👏... This is what I subscribed for; Ninjon you are legend🤣👍.

The inside-out method was a popular phrase for miniature painting when I started some 20 years ago

Wet brush, tasty paint, move quickly. Also, a wash can be your friend to blend in hard to reach places. So instead of trying to get that little bit of leather that is precariously close to that beautiful cloak you want to pain with a thousand layers of shimmering yellow, just give it a solid dose of base colour, and a thin wash of a darker shade, then just make everything that is easier to reach that little bit brighter than you thought. Your eye will correct the rest.

Well done. I just ordered a shirt. Lol.

Speaking of "eraser brushes", I recommend taking an old or cheap brush and cutting at least half the bristles off of it. You can use it to target paints that are already turning tacky, or sometimes even dried paint and can scrub away the surface paint with it.

Good one 👍

that intro segment was more tense than any horror movie i have ever watched

I just love he start...

Love this 😂😂😂💖💖💖

I had to come back to this video to tell you.. Squidmar did the finger swipe thing and all I thought was "boop". Thanks for that ahaha

My first paint job was on a spirit of durthu, and I ended up not knowing I had red pain on my hand and ended up covering his chest with a big red thumbprint that dried weird so it had a bunch of texture. Luckily I figured that since he’s made of wood, it wouldn’t look bad.

Boop!!! Love it! Put that on a tee shirt for me please?

Sometimes I want to erase something I did, esp if I notice a gloop obscuring a detail. I'll wet a clean brush, and apply enough water to thin that paint then wick it off the model so I can repaint that area. Doesn't work after its completely dried but if you get it in the first 10 minutes or so works great.

I use most of these. One other option for the too late paint is dry option is to use the eraser brush method but use 70% alcohol.

That's beautiful

Here's a good one, resin figures after painting and varnishing sometimes get glossy sticky patches. Put them on the window ledge in direct sunlight and leave, the patches disapear. Reasoning it's the resin not cured properly.

What would you recommend if you change your mind after the fact? For example, I painted some swords a few months ago, but decided after it dried that I didn’t much like it? I really like the job I did on the rest of the models, but I haven’t been able to find a good way to change it beyond just painting over it.

That opening....I feel personally attacked. ;) Dude, your skits are brilliant. Is it possible that you could upload a new video every 8 hours? Is that too much to ask for? Keep up the fantastic work Jon.

BEST INTRO EVER! lol

I always have a trusty piece of paper towel ready for my eraser brush to dab on. Unfortunately, I never use it, for I am a brush licker and proud!

That demon looks dope! Kinda like Niv-Mizzet

I found a brush to help with the fast fix step. Its called a Royal Sovereign, Color Shaper, size 2,soft, taper point. Reason why i use this brush sometimes instead of my finger is when the paint went into a recess that my finger couldnt reach this rubber brush can really help erase that undesired color.

A risky one as you can tear up previous layers, but... when paint is semi dry you can sometimes lightly scratch it off with a wet toothpick or color shaper. Apply little to no pressure. The harder/glossier the previous layer is, the more likely it will work. With the eraser brush it can be helpful to have some tissue paper at hand to quickly absorb the diluted paint.

Hey Jon, bit of a long shot on a video from so long ago, but what were the other colors you used after Bad Bruise? I'm looking to try this palette on some Chaosy bois.

Erasure brush is the best. I never use my finger because inevitably I touch the model again before that paint is totally dry and manage to make it worse!

Do you loose a lot of paint putting citadel paints into the dropper bottles ?

Hey i always keep a spare brush next to me for erasing! 😀

Hey Jon, I loved the gargoyle and how you painted it. I went straight over and backed the kickstarter, I look forward to them sitting in my house for a couple months before guilt pushes me round to painting them. Also, hopefully constructive feedback, when you make jokes like you did at 6:53, it may be good to cut the music for a moment to enhance the joke a little ;)

What would you do if you, say, received some miniatures from a friend and he'd already primed them black. However, when you applied paint, the paint was just beading off of the figure? It wasn't spreading and adhering to the surface the way you'd expect... almost as though the primed surface was had a paint phobia lol...

BOOM! Fix 'em.

wow i went to bed wondering how to paint a yellow-purple blend, woke up and watched this

That bit at the beginning 😂😂😂😂😂😂