Stuff from Misato

I'm not dead...

2011-06-28T12:14:00.000+02:00

... just very busy with other things.
If you wanna see what I'm up to you can visit my other blog:

Nero e Cristallo

See you there! (^_^)/

Happy 2011!!

2010-12-31T12:04:00.000+01:00

Merry Christmas 2010

2010-12-22T16:53:00.001+01:00

Merry Christmas to you all!! \(^o^)/

A pig can climb too if he's praised!

2010-11-05T13:27:00.000+01:00

Finally an update after all these months.

Meet the Odate Buta from Yattaman

It's a gift for my brother, we loved that show when we were kids - we still do actually!

The palm is scratch-built as the model came with a different kind of pole. Since it was supposed to be a sort of toy palm I figured I didn't have to make it too realistic looking.

It was very fun to make this lil pig, I only wish I had some proper time to work on it and make it better, as in more than a few hours, and to set up a proper photo setting. Not my best work, but one of the most enjoyable. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

And in its new home, a little dusty from the trip:

Erin O'Malley (formerly known as Eiko Yamato)

2010-05-10T22:12:00.001+02:00

I hadn't touched a model since I finished Infect but a few days ago I got a very sad news: an old friend I hadn't seen in almost 20 years is gone. I kept staring into nothing and at one point I decided I needed to do something not to go crazy. So I finished this one. Painting needs concentration and plus this was a very hard model to pin to the base. By the time I was done the sadness was still all there - I think it will be for a while - but at least I wasn't catatonic-looking any longer. I will miss Emilio for the rest of my life, even though I hadn't seen him in so long.

So, meet my little Irish skater... well, she looks Irish to me at least! ^^

Far for perfect, but she has a special place in my heart.

I realize the shaved ice effect on the blades of her skates is a little excessive, but I couldn't resist the idea.

Comments are welcome! ^^

An easy way to strip paint/primer

2010-02-12T01:38:00.003+01:00

I learned this trick from GMobile17 and it has made my life a lot easier!

An easy way to strip off acrylic paint from your resin kits is to use Oxy Clean/Vanish.

Here I'm actually using a cheap brand from a local discount supermarket and it works just as well, so I guess this stuff is all the same.

To show you how to do it I'll use a 1/8 Cutey Honey based on a design by Sorayama-san. It's a beautiful sculpt, but it's a Thai recast from Hobbywarrior: quite poor and brittle resin. I messed up with it years ago and it's time to give it a good scrub and start over.

So, I add a little less than a scoop of this stuff

in the container where Cutey Honey waits

and I add boiling water from the kettle. If there's the risk of bending resin parts then use hot and not boiling water. However, I find that boiling water works better. Be also careful to use a suitable container for this.

Leave overnight or even 24 hours. If you can, it would also help to freshen the Oxy soup at one point.

This is what your resin should look like with the aid of a toothbrush and some scrubbing.

Ok, I realize now that this photo is way creepy as it looks like someone chopped up Cutey Honey pretty good!
Anyway, in my case it took some more scrubbing and a little scraping with a knife to get to this point because the chrome paint I used was particularly tough. Results are variable according to the kind of paint you used: I found that the brands I usually use, Americana and Createx, come off the resin completely after this treatment as does my Vallejo primer. This is also an excellent way to clean airbrushes from old paint (it does happen to leave the paint in there, doesn't it? I sometimes forget to clean them! ^_^") and to take off dry color from my mixing jars.

Reorganizing my workstation

2010-02-12T01:07:00.004+01:00

Now that "Infect" is done it's time to think about making my workstation more efficient and easy to clean.
This is a very old library that was supposed to go to the dumpster and that my brother salvaged instead to do his own works there. So ruining it has never been an issue really. But the problem is that the old wood got to a point that it wouldn't come clean anymore, and it would always look dusty and grey from the primer and other crap I use... it really started making me sick!
So I dumped all the stuff I didn't want to throw away in a hot Oxy Clean/Vanish/whatever-brand-is-available bath, which made all my pots and containers encrusted in old paint come back to life as new. Then I got 5 metres of adhesive plastic, the kind that comes in different patterns (I chose a pink marble because it looked fantastic, but I doubt it will stay like that for very long) and covered the surfaces that I usually mess up. I suppose that it will be a little easier to clean now! ^^

On the shelf you can see 3 models I'm almost done with: Eiko/Erin, Elf Princess and Chii (Chii is done, I only need to correct the white line on her cuffs and attach the arms and bow), so hopefully I should be posting these up soon enough.

Infect!

2010-02-08T22:07:00.003+01:00

Finally done! Because of all the fit issues, the tons of putty used and the constant going back and forth to patch up problems, I'm not entirely satisfied with the paint job, in particular Sakura's.
But it will have to do. I'm shipping it to my customer in the morning: I took all the possible precautions and I used a lot of sponge to pack it, but I'm still afraid of the conditions it might be in when it arrives.
Fingers crossed!

WIP: Infect! Part IV - Sakura

2010-02-01T01:32:00.004+01:00

Another small update: almost there! I finished Sakura, in a few hours, in the morning, I will take off the masking tape hoping that there won't be much to be fixed. The flying ribbons are done too. Her hair bow is still missing but it won't take more than a few minutes to paint that. And the whip thingies. And after that, I will have to assemble the whole thing and try to find a way to secure it enough to let it reach the other side of the country.. that's actually the part that scares me the most.

