How I Paint Things - Drybrushing Space Marines 

After painting an entire army of space wolves with painstakingly placed edge highlights and dissing the concept of drybrushing for years, I recently began doing all of my space marine highlights with multilayered drybrushing. Now the only thing I layer is fabric and skin. Drybrushing is no "beginner's only" technique, and can absolutely enhance a model.

Just starting to paint up a Blood Angels army. This method is a god send. I am really glad you included the varnish stage as I have never seen it applied and your explanation makes so much sense.

I am so happy I found your videos man. I don't really like a lot of edge highlight and was trying to look for dry brushing techniques to bring out the highlight. This will be such a gamechanger for me, thank you

Best on the web. No highlights bullshit that makes the mini look like a cartoon. Perfect for my need. Thank you sir.

thanks, using this method right now, with a couple edge highlights aswell. Has made painting space marines enjoyable for the first time in 10 years of this hobby. Many thanks

......I think I want to hug you....I just don't have the steady hands for edge highlighting...

Man o man your drybrushing skils are second to none

One of the things I like about dry brushing is you get a nice subtle worn finish as opposed to the harder looking edge high lighting. Your method is quite simple but very effective. I have an Imperial Guard figure and after watching this episode, as well as that one, I want to try the dry brush method. I have learned a lot from your channel and I'm glad I subscribed.

The fact that you finish off your minis with bases and everything is great.

This video is so helpful! Also nice to see a tutorial that doesn’t take 3 hours to paint a face 😂😂. Thanks keep up the great work!!!

What a great video, answered my questions about dry brushing and varnishing. Thank you....

This was exactly what I was looking for, I’ve learned this technic about 20 years ago, then, you know, stuff happened. And forgot all about it. Wanting to get back to warhammer, so this is a great help for getting started!

I love your channel. I love it so much.

Wow your intro was amazing and hilarious. Dropping in those other sets of 4 paints was perfectly done.

Good video. Also good to see that dry brushing is still being used. It's a great and simple way to do shading. I used to start from dark to light colours.

my hands have always been rather steady but as i got into 40k painting i realized my bad eyes and poor depth perception made edge highlighting very very difficult. this method has saved me. what i do now is base coat, then do a sloppy edge highlight with a shade lighter than my base coat, but still very close to the original color, then i wash. after that i dry bush with that same lighter color on all edges to bring it back out, then dry brush from top down only with an even lighter color. after that ill sometimes do a bit of clean up if my dry brushing brought in too many streaks. thank you SO much for showing me that dry brushing models isnt just the lazy way out, i love it!

Dude your amazing. Discovered your channel yesterday & binge watched about 15 of your video's! Just awesome!

I do this for my DA, and its very quick and works brilliantly with the space marine power armour. The only thing I do differently is put a layer of contrast over the top to darken it up.

This made my life so much easier. LOL Thankyou for this video!!

I seriously laughed out loud when you initially put on the shade. Super funny !

Thank you! Drybrushing looks better than edge highlighting in my opinion.

I love your channel helped me and my brother to start an awesome hobby. Thank you so much!

Finally, a brighter paint scheme for BA that doesn't look horrendous. All of the ones I've seen before are either too dark or too orange on the highlights.

i love when you said"BOOM! it works for yellow too" awesome chanel :)

Very helpful tutorial. Also, enjoyed your style enermously :)

FFs why didnt i see this video earlier i was struggling with edge highlighting so much and it turns out this stuff is so easy! Youre great, buddy!

this video is going to save me so much time! thank you!

only thing i would add would be a very light super dry brush of white on some edges to pop the shapes further. and i mean super dry, barely any paint on it. also maybe some controlled washes of nuln oil on some deep recesses for greater contrast.

Thank you again. These are so helpful

this helped me, thank you

This video is going to be a HUGE help for my salamanders!

Takes me back 25 years when I painted my 1st model. First thing I ever learnt was to dry brush from my cousin. Great technique if you get it right.

Man i love you videos im learning a lot

I have to try the tougher paint brushes. I've been using these soft make-up brushes and I guess they work fine. Always thought a brush for drybrushing should be really delicate and soft. Gonne give it a try, thanks for the tips!

You are a genuinely pleasant person and I appreciate that

likes thanks man, this is epic! learnt soooooo much!

Fantastic video! I learned a lot. Thank you.

I agree on the dry brushing snobbery. I think it is perpetuated by the people with the expensive brushes, decent eyesight and years of practice! I think dry brushing looks better. The edge highlighting technique leads to a cartoony Tron-like finish, in my opinion.

Brillant,,,,great stuff,,good techniques,,big thumbs up

great tutorial!

oh boy, i've been doing highlights all wrong, i was trying to manually go along every edge with a wet brush, this seems so much easier

great video...i love drybrushing and you kinda showed me how to take it a little bit further...i also liked how you showed different color combos ..i would like to see a follow up video showing more in depth colors and their range of required ones to achieve this effect

Thanks for all the tips and tricks. I just started my Warhammer journey and was afraid of the painting process.

Such a great video, thank you! Could you include a summary at the end of the video or in the description outlining the main steps? As a beginner I would find this super helpful.

I'm going to have to try the fleshshade wash. Went with nuln oil and while I generally do like a darker tone perhaps it was too dark. Going to also retry my drybrushing skills I think while I'm drybrushing I'm just adding not enough paint (first time drybrusher) .

These tutorials are really helpful :) Do you have any suggestions for colors with Dark Angels (shade and drybrush highlights?).

Very nice my friend love the colour .

