Hope something in this video works for you if you are also struggling with the shakes! Thanks to LOOT STUDIOS for sponsoring this video! CHECK THEM OUT HERE: bit.ly/32yAfx7
Thank you for this Jeremy. I've got a whole afternoon of crafting ahead of me and i'll definitely be trying some of these out. This really means a lot to me to watch, I didn't expect my post to get the reaction it did but i'm really glad for it, this community you've built is so amazing, and you yourself are a really great guy.
I've never had a real problem with shakes, unless I have an empty stomach. Being in Canada, I buy the consumable Balanced THC oil to relax my body and it helps me be creative in painting. (It's legal in Canada)
Awesome you found a method that helps! Loot's minis look so amazing it makes me want to buy a 3d printer! LOL thank you for the videos, you got me into crafting tiles and painting minis.
Dude, every tip you shared here is amazing and dead on and ways i've used while inking/working/painting in the past... Thank you so much for being such an enlightening inspiration for artists and painters in this hobby!!!!
I found out that a medication I need to take can cause or make tremors worse so I've done a lot of the things you've suggested and they really do help. I'll have to try the otter position though. It does seem much more comfortable. Thanks!
Mannnnnnnnn! It's reassuring to know I'm not the only one who battles the tremors. :) And my friend, THANK YOU SO MUCH for wearing a Crafnation t-shirt! Wow. This means so much.
Hi Crafsman, its reassuring to know that you also tremor but end up with the amazing items that you do. You and BMC are the reasons I got back into crafting
As someone who lives with cerebral palsy it is great to see someone talking about painting with additional challenges; be that shakes , poor coordination or deteriorating fine motor skills.. Great work dude, love your videos
I'm a hairdresser with a hand tremor. To avoid having my clients think I'm nervous all the time I've learned a few tricks over the years to decrease my shakes. But single most effective way for me to limit my shakes has always been just being well hydrated. For painting I always use the hands on belly method, lol
Haven't even seen the whole video through, but i want to say thank you so much about talking about your tremors, I'm a artist myself and have essential tremor too. I want to say that seeing other artist talk about this topic helps me so much, we need more people talking about this topic for the younger viewers who have to deal with it as well
Jeremy paints in the "otter position", because he wasn't adorable enough already. For real though, great to be having conversations about the fact that we all have real bodies that have real issues that can make hobbying a challenge. We gotta look after ourselves and each other if we want to still be hobbying longterm. Thanks again BMC for being the voice we need.
Thank you for this video, Jeremy. Between playing bass for 30+ years, smashing my hands up during work & football, and that wonderful, hereditary arthritis, the shakes have been an ongoing battle. Besides all the wonderful tips you shared, I borrowed an exercise my grandfather did after suffering a stroke, slowly squeezing a racquetball. It was meant as a hand and finger strengthener, but I have found it to be quite relaxing.
Thank you for this video! I've also got essential tremor and I'll have to try some of your tips. Most of the shaky hand tips I've seen in the past haven't helped me, but like you I found that holding the mini close to my body has worked the best so far.
I've found that adjusting my lighting can make quite the difference in my comfort. I was painting with one lamp and found myself contorting into some pretty strange positions to try and see what I was doing at times when I should have just rethought where my lamp was in the first place or added another light source.
I'm getting myself a headset that has LED lights and 3.5x enlargement. I've been putting minis together and there is no way in hell I can deal with that scale details with my eyesight.
@@jaanikaapa6925 YASSS!!! The LED, magnifying headset has made my hobbying so much easier and more enjoyable. I picked model painting back up during the pandemic after probably a decade, and was so disheartened by how much my eyesight worsened since I was in my early 20s. Got one and it's night and day. I'm painting better than I ever did and most importantly, just having a good time. I recommend it to anyone.
@@jaanikaapa6925 Same here, I have artificial lenses in both eyes following operation for detatched retina, I have fixed focus and need glasses for close up work. I also have a very large "floater" like a spider web that moves around in my left eye blocking my vision about 50% of the time. I find that 3x magnifier glasses help trermendously. I don't get shakes but do get muscle cramps in my left shoulder if painting at a desk so I adopted the laid back, hands on chest position and now...no problems!