Here you see Sakura standing:

And here a view of the ensamble:

More tomorrow.

WIP: Infect! Part III

2010-01-29T18:51:00.006+01:00

Time to show some progress. Here are a few random shots.

Faces:

The main problem this model presents, other than a freaking amount of parts, is the fit: nothing fits as it should, everything needs heavy modifications!

Here is a shot of the base before said modifications:

Sakura's stand, modified because otherwise Sakura would be leaning too far back:

The inside of the base also needed some grinding, and later some puttying so that the "lid" could fit on the lower part:

And the clear part too got grounded quite heavily because no amount of heat I was able to produce would bend it to shape:

Fitting Berserker's hair was a problem as there was too little surface for glue, so I had to go for creative pinning:

Filling the gap between brow and hair:

And Saber and Berseker on the base (never mind the terrible colors, there's only so much a cell phone camera can do):

WIP Eiko Yamato - part II

2010-01-05T00:12:00.001+01:00

More than Japanese, she's Irish. More than Eiko, she's Erin...
Photo taken using my cell phone camera, and of course the flash light washed away all my efforts at shading. That's ok, you'll see it in daylight shots I guess!
She's wearing only half of her skirt as that's the only one that would stay on without pins, glue or sticky tack... I didn't want to risk the paint job when all I wanted was to check the general effect.
I like it for once! ^_^

Wip: Eiko Yamato - How to improve and paint clear resin

2010-01-04T17:07:00.011+01:00

As you know, I've been spending time and energy on "Infect", Dark Saber and Kuro Sakura. However, there are moments when paints or putty need to dry and I can't do much, so I spend these times prepping or painting stuff I've had around for ages.
This is the case of this Eiko Yamato, which has been sitting on my desk for months, all pinned and primed begging for some attention (you can see her in the background of a lot of my shots).
So I painted her red hair (yes, mine is a red-head) and, since I had some left over skin tone paint from Sakura, she got some of that too:

This is my best pinning job as of today, the parts are actually held together only by pins (first time ever I manage to do that! ^^). Except for her arms, I puttied them to remove the silly bracelets that are supposed to hide the joints.

Today I decided to deal with the skirt of her costume, and to show you how I do it.
When dealing with clear resin, your best friend is Future Floor Finish, an acrylic wax sold everywhere in the world except for my country.

If you happen to live, like myself, in a country where it's not commercialized I strongly advise you to befriend someone abroad who might send you some, or to get some yourself as soon as you go on a trip! ^^
The one in the photo is the US version, the packaging and the name change from country to country. Here you find a lot of info about the product and the names you might have to look for:

http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html

Anyway! At first I wanted to go for a pearly look and so I used some Pearl Ex Powder mixed into some Future. But I didn't like the result, it looked sort of cheap. Unfortunately clear resin, joy and pain, doesn't hold too well to stripping (or at least I couldn't get it as clean as I would have liked). Acetone might work, but it might also cloud up the transparency effect, so I'm not gonna try.
In the end, after some windex-rubbing, sanding and scraping, this is what the 2 parts looked like:

See how opaque and scratched up they are?
The first thing to do is to coat them with some Future straight from the bottle.
In this shot, the left piece has been coated in Future, the right hasn't. Can you see the difference?

In this photo, I coated the right part too. Not perfect, but much, much better!

Next, one drop of clear green in the Future already in my airbrush:

And a couple of coats later, this is the result:

Except for the time wasted stripping the previous pearl paint, it's a very quick process, it only took me 1/2 hour to get this result. This is also how I painted the clear parts on Berserker, except that there was a lot of masking involved so it took a little longer. In that case I used a little more paint to the mix as a totally clear body part is somewhat creepy, isn't it?

I might end up spraying a little thinned down gold to make the effect more interesting, or I might not, I don't know yet.

Now back to work on Saber and Sakura!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-02T11:49:00.003+01:00

That time of the year again!

2009-12-23T11:37:00.003+01:00

WIP: Infect! Part II - Berserker

2009-12-19T22:26:00.006+01:00

I've been doing some more work on this monster model: time to start painting Berserker with his clear parts.
At first I was afraid I made him too Hulk-ish, but my customer said he likes him and I'm glad as I really like him too (sort of.. you know, hard to really like this guy!)

However, I soon enough realized that the clear parts were supposed to be painted red... my bad. So today I repainted him:

As a side note, I tried to use the luminous paint I got months ago specifically for this model, but it doesn't glow... this is weird! Maybe it needs to spend more time under the light to get "charged"? I don't know, let's see what happens...

I also finished Chii, but I haven't been able to snap a few decent photos yet (these ones too are so bad because I had to use the flash.. winter sucks for taking photos), so I will try as soon as a sunny day comes out.

More to come - hopefully!

Chii with Egg Whisk WIP - Part III

2009-11-02T13:31:00.005+01:00

By the Murphy's law, here it is, the big problem! It's actually my fault for not realizing when I did the dry-fit that, other than the hair, another part had a major problem: her right arm. The arm didn't fit in the socket, a part of it protruded out and so I had to do a lot of grinding. Currently, her arm is covered in putty, hoping I will be able to make it presentable and to recreate at least some of the folds of the fabric.