This looks a bit like a nice merging of the old 80's/90's 'Eavy metal styles, and the modern way GW do their show miniatures. Going to give this a try on my assault intercessors.

Great content! Keep it up!

Sir, I am a newbie at painting models. I just purchased a #40k #killteam starter set #sikarii #genestealerhybrid and your video has given me the confidence to go ahead and start painting. THANK YOU for taking the time to produce such wonderful videos! I have subscribed and will watch them all!

Would you prime all your Ultramarines with a rattle can? Black over blue? How many coats? I love your videos.

I know this is an older video but I found it after starting to paint my ultramarines. I use an identical technique lol

Woooo boy. You saved my life with that video. Dry brushing has been the bane of my existence. And I highlight like Michael J. Fox. Thank you so much!

Wow! Im just starting my 40k adventure and this video is incredibly helpful! I'll definitely have to give this a shot on my Primaris Marines when they arrive! ...tho i suppose ghe same technique will work for Death Guard as well?

painting cadians, is there any other colour apart from agrax earthshade on the zandri dust fatigues you'd recommend i could use because it seems to go too dark even if i'm careful with it . great vid. you make it look easy as usual. thanks

Getting back into the game and this tutorial just taught me how to level up my BA army from 7th Edition that only had Mephiston(spelling?) Red and a wash.

I've found if you do want to speed up the drying process a small desk fan is great it gives air movement but no heat so doesn't mess up the paint

Hello. With the Vallejo Matt varnish, would you recommend it on a very “metallic” looking surface like for grey knights etc? Thanks

I really like the effect you've achieved. Could you recommend a colour palette for this technique in a dark grey/black scheme?

if you wanted a darker red as i do. i used earthsade, would i still use the other to dry brush paints of darker ones

I found this incredibly useful! I’m very new to this... any suggestions on the colours to use for Black Templars? 😬

great stuff, would you recommend varnishing over black too? i followed your templar video, changed a few colours but it looked great first time, and easy to be consistent with!

Great tip at the end with the varnish. Would 'ardcoat work as well?

For my raven guard I tried doing edge highlighting and I could never get the armor to look the way I wanted it to. I think the drybrush method I've been using look better than with edge highlighting

Great video... I'm about to start a Horus Hersey era Death Guard army, and I'll think I'll be using a similar technique - Rakarth Flesh, Agrax Earthshade, overbrush Rakarth then drybrush with Pallid Wych flesh and then Pratexi white possibly?

Do you use Vallejo Matt varnish on all models or curtain ones?

Great video, thanks! I'm having a hard time finding that exact same varnish in stock, which of their current lines is closest to the same semi-satin look? Does the mecha-matt varnish have a similar effect?

Fantastico N.1

What colors would you use for a purple? Woyld like to use Naggroth purple for bars. Thanks.

Welcome to a very special how I paint things!

What a brilliant tutorial, thanks very much. Can I ask, is it possible to use the non-dry versions of these paints with this technique and still get same results? Evil Sunz Scarlet instead of Astorath Red, for example?

It's kinda like watching hand puppets...

What colors would you use to paint salamanders using your style. What base coat would you use black or white?

How have i not already subscribed? Fixed!

Wow this looks insane. Quick question, I take it you are screwed if you make a mistake and get say black paint over the finished result? Would you have to start all over again or would you just touch things up afterwards and it would still be OK. I am a beginner.

What colors would you use for Crimson Fists? Kantor Blue, Drankenhoff, Hoeth Blue and something else??? I've seen your other video on paint CF, but this technique seems much faster.

Hello great channel, really useful. What would you suggest for Space Wolves? I've been working from the standard: a base of Fang but completely cover this with Russ Grey, then a Nuln wash. Fenrisian grey highlights... But what for the final highlight?

Won't applying a wash so early lose you quite a lot of detail? I'd imagine that when you paint over the wash when doing the non-armor bits it has already filled in the recesses, making them disappear when you paint another color over them. Is that not the case in your experience?

what s your favorite chapter of adeptus astartes ?

Nice video, especially the varnish makes it look a little better. But seriously though...drill your barrels! ;P

Great video, but am I the only one having hard time to see any difference between unvarnished 13:30 and varnished finishes 15:11?

From which of the Games Workshop sets is this marine. I can't decide which i want to buy to start with.

I’m getting a powdery build up of paint in certain areas when I dry brush. Any tips or suggestions to fix? Thanks!

Dry brushing looks gritty and real , edge highlights look cartoony

ok so I'm doing my chapter of space marines I call them the storm Scavengers the main colour of the armour I want to use is Balthasar Gold and the inside of the shoulder pad Warpstone glow what dry colours and shade should I use.

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

hey man just wondering what paints you've used for the details?

what about using a spray varnish insted?

Really dumb question. Are you supposed to dry brush the color back on the model completely? I'm still trying to grasp understanding the technique. Thanks in advance. Really enjoy your content

I want to try this but with a basecoat of celestra gray. What other paints should I use?

and do you have a black Armour one??

Could you use evil sunz scarlet instead of astorath red?

can this work for any other factions such as orks?

13:53

i wish this would work better with the Thousand Sons

prefered method of mine since 1995 =)

very interesting, would consider using the edge of a brush for that final orange bit instead of a dry brush. but that varnish trick is neet.

Scrubs drybrush, patricians edge-highlight.

Surely you jest. This video must be a lie. I shall report back with my findings. Edit: You madman, you did it! What sorcery is this?!

You think you know everything about painting blood angels