One tip that I would like to add that seems INCREDIBLY counter-intuitive: work fast. It takes a little bit of practice, but when you're calm and you make faster motions with your brush, you can paint crisper details. I think the best comparison I can give is that it's like flipping an omelette in the pan - working slow causes you to hesitate and tense up, but, while you might mess the flip up a few times, you eventually build up the muscle memory to land it. I actually read this advice in a book about comic book inking, and it's helped immensely in my work.
Once again, I cannot tell you how much this means to me. Over the past two years, I have tried and given up on even painting the growing pile of miniatures I have collected. This weekend, thanks to you, I will try yet again. My tremor is a lot older than yours but hopefully your painting posture will help to reduce mine. Thanks again for all your work and for recognizing that some of us need more help than others.
I Realize your video this week wasn’t specifically about crafting or paint but I think it was very important that you addressed an issue that a lot of older hobbies have, And the tricks and techniques that can help eliminate or alleviate as you put it the “shakes”. I myself use a few of those techniques myself as a 48-year-old hobbyist my hands are not always the steadiest you made a very good point that unfortunately there are medical conditions that just can’t alleviate the symptoms. Unfortunately my twin brother had to give up the hobby of miniature painting because of Parkinson’s. Keep up the great content creation. Finally on a sidenote I appreciate it the way you represented the great White North (I noticed the Mapleleaf faced forward on your Timmy’s cup 👍)
thanks for this Jeremy. As a former fellow Winnipegger, I salute you! Four years ago, I was diagnosed with PTSD. Painting and making custom action figures became a very therapeutic endeavour. I think your comments on the relaxing / meditative states you can strive for while painting is spot on. Everytime I'm having issues with my symptoms, I turn to painting, and it always calms me down. Something I'd also mention - doing small stretches with your hands and forearms before, or even in the middle of painting can help with shakes immeasurably. I find my hands shake and lock up after long stretches of time painting, but a short break and stretch, and I'm ready to get right back into it!
Thanks for this information Jeremy. I'm not affected by tremors, but I had a friend who did. She used it as a gauge for her drinking - when she stopped shaking, she stopped drinking .
Always great to see someone rocking a CrafsMan shirt! Thanks for sharing your struggles and your solutions with us Jeremy! I have nerve damage in my spine, so I need to change hobby positions regularly to prevent pain and numbness. The "otter" position has really helped my work for longer periods, I just need to figure out a better lighting solution that supports the position. Keep on steady craftin'!
Check on amazon for a desk clamp led light. You can get one on a boom arm and attach it to most pieces of furniture and they tend to be in the 20 dollar range. The newer ones let you change color temperature and brightness as well.
This is something I've struggled with for 20+ years. All the hours at school trying to write cursive on paper with a pencil, painting miniatures or trying to perfect my deadeye sniper skills I can't figure out why I shake or what helps other than exhaling deeply and just do it while completely drained of air. I also struggle with finding any position comfortable to paint in because of a bad shoulder, but laying down almost in a recliner has helpt me some. Very good video that many people will find useful, definitely.
I greatly appreciate this video. As one who also suffers from essential tremors I've struggled with painting for years, so much so that I even gave it up for a while. Getting back into the hobby again I'm sure these tips will help me out. Thank you so much.
Hey! I have seriously found this video very helpful and comforting. Doing some of these ideas have seriously helped. As an artist, my hands shaking have made me mess up so many times. I was so close to painting and eye on my mini and ended up with a huge derpy eyeball. 😂 Thank you so much!
A friend linked this to me and dude, I appreciate this so much. I also have ET and I find I either have to do the otter position like you do, or since I work mostly with resin stuff, I HAVE to stand. If I'm sitting it's worse because I hunch my back. So, standing helps along with leaning forward and placing my arms very firmly on the table.
A big shout out to you, for making this video! I have Dystonic Tremors. This type of tremor is inherited. From my grandfather on down to my son. There are a lot of us mini painters out there with, this problem. Some days are better than others. The alcohol trick does work for me most days. On the days that it doesn't, I just don't paint. I may assemble(if possible), or work out a color scheme instead. Don't let it keep you from doing what you want to do!