Otherwise she'd be basically done. Of course her arm will need stripping and repainting... I also need to add some whipped cream around her face and clothes.
I'm especially happy with her face, it's the first time I paint Chobits-eyes and I wasn't sure about how to go for them. But I think they turned out ok.

Chii with Egg Whisk WIP - Part II

2009-10-28T12:52:00.007+01:00

Yesterday I needed to take a break from Saber and Sakura, so I decided to start on Chii with Egg Whisk. I did start working on her hair months ago to tell the truth, as it was the only problematic part of the model. If you are interested in seeing how bad it was, you can find it here:

http://stuff-from-misato.blogspot.com/2008/10/asuka-angel-wip-strike-ii-and-while-we.html

It was like the parts were from different models, so much the fit was bad. It took me hours and hours of different kind of putty and a lot of sanding, to get a result that is not even decent in my book. But I can't let a piece of plastic to ruin my life, right? So I went ahead:

And to my surprise, I almost finished it in only one day! If nothing happens, tonight she'll be ready.. though she's supposed to be part of a diorama I'm planning, involving two more figures and a lot of Re-Ment goodies. Problem is, this diorama is growing in my head by the minute, and as it is I already don't know where to display it! ^_^;

So, this is Chii so far:

WIP: Infect!

2009-10-22T14:27:00.008+02:00

This is a commission piece I'm doing. Definitely not a beginner kit, that's for sure!
The ref photo is one I found online... it's an amazing paint-job and I'm trying to get inspired by it somewhat. Of course I know my limits...

So: skin tone painted on both Sakura and Saber. Though I'm not sure if I need to paint Saber's legs in flesh color or not, since in the ref photos she seems to be wearing white stockings. I'm waiting for a word from my customer about it.

This time I tried to use a different skin tone than my usual: I started with the palest I have, Flesh Tone by Americana, added some white and also a little yellow. I got a nice, pale tint!

For the armor, this time I'm using Enamels: first some Model Master Chrome Silver:

Then I shaded it with Burnt Metal:

And then I painted the decorations in Humbrol Gold by brush:

I'm not sure if the fabric parts of her outfit are blue or black.. they seem blue from the ref photos but again, I will let my customer decide.
The rest of the model will be painted with acrylics as usual. The complex base also has some LED lights inside. However, the ones provided are all the same purple, so I substituted one with a red one, that I will place into Berseker head so to give him a red eye. I hope it works out.
The girls' eyes and the blood/whatever-they-are marks on bodies and armor will be painted with glow-in-the-dark paint.
I really hope this will come out alright!

Rei in School Uniform

2009-10-22T12:48:00.008+02:00

At the beginning of 2005 my adventure into the Garage Kits world started. Rei laying on Nerv Logo was my first model painted, not so much because I especially liked it, but because I got it at a very good price from Ebay and it wasn't even a Thai Recast.
I ventured so into an art supplies store and I got tubes of acrylic colors and brushes, while the rest of the staff needed at the time was just found around the house (sandpaper, files, pliers...)
This is the result... not much to be happy about, uh?

I never meant to repaint my first work as it was supposed to give me an idea of my progresses in the hobby (if any are made) as a sort of bookmark.
However, at the time I hadn't pinned the parts, and with time the CA glue went brittle and the whole model came apart a few months ago. Having to fix it, I decided to contradict myself and paint it over.
I'm moderately happy with the result, except I hate the fact that the so time-consuming shadings are barely visible because of my poor photographic skills (and the bad weather we are having, which doesn't help when you can't take proper photos anyway!)
So.. here is the new version:

I should add that the Nerv logo is gone because... well, I can't find it anymore! ^_^; I put it somewhere before going to Palinuro for the summer, and now Puff!, it's gone. But it's a good thing, because I like Rei better this way! I do, honest! This is not the fox talking to the grape, ahahah!

WIP: Kit-bash conversion Asuka --> Nana Osaki

2009-07-17T11:41:00.019+02:00

Recently I got hooked up with "Nana" by Ai Yazawa. I had never liked much her style, but Nana is such an incredible story and the characters are so likable that in a little while I got the manga, the anime and even the 2 movies.

One night I couldn't sleep (nothing unusual here) and, tossing in my bed, I started thinking about random stuff. And BAM! I got hit: I needed to convert this Asuka into Nana Osaki!

I have 2 versions of this Asuka: I got the first one when it came out, but when the second version, complete with decals and more clothing accessories, came out I had to get it again. And I'm glad I did, because the leather jacket will be perfect for Ms. Osaki! \(^o^)/ With all the spare parts I'll still be able to build Asuka, if I ever feel like.

The clothes were already pretty fitting for the purpose, the most obvious correction to be made was, of course, the hair.
At first I thought about using this Rei's hair, since I'm going to use her stockings and her microphone anyway:

But it turned out to be not the best idea: somehow Rei's hair, all nicely butchered up, seemed to be out of scale here, definitely too bulky:

So I decided to start from scratch!
First attempts:

But something still was not working right. After hours and hours of sanding, remodeling, sanding more, remodeling (you get the idea!) I got at this point:

Much better, no?

While I was on a 2 weeks vacation in Austria, I kept thinking about mods I could make. I decided that Nana doesn't need to hold the guitar. First thing, in the story she never actually play it on stage (at least up to the point of the story I reached) and by removing it, I'd also sort out the problem/mystery that has been tormenting me since the beginning: the guitar is too short and doesn't reach her hand!

So I chopped off the hand at the wrist:

I reattached it at a different angle and made her hold the microphone and the cigarette instead of the guitar (which will go on a stand next to the ampli... yes, this is a very ambitious project, ahah!):

Next, stockings and garter belts. I also started priming in black hair and leather jacket, to check the general effect:

Rummaging through my brother's left over crap, I also found something that I can mod into an ampli, saving me at least a little time and effort.. lucky day! (^_^)/
Front hair part, my worst nightmare!! But even this is getting done, slowly but surely! Well, not so surely, but slowly, yes! (^_^)'

More work is required on the bangs, but as I said, I'm getting there I think!
So this is where I stand right now:

This is it till the next update! (^_^)

1/6 Morte

2009-06-26T12:45:00.012+02:00

I'm really bad at photography.. plus my camera's batteries died on me and they won't be available again till tomorrow, when I leave for Austria. Maybe when I come back I can take better ones... I really should as she's not glued yet to the seat and a pin is visible under her butt. Once glued you won't see it anymore.

I also included some old WIP photos: the sculpting of the bodice, the sculpting of the waist and one in which you can see her face a little better, since I wasn't able to take a close up of her face.

Morte is finally completed! ^_^ Again!

2009-06-26T01:27:00.003+02:00

Again because as soon as I completed her the first time around, she took a dive and got smashed into pieces. I had to do a lot of resculpting and repainting. As a result, she's far from perfect. But at least she's done... about time!
Photos will follow, because the weather is always overcast lately and I suck at taking pics under the best conditions, let alone under the worst! But tomorrow I will take some, at least as preliminary ones, because on Sat I'll leave for a 2 weeks holiday and I want to post her before going! ^^
Later, and thanks for following this poor blog even when I don't update it that often!
*waves her hand at everybody*

Elf Princess Wip: The scepter?

2009-04-18T21:14:00.009+02:00

As you know, I'm trying to find a design for a new scepter for my Elf Princess... today I was playing with some sketches, and this is roughly what came out... suitable? Mmm, opinions would be appreciated! ^_^

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T13:06:00.002+02:00

...Bur my thoughts fly to the victims of the earthquake in Abruzzo and their relatives and friends...

WIP: Elf Princess - Gold Version

2009-02-20T23:25:00.010+01:00

Gold version as I'm planning to also paint a pearl white/silver one. I don't have much of a WIP to show, I can just post the photos of where I am at the moment. Not too much left to do really, but I really want to try to finish Morte before going on with this.

Unfortunately the fit is not that satisfiying, and the worst is her hair: I will have to fill up a huge gap between the top/front and the back of her hair, and then repaint over it... I hate that!
I decided to give her real Swarovski crystals to make her more precious, however I really don't like the Sailor Moon-ish staff that was provided, so I'll try to come up with something of my own... easier to say than to be done.

WIP: Morte by Vispo - Part IV

2009-02-20T22:59:00.013+01:00

When I decided to give Morte new dignity and cover up some of her.. ehm.. "charms", I hadn't realized what this would mean about the fit of the parts. So here I am, with her almost done, and her right leg doesn't fit with the rest of her bust since the hollow that was supposed to accommodate the knee doesn't exist anymore. How amateurish of me! The only thing I could come up with to fix this mess was to give her a few extra mm of waist, which meant I had to resculpt some of the frills too. I also had to remade some of the buckles on her boots as they were very fragile and some just broke. Here is the first rough version of it:

You might also be able to spot her new earrings. I also gave her a new hair color since the time of my last wip update. Anyway... when I thought she looked good enough:

...one of my usual disaster happened, so she's now in many pieces waiting for me to fix her. I wonder why these kind of things always happen to me, but in truth I know that the reason is that I'm too messy when I work and this really calls for accidents. Will have to try to do something about it I guess...

2008 is finally over and I won't miss it!

2008-12-31T17:39:00.003+01:00

Not-so-Asuka, Angel version #2

2008-12-31T17:08:00.007+01:00

And here she finally is!
Overall I could have done better, but I was so sick and tired of this model (so much trouble, stripped her twice, puttied her I don't know how many times to hide the part break-up) I just had to finish it in the most gracious way possible.
I wish the photos were better as her hair color looks quite different: it's a lot less blueish than this and is made of 3 different shades of violet, with just a hint of pearl..
Anyway, about time she was done!

Merry Christmas to all!

2008-12-24T17:50:00.006+01:00

Hope you all have a wonderful time with your families and your loved ones!

Stop the Whales Massacre in Fær Øer!

2008-11-19T10:57:00.011+01:00

This havoc has to stop! Please, do go to http://www.beppegrillo.it/iniziative/whalesmassacre/?s=user

and use the form to send en email to the Queen of Denmark to request for her to take steps.

Copy this html code to add to your blog the banner you see in the right column :

target="_blank" >src="http://www2.beppegrillo.it/iniziative/salviamolebalene/banner.jpg"
border="0" alt="Stop the whales
massacre!"/>

What we can do, we must do.

Asuka Angel WIP- Strike II! (And while we are at it, Chii's hair!)