First of all... I love your sense of humor! And I can totally relate to the light vs heavy things-shake - so weird. I'm a portrait painter (no minis, but eyes and stuff can be tiny too) and I've taught myself to paint with my non-dominant hand and thereby "cheating" the shakes. So when my hand starts shaking too bad I can switch hands and voila! for a good amount of time the tremors are gone. They do come back though so it's not a miracle cure unfortunately.
I adopted the couched hands about a decade back and my minis looked several times better with that one change. While I don't have tremors, I do have aging eyesight. - I was running with an overhead room light and a desk lamp, and I found I would get a stiff back after one and a half minis. After seeing Jeremy's room tour, I decided to change to two LED desk lamps at a 120 angle from where I paint, and the stiff back problem went away. I was contorting to work around shadows. - - - I will turn off the second lamp to simulate the sun shining on the mini to help figure out where to shadow and highlight, then turn it back on to paint.
I am so grateful that you brought this up, I do have tremors, but my main problem is gripping and holding on to things, just like you, I´ve had to try a lot of things out before I found what worked for me, like creating more grip friendly "sleeves" for my brushes so it´s easier to hold. You had some really good tips here, and by bringing it up like this, for someone like me, it´s huge! makes me feel less alone and, sorry to say, less ashamed....which is a feeling noone should have about tremors or gripping issues! but, they´re still there... So THANK YOU :) 💜
This means a lot. There are SO FEW resources out there for artists with tremors. It can get really disheartening. I was so excited when this video popped up in my notifications. The tips are great (some I know, some I now plan to try) and the knowledge that there are so many other artists out there working with tremors (the comments, omg!!) legit made my day.
Thank you for the video. After an accident severed several nerves in my right hand. The heavier model handle is a game changer, i can now go from drybrushed chalky skin to actually consider glazing layering and edge highlighting
This is so so helpful! Thanks Jeremy! I know this will help so many people that would otherwise give up! Love all your tips and vids, keep it up! ❤️ Also, love all the subtle plugs! Trapped under plastic is my favourite podcast and let's not forget Emil's Squidmar brushes! I love the fact that all the youtubers in this hobby are so closely knit, great community spirit! I half expected to see Brent walk through the door at the end! 😂
I've had essential tremor since at least high school, but didn't get it diagnosed until a year or two after graduating. I was actually looking on youtube for advice on how to paint my nails with essential tremor, but this was recommended to me through my search and I'm glad I clicked on it. It helped teach me some things about my essential tremor and showed me that maybe some of the hobbies I find interesting aren't as out of reach as I thought they were with essential tremor.
I started painting to cope with the long periods of downtime from being treated for cancer. The side effects of my treatment included tremors, decreased fine motor skills, and decreased eyesight (along other things of course). One thing that really helped me to overcome all of that was to get something to magnify my vision. That solved the vision issue, but also allowed me to paint with my hands resting on my hips in the otter position. Super stable!
All though I don’t have very shaky hands, this video was still very helpful. I’ve been wandering why my painting wasn’t as good late at night. Great content!
The otter position works best for me. Plus taking breaks . I sometimes find just switching projects with less detail if shakes are bad that day . Thank you for covering this topic. We all can learn from each other.
As another artist with neurological and other health issues, thank you so much for this video. It's always so helpful seeing someone else sharing practical tips about how to the things we love without making it sound like a big deal or the end of the world. Thank you!
Great video! There are so many hobbyists out there that have barriers to really getting the best enjoyment out of their hobby. If the community can come together to acknowledge this and offer potential solutions it will do wonders for the diversity and inclusivity of the hobbies as a whole.
I too have the tremors, and have struggled for years when trying to not only paint but many other things in art. You have now made my life so much better with your tips. Also, it's good to know that like me others have the same problem. Please keep up the good work. I also subscribed to you. I really wish I could find others to connect with and share our problems and how to help solve them.