2008-10-08T19:54:00.021+02:00

Here are the photos: I can't believe the first time I managed to put this Asuka together in 3 or 4 days... the joints are driving me crazy! Since this is a naked model, I decided to pre-assemble everything, which is always rather annoying... but at this point it's the best solution I guess. So, here we go:

As usual I used Aves Apoxie putty, bondo and Vallejo grey primer. Paper clips in the joints as pins and 2 parts epoxy glue.

This is a gift for one of my best friends; she isn't into anime though, and knows nothing (and cares nothing) about Evangelion (my blood went cold just typing the sentence... brrr!). So she asked me to give Asuka purple hair and purple eyes. At first I was horrified, but now I'm kinda glad as I hate repainting the same model more than once and this way at least she looks somewhat different (or at least I'm trying to convince myself of it!).

Unfortunately, no matter how many times I tried in different settings, I can't get a decent photo of her hair color... I hope I'll be able to get when I take the definitive ones, but so far this is the best I could do, which sucks!

In reality it's much less blue, but oh well!
While waiting for putty and primer to dry, I started working on something else. I know I have plenty of models so close to be finished that the logic thing to do would be to finish them, but hey, logic starts where I end!
So I decided to start assembling Chii's hair... as I said in my previous post, it seems like the parts were not even from the same kit! So I pinned, applied epoxy putty, dremeled, sanded, primed, applied bondo, and then repeated two more times. When I thought I was finally done, one of the two hair parts broke again twice, in spite of pins, two kinds of putty and epoxy glue! I really don't know what else to do, maybe I should have used a stronger pin but at the moment I'm giving it one last shot as it is.
Here you find the photos of only one of the passages I described above:

As said, I've repeated these passages more than once and now I'm about to fix the broken part again, while the other one looks smooth enough (well, not enough yet, but close). I'll try to update as I go...

What have I been up to?

2008-10-07T13:48:00.004+02:00

There must be a valid reason why I left my poor blog alone for all these months, right?

Well...

Not really!

The thing is that when I finally got the spare parts for my airbrush it got so hot over here that I couldn't work at my models at all... really, I'm so glad this terrible summer is finally over!

Plus, I finally bought an apartment and I have masons, plumbers, all kind of workmen to supervise, tiles to choose, paint for the walls to choose... Maybe by the end of the month that will finally be over too... hopefully.

So! I'm finally working on resin again! I'm making another Asuka Angel for a dear friend of mine (but she won't look like Asuka at all once I'm done, since she'll have purple hair and eyes!) and in the spare time between putty and primers I'm trying to fix Chii's hair... a total nightmare, the parts seem to be coming from different models! I wonder why the hair wasn't casted as one piece instead? So much easier if you ask me!

Some totally meaningless photos will follow...

It's been a long time...

2008-05-24T01:43:00.003+02:00

I know I haven't updated in a long time... I've had some health issues (not sorted out yet, but nothing serious), some airbrush issues and... well, many other kind of issues. I hope to be able to do a nice update soon, even though I haven't been able to work on my models for a while. But this means also that I have to do that, doesn't it.
Ok, this is a plan then. Excellent!
See ya all soon!

Happy Easter, everyone! ^_^

2008-03-23T19:19:00.003+01:00

Rei & Asuka Angel

2008-03-09T19:58:00.010+01:00

Well, here they are finally!

Ok, I was trying to have fun with this one, but the sad truth is that I'm really bad at photoshop!
Here is the rest, just normal photos without messing up!

The Year of the Rat is about to start!

2008-02-06T10:31:00.000+01:00

Score!

2008-01-27T16:19:00.000+01:00

I got hold of one of my Grail Garage Kits!

If you've been long enough into this hobby you'll know that a Grail kit is essentially a kit you'd do (almost) anything for. One of mine is this Rei:

Which comes from this artwork:

It's no mystery, Evangelion is one of my fav anime but for sure I can't collect all the models available. But this one, although quite old (it dates back to 1998 I think) has always been my most wanted Rei.

And thanks to smoon, a friend from e2046 forum, I finally have it!

It cost quite a lot, but I think it was totally worth it! It's a huge figure, I actually don't know where I'm going to display it. And the cast is excellent! Just the face details are incredible. Too bad the hair is cast as one piece with the rest of the head though.

Now the hunts goes on for my other Grails, the FMP girls!

Why didn't new comments from Dec/Jan appear before?

2008-01-27T15:47:00.000+01:00

Simply because I didn't receive the email notification.
And why didn't I receive it? Well, because I didn't update my new email addy into the notification section, but only into the general one. And to think that I thought nobody watched my cra...ehm, my entries anymore!

Gomenne! _(_ _)_

Asuka & Rei Angel WIP - part II

2008-01-27T13:07:00.002+01:00

Mgrrrr! Rei is a nightmare! Let's say that, except for the resin which is nice and soft, the cast quality is only a little better than a Thai recast!

Too bad because this would be such an easy model!

Some of the seamlines are in places very hard to reach. Also, since this is a nude, and any connection line will be very visible, I decided to

1)paint

2)do some putty work on the joints

3)paint over the putty

But the parts fit is terrible, especially at her legs!

It's nothing I can't handle, but it's still rather annoying because I planned on finishing this one in a couple of days, just like Asuka.

Well, at least I already painted face and hair and I quite like the end result!

Pics will follow because I don't have any atm!

Finally a base for my Angel Asuka! And for Rei too!

2008-01-17T20:53:00.002+01:00

Now that I have also the matching Rei, I finally came up with an idea to display them both. Rei comes with a pillar of her own, but Asuka didn't, and my idea of making a sort of marble garden bench just never became true. But Rei's own pillar gave me this idea:

I got this display from a shop that sells aquarium material and I think it suits the girls nicely. Asuka doesn't sit properly unfortunately, since I tried to display her in a manner where her face isn't completely hidden. So she sits on the very edge, fine: what does she have wings for? ^_^ On the opposite, Rei's fit on the new pillar is perfect (she's missing her wings atm because I haven't pinned them yet!).
The nice thing about this is that I can use my spare pillar for a second Asuka, which will be a gift for a friend. For this one though, I have to repaint part of her back and buttocks; I also made in putty some of her small hair locks, so those will have to be repainted again. Rei needs some putty on her buttocks too, because the original pose has changed slightly and so I have to make them, ehm, rounder. I also need to close the original holes meant for pinning, since I drilled a new one (actually, 2, but I only used one so I have to close that too).
Now, the dilemma: should I finish the Asuka Santa first, or these 2? Typical me: I can never finish a project before starting a new one! Poor Morte and the FMP girls are patiently waiting too!

First post in 2008: greetings and news about another Wip!

2008-01-11T14:59:00.002+01:00

I realized I didn't even wish you all a happy New Year... shame on me! Hope I'm still in time, after all we haven't even passed the middle of January... gomennasai! ^^'

Well, the year started with a very pleasant news, at least for me: I've joined the team of moderators on E2046 forum and I sure hope I'll be able to do as good a job as they've done so far.

You don't know the place yet? I don't believe it!

Ok then, click on the banners if you wanna visit there, but remember, you have to register to have access to the forum!

Now, talking about E2046, I'm posting there a Wip regarding Asuka Santa. The Wip is actually about the base as I'm trying to make a very small snowy vignette. If you care to have a look here is the link:

http://forum.e2046.com/viewtopic.php?t=22268

And here is a sneak peak:

I might post the whole Wip here sooner or later, but for now if you wanna see the rest it's there! ^^ Right now I'm too sick with the flu to go ahead but in a couple of days I might finish it. As for Asuka, she's 90% done, but what's left to do is the worst, being it a very low quality Thai recast. (I've stopped buying them long since, but I still want to finish this one)
Ja ne! ^^

Merry XMas!!!

2007-12-24T11:14:00.001+01:00

Memoru Version #2

2007-12-23T19:05:00.001+01:00

This is the second time I paint this model as it was, again, a commission, only the first time it was a gift, this time it's a very underpaid job I really need to detox from cuteness now! :-P
I had to rush the job as this is a Xmas present and my customer is coming to pick Memoru up in about... ouch! 15 minutes! I barely had the time to take some shots!
This time I didn't buy it from E because time was an essential factor and we couldn't afford to play the preorders game. so instead I got it locally, paying a lot more and getting a lower quality cast. it wasn't too bad but the flower vines were so brittle it was impossible to sand them without snapping them! :-x Also, now that I finally have clear colors, the flower was cast in white resin. So I decided to go with a pinkish color to meet the taste of a little girl (me, I hate pink!). I also handpainted everything except the flower and Memoru's hair (you can't see the shading unfortunately because I suck at taking photos, but it's the best feature of the model, I think.)All in all I'm not too happy, not too displeased by this work... I only wish I had more time to do a better job.

Wip: Morte by Vispo - Part III: the seat

2007-11-07T21:02:00.000+01:00

Time to start working on the seat. I used Ivory as base color and then shaded with pastels.
I think I like how it's turning out... I like how in close up you see some holes because it makes me think even more of old bones.
The light is no good so you can't see that there's a very light touch of gold, especially on those kind of beads at the top and just under them. Also at the base of the skulls' horns. It is quite unobtrusive because I want the focus to be the figure and not the base and also because usually you see the seat painted in metallic colors... I wanted mine to be different.

Wip: Morte by Vispo - Part II

2007-10-25T10:55:00.001+02:00

Here is an image of the reconstruction I did to cover Morte's boobs. It's not perfect, I know... but it's my first attempt at something like this so it will have to do!

A general view of what I've done so far...

To be continued...

Wip: Morte by Vispo

2007-10-24T18:58:00.001+02:00

This is a beautiful sculpt by Vispo. I decided to alter her bodice a little as originally her breasts are exposed. I don't really have a problem with (tasteful) nudity, but in this case I don't see the point.
I think her face turned out nice, hope you think so too! ^^'

More to come!

Wip: Kaname and Tessa Bontakun - Ref photos

2007-10-08T20:21:00.002+02:00

I thought it might be nice to add some ref photos of what I'm working on right now: the first is the artwork the models are based on (I wish all the girls and Sagara in the Bontakun costume were available, but unfortunately they aren't >_<).
The second is just a nice wallpaper of the 2 girls and I'm using this image to paint their eyes... of course I don't expect them to come out looking just like that, I'm not that good (yet? wishful thought! LOL).