One of my favorite parts is when you were loading up the podcast. Its so great that the hobby and mini painting commuinty are super supportive of eachother. Thanks for this video, I am definitely going to try some of these methods. Id almost given up due to being irritated at myself. I am just recently back in the hobby after.. Hmm 20ish years and I have better understanding and skill, but I have been having serious issues with this topic. Thanks!
Great video Jeremy, I really enjoy that some of my favorite hobby-ists are branching out into hobby-adjacent subject matter. You have the charisma for it, so don't be afraid to roll out with more of this in the future!
Love the bit with the broom. Gave me a good laugh. I have a cross between the same issue you have an side effects from a migrate medication I was on years ago. I ended up going with prescription medication to resolve my issue. I take propranolol 80 once a day and I have no shakes most of the time. Only time I get shakes now is from lack of sleep or stress. Disclaimer - this may not work for everyone and talk to your doctor if this medication is an option you wish to look into it. P.S. As always, I love your videos! Keep at it. I don't play dnd or any other table top game and still love watching them.
This is VERY helpful when reconciling the healing/meditative quality of painting minis with my increasing autoimmune flareups that are exacerbated by stress. Thank you, Jeremy. Your skill, passion and empathy continue to make an irreplaceable positive impact on our little subculture.
I don't build miniatures. Or dioramas or any of this stuff. Somehow the RU-vid algorithm sent me down a rabbit hole that led me to your channel. I watched a few of your videos and noticed that your hands shaked. My first thought was not " what's wrong with him" or "I hope he's okay" it was "holy shit there's somebody else like me out there". You have some great tips. But I didn't need to see the tips. What I needed to see, and I didn't even know it until I found this video, was that there are other people enjoying their craft to its fullest with hands that shake. From the bottom of my heart thank you for making this video you don't know how much I needed to see this
As an older painter, I also struggle with my eyesight - see presbyopia. I have found using a set of Beileshi magnification visor works well for me. It has 1.5x through 3.5x magnifications. Thank you for this essential miniature painting tip video.
Jeremy! Thanks for this, my brother. I have anxiety and depression so there are times the shakes kick in fierce. Which SUCKS when painting is my hobby and my time to relax and lower the anxiety levels! Thanks for being open and glad to say we are in good company.
I love when people share ways they overcome things they struggle with, so others who also struggle with those things can learn little tips and tricks. Thanks for doing this.
Thank you so much for this video. I’ve dealt with essential tremors for over 25 years now and it has been a challenge. I didn’t even know what it was for the longest time. It’s impacted everything in my life like playing guitar, photography, and of course model making. When I get nervous it is amplified, which is why I have a hard time with public speaking. I know there are certain prescriptive drugs that help, but I chose not to go that route because some of the side effects are worse than the shakes. In the end I accept what I have and make the most of it. I’m just happy to be crafting. Thank you for always inspiring.
This was a great video for people who suffer with hand shakes. Following my bone marrow transplant, one if my anti rejection meds caused severe hand shakes. My stability has returned to normal now that I am not on the meds, but my heart goes out to anyone who struggles with this, particularly if they enjoy a hobby that requires super fine motor skills.
man that was really helpful. I'm struggling with essential tremor for years and it caused me to quit my favorite careers. with this video I found a really helpful gesture for painting with no tremor. drawing an straight line is a wish for me and I found it's remedy with your advice. thank you a galaxy.
Well done, well said and well put. I don't paint minis anymore, but when I did I used to use a fixed dowel to off set my shakes. By having a dowel in a fixed position I was able to ride the brush along it allowing for reasonable smooth strokes. This was taught to me by an old school custom motorcycle painter. Breathing is key in so many ways, breathing deeply yet calmly allows the body to maximize the o2 and that calms the nerves, the mind, and even helps with emotions. Thank you for the video, keep them coming. Cheers Glenn
I love this video so much! I have hand tremors because of my thyroid and this video not only helped me out, it also gave me back some spirit, that I've lost along the journey! Thank you for beeing so open about it. I know its sometimes hard to talk about the tremor to other people and I respect, that you stepped up an did it anyway.
I have just gotten back into this game, and hobby after almost 30 years. I ran across your channel a few days ago, and have found the creative inspiration I had lost with my metalwork. This video in particular will help immensely as my left hand shakes terribly from time to time. Thanks, and keep making these awesome videos!