Wip: Kaname and Tessa Bontakun - Tessa resculpt

2007-10-07T23:36:00.002+02:00

Well well, after many days of putty, carving, sanding, priming and starting everything all over again, this is what I came up with:

Her eyes are not definitive as my thin brushes are ruined and I need to find the time to go to the art store to get some more. So I just made a sort of draft to check the color and the general the effect. Any suggestion would be appreciated!

Finally my display cabinet!

2007-10-02T00:07:00.001+02:00

So, after long procrastination, because I *hate* going to Ikea, I finally got my display cabinet, the mythological DETOLF almost any modeler in the world has!
Why do I hate going to Ikea? Well, I don't know elsewhere, but here whole families take trips there as if they were going for a nice pic-nic or something. They bring their kiddies who are free to run around and climb on every piece of forniture. So it's really a nightmare, considering I always get migrains in malls under the best circumstances!
So, after a dreadful Sun morning spent in there, and a dreadful Sun afternoon trying to put the pieces together (not easy!), this is what it looks like:

Too bad I don't have room for another next to it, because it's already almost full!

Wip: Kaname and Tessa Bontakun

2007-10-01T23:54:00.002+02:00

I got stalled again with my Goth Devil Girl, so I decided to start something else. Now, these were supposed to be quite quick builds, but then I decided I didn't like one bit Tessa's chubby face, so I started a complete resculpt!

This is a completely new thing for me and so it's taking time as I'm going by the "mess-it-up-and-try-to-fix-it" method! Right now they look weird and scary (Kaname's lips needed some fixing too!).

Anyway, I have hopes!

1/8 Fuyuki Miharu

2007-09-18T22:38:00.001+02:00

Over a month went by without a single new entry... I'm sooo bad! But in my defense I can say that I've had so many troubles with my internet connection that I was actually unable to write for most part of this month.
Well, at least I'm back with something to show: this is Fuyuki Miharu, a character from "Welcome to Pia Carrot" I'm absolutely not familiar with. I got her from a member of Hobbyfanatics a few months ago because I was totally in love with her green dress and I saw possibilities. I started working on her 3 days ago after I found out my friend Conny was also interested in her at the time I got her, so we had a chat and I suddenly decided I wanted to see her done.
I must say I'm *quite* satisfied, altough there are 2 things I need to work on a lot above all the others (and there's a lot more, believe me): masking and whites! I hate those, both of them! I also still need to improve photography!
Anyway, enough from me!

Wip: Asuka Angel Version Stage II - Model finished, awaiting for a base

2007-08-11T12:08:00.002+02:00

Temporary photos for the model without its base, which hopefully will be ready in September:

Wip: Asuka Angel Version

2007-08-07T20:01:00.003+02:00

This is a very simple kit from certain points of view, but a little complicated from others: while it doesn't have a frilled dress or many complicated hair parts, the fact that it is a nude makes it harder to hide gaps (and there were quite a few and nicely sized too!). So I decided to pre-assemble the body and then paint it, which is something I've never done before. While I was at it I also decided to give her a more rounded head as it looked a little flat, and also a hair partition line.
Doing so of course it became quite hard to reach certain areas to sand them. Well, a girl can't have everything, can she?

Painting her eyes was also a little tricky as her legs were in the way! (^_^);;

Back view: I quite like the shading along her backbone and... well... her butt! (^_^);;;;

Since I don't have a proper setting for photos here in Palinuro (and even if I did you wouldn't be noticing the difference!) I took them with and without flash to show better some details.

I have a base in mind for her which involves a bench and some leds but I'm not sure I'll be able to make it. However this, just as Shinku's one, will have to wait for September as I don't have the proper materials and shops here.

More to come, I'm currently shading her wings.

I've been tagged, here are 8 completely pointless things to know about me!

2007-07-27T23:02:00.000+02:00

Baxojayz tagged me, so let's play along, shall we?

To start:

1) Post these rules

2) Post 8 random facts about yourself

3) Tag and name 8 more bloggers

4) Let them know that they're tagged at their blog

Here we go:

1)My name was supposed to be Giulia, but then my parents fell in love with Ilaria and so that was it. In case I was a boy I was supposed to be called Riccardo, apparently! My father decided I didn't need a middle name: he said it was pointless as one name was more than enough and so it was better to avoid confusion. I actually like my name, so I guess I'm lucky, as so many people I know really can't stand theirs... but I just couldn't imagine myself being called anything but Ilaria!

2)Technically I'm an accountant: the thing is that I hate accountancy and I know absolutely nothing about it. I don't wonder how the hell I managed to take my high school diploma simply because I know how Italian School works: if you heaar that our system is superior to others from a cultural point of view (Italians tend to believe this happy crappy), well, that's just bullsh*t: I went through 3 years of accountancy and bank subjects and I never studied any of them... and yet I managed to get my piece of paper and with quite a nice final grade at that! My real passions are artistic subjects and languages!

3)I used to make soaps from scraps! Big, chunky ones made with caustic soda, olive, almond and coconut oil, cocoa butter and a lot of other nice ingredients. I use to cut them up in pieces and they almost always had a lot of stuff in them: flower petals, glitters, bits of soap in other colors and fragrances... I had a lot of fun making them and they also made very pretty gifts. But I had to give up as I picked this hobby up while living in UK: back to Italy it was really hard to find the raw materials I needed (except for the olive oil of course) and it became quite expensive. So I stopped and a little later I picked up Garage Kits instead! Either way, when I need to relax I have to go creative: messing up with colors, materials, tools and whatnot really helps me unplugging from everything else. This of course doesn't mean I'm good... it just means I enjoy messing up my room (or my kitchen, when making soaps).