Thank you SO much for talking about this issue! I have PPMS [Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis] and that includes "intentional tremor". Which means that every time I intend to do something my hand goes into tremor. Sometimes mild, sometimes severe. Hence I am banned from going anywhere near boiling water! Also my left side is almost completely paralysed, and my right hand grip is weak. My contribution is that if anyone, like me, struggles to twist off caps from small bottles... then make sure the bottle and screw top is as clean as possible before you screw them together; make sure they are tightly capped, but not impossibly tight [and if you share your paints, etc., remind the person who shares them with you]; try wrapping a rubber band around the cap and/or bottle to give added grip; and run the cap, but not the bottle, under hot water to make the cap expand just a little.
God pill bottles and I didn’t get along for the longest time til I got a tip of hanging the lid from the child proof one to normal soft drink or milk bottle lids depending on the size. Doesn’t help with the paint lids but sometimes I just pass it off to others if I’ve tried everything. Tupperware make a square of silicone thing that is quite grippy and it absolutely helps with jar lids and the like. My grip strength easily doubles with it. I honestly don’t know what it’s called, mum was a rep when I was a kid and I think they still make them (I’ve literally had the same one for about 15-20 years and it’s still going strong)
Thank you for this! Not only does this include some solid advice for ways to deal with shaking hands while painting, it's just good advice for painting, period.
The broom on the mini cracked me up! I'm new to the hobby and that's pretty much how I feel while painting, without the shakes even. Thanks for everything. You've invoked a passion that I can share with my friends and family in a much needed time.
Thank you so much for posting this. I am coming out of a depression during which I was diagnosed with essential tremors. Coming out of my depression means I want to craft again, but my tremors make it so difficult. Thank you for making me not feel alone
The sit back relax and rest my arms on my chest right after lunch or dinner has made 10000% difference for my shakes and im going to try the rubber band trick bc the nerve damage in my right hand has caused me to drop SO many paint brushes. Thank you for covering this topic Jeremy. My kids love to paint minis and it always kills me to sit and watch bc i know im just gunna get frustrated trying to paint a mini with them.
Very glad I found this. I've just gotten back into painting models (mostly figure sized) and was struggling with this again. I've had the shakes since as long as I can remember, even when I first tried models back when I was 10. I figured out some techniques that worked well for me, and I was toying with the idea to create a video to share what I learned, even though I've never made a video before. I know a lot of people struggle with tremors, and even won't try to paint because of them. You covered most of what I had to learn myself. Now that I found a video on it done by a professional, I can point people here.
Great video man, and kudos to you for not letting the tremor stop you from doing something like this. I gave up on Warhammer many years ago but it really is inspiring to see a video like this.
This is great, I do most of these things. What also helps me, is a warming up, a cooling down and regular breaks (I listen to audiobooks that have a built-in timer). These measures are not so much for painting today, but being able to paint tomorrow. I also have a hot pack that I knead after the work is done (feels less silly than cooling down) and/or I have a big mug of hot tea that i grab regularly while working
The bit about holding your breath in relation to firearms is very very true, and I think often overlooked. It's taught that when you want to pull the trigger, always do it once you've exhaled as it's when you're the most steady. Tightening up your muscles and holding your breath is super counteractive, you'll end up shaking more than ever. Excellent video, keep it up!
Thanks so much for this video! This is what convinced me that it wasn't a waste of time trying to paint for the first time. Results were so much better than I feared with my essential tremor. Thanks for opening up the hobby to me!!!
everyone's thanking you in these comments but let me be another! your videos are always so well made and your honesty about the struggles you go through during creative endeavors make it all the more comforting. I have shaky hands and pretty poor motor skills, and it was already difficult enough as a 2D artist. I've started wanting to paint mini's and dolls and it adds a whole new dimension of difficulty! I'm super excited to try out a few of these tips, thank you so much!
Hands down the best RPG terrain, mini, and diorama crafting video ever. I say this as someone who has chronic wrist pain but also a crafting playlist a thousand videos deep lol. Thanks Jeremy!
im so glad i saw this video. i also have really shaky hands but really like painting my nails as a hobby. i was contemplating maybe moving on to another hobby because of the shakes. but seeing someone with the same issues and still continuing is really inspiring. for me, at least, the elbows on the desk doesn't work. i push the table with my wrist and anchoring with my pinky and then breathing slowly.
Thank you so much. I have essential tremors to and gave up mini painting 10 years ago. I’ve just recently started again after finding techniques like you’ve described
I paint things other than models so I don't know how I would apply the heavy handle to my paintings but I still find your suggestions about diet, rest, and comfort ideas helpful. I am very thankful that you took the time to make this video. I have found modest help with tai chi exercises for my tremors.
Hands down (shaky hands) the BEST video! I also have essential tremors and I appreciate these suggestions and reassurance. Thank you for covering this.
Oh man I'm glad this was covered. Ive been seeing the topic show up in a lot of threads as of late, and I remember discussing the Tiger video as a coping method. Thanks a lot man!
I have slight hand tremors caused by thyroid disease. A lot of these things I do myself :) Resting my arms on my chest, sitting comfortably, painting close to my face, using a paint handle with some weight, and using decent quality tools and paints all help me significantly. I think this video was important, thank you for making it!
I love the point of relaxing, it helps a lot, and for me is the point to me painting minis(other than for tabletop gaming). I like to take time from studying my nursing school stuff to just kick back relax and paint, I've noticed that using it as my meditative focus has made my painting look better and made the whole process of just not stressing over school work easier. 45 minutes of study and a half hour of painting seems to be good for me as I can rotate the two and come back to each with fresh eyes for each individual project.
Thank you for being awesome, inspirational, and helpful. This is a great video and I love the really encouraging direction that a lot of hobbyists are going. Great mini by the way, I love the colors you chose.
And he never woke up from that nap.... Thanks for the help and advice. I'm sure you'll help hundreds of people out there who have been struggling to overcome this big hurdle.
I've broke my both wrists a few times over years (skateboarding) and it left me with bad nerve damage in my right wrist and some moderate shaking in both hands. After watching this video this morning I weighted down my GW handle by drilling a hole into the bottom and filing it with sand via a tiny funnel like you mentioned and did a test model, it's a best work I've done in a long time. So I wanna say this is such a powerful video, thank you so much for talking about this topic
Thank you again for speaking about this 🥰 my mom has essential tremor, and I showed her your other video also; she talked about herself the whole time but I think it was therapeutic!! Thank you! This video helped me too lol I think I aggravated some carpal tunnel last month by painting minis holding by the base instead of having them stuck to a handle to hold 😅😅
That little bit of comic relief with "painting with a broom " gave me a good laugh. And that calm "Relax" part is key for me. Too many other unrelated stuff on my mind ruins the fun. Thanks for this great side bar episode to your series.
Thank you for the great tips. I have a terrible back and weak tremors, investing in a good chair with back support have helped me tremendously on so many things. Not just crafts
Stumbled upon this video when searching for a way to hold my scale model for painting. Suffering from both Essential Tremor as well as Intention Tremor all my life, video's like these show me that doing the stuff you love is possible. Definitely going to apply these tips. Thanks!
This is a great message. Thank you. My dad had an essential tremor for more than 50 years. He still managed to paint at least once a week though. Other times he got so pissed off that he just lost it because of the tremor. I miss him. . I’ve started to notice the beginning of a tremor as well. Luckily I’m older than dirt, so it will be a shorter run. I just started in this hobby, but I used to do a lot of work on canvas. I’m hoping some of that translates. Thanks again for addressing a difficult and personal topic publicly.
There are some great tips in this video, thanks! As a 31 yo guy who has had to cut short several painting sessions because of shaky hands it's definitely nice to know I'm not alone in this. :-)
I stopped painting as a teenager because of tremors that I suspect were a side effect of medication. I have started painting again recently and have not had the same trouble. So glad you are putting this out there!
I am a professional model maker, artist, and musician (Violin/Bass Guitar) and I cannot fathom losing my hands and my motor control. Thank you for helping folks climb back, a little bit, from a challenge like this.