4)In London I used to live in a purple room: it was an attic, and I had my bed just underneath the skylight... it would have been very nice if I lived in a country where you could see the stars every once in a while! My friends used to say that my room looked just like me: when I moved in the walls were a horrible yellow, but after a couple of months I decided to paint them purple... well, more like wisteria, I guess! Anyway, it's always been one of my fav colors and by mere chance the door was already purple at the time, so I got a nice lampshade made of tulle the same color in Covent Garden and... well, some paint and brushes. I also used to have tons of candles burning and a blue light pointing at a row of circular mirrors hanging from my skylight, so at night it felt like a cross between an aquarium (and besides, I did have 3 goldfishes, Pippo, Gippo and Carmelo) and a cathedral. I miss that room, it was a mess, but it felt right for me!

5)Got a 3 and 1/2 years old black cat named Akira. Well, at least on the Vet's papers that's his name, but in truth we never call him that since my mother never liked the name. So... well, we usually just call him "gatto" ("cat") which sounds a lot like Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany, I know! What can I say, not everybody shares my passion for Japan and Japanese culture, apparently not even my cat since he doesn't come if I call him Akira!

6)I used to play the guitar: I've never been that good at it but I could manage a summer bonfire with my friends or a couple of hours to entertain myself. I love the folk one, although I'm dying to get an electric one too, but I never really had a chance... besides, unfortunately I live in a condo and my neighbours are already in love with my compressor, which I use mainly in the late evening/early night! I haven't really played in a couple of years, but lately I did find I miss it and so I intend to pick it up again. So a couple of days ago I went to get a new set of strings since mine were really old and one was broken. I couldn't find my usual brand and I was advised about this other one, that was supposed to be even better in quality... Well, as soon as I started the tuning process I broke one, and then a second too... that set sucked, and I also hurt myself with the first one! I wish I had the time to go back to the store and strangle the owner with the remaining ones, but unfortunately I was in a hurry as I was moving to my summer house for the rest of the season... so here I am, with a guitar and no strings! I still hope to find a shop here so I can buy a new set, but I'm so pissed off that the first appointment I have on my agenda in Sept is with that shop owner!

7)When I'm asked which is my fav movie I never know what to answer as I don't really have one. I love to watch the ones I like over and over until I know them by heart and I can act over them, even respecting the pauses and all ( I wish I could really act though!).
I'm really eclectic: among the ones I like the most are Gone with the Wind, Dawn of the Dead (the G. Romero one, 1978), Heathers, Amelie, Thelma and Louise, The Crow, The Godfather, Tootsie, Battle Royal, Breakfast at Tiffany... I don't even remember all of them! Why stick to just one kind when there are so many stories out there to be told? And the same goes for music, books, anime...

8)3 years ago I had eyes surgery: I never got used to wear glasses and I abused contact lenses, so that at the end my eyes were rejecting them. I'm a cry-baby when it comes to pain and so I was pretty scared, but I was also sure I wanted to go for it as I was oh-so tired! The whole operation lasted a couple of minutes per eye, but it took the doc some 15 minutes to have me ready as I kept shaking, and I wasn't supposed to move. In the end it went very smoothly, it was quick and quite painless... but what I'll never forget is the smell of something burning while the laser was doing its job, and thinking Oh my goodness, this is my eye burning! That really could have freaked me out, but in the end I didn't have the time to panic because everything was very fast!
Now I'm perfectly happy and I advise all my friends (well, all my glass-wearing ones) to go for it, but I tend to not to tell them about the smell... I mean, why freak them out? Besides, it was a rather... interesting experience! Let them find out by themselves as I did! Afterall, nobody told me!

Tagged:

Machine Mess

Annya

Christopher

Sophie

Gmobile

Pitanga

Kyle

cwmodels

Rug?

2007-07-15T13:42:00.001+02:00

I might have found the right one... I mean, it is perfect, but the store usually sells wholesale and I'm not sure they'll make one single piece just for my pretty face! Besides, it seems to be very expensive... maybe leaving out the fringe will cost a little less?

Otherwise I found a very nice selection of Turkish rugs for dollhouses: they are surely cheaper but they are rectangular, and I don't like that a lot because with the shape of her skirt Shinku really needs a round one; I could settle for a square if the size is right, but rectangular? I really wonder! (?_?)

Shinku with Kun Kun - Completed!

2007-07-14T22:02:00.001+02:00

Done! Well, sort of, since I still need to add a base, but as said that'll have to wait for Sept.
Gee, I really suck at taking photos... I'll try to do better with the ones for the contest, with base and withouth watermark.
Anyway... well, it took longer than I expected but still nothing compared to my standard times... there IS hope then! ^_^
Ja ne!

Shinku with Kun Kun Wip - Stage IV - photo

2007-07-14T15:30:00.002+02:00

Shinku with Kun Kun Wip - Stage IV

2007-07-14T09:10:00.001+02:00

I've managed to repaint her legs/shoes and, while I still have to perfection my rendering of white, I'm truly satisfied with the effect I achieved on her varnished shoes.

KunKun is also painted (he needs a little shading though) and I touched up her back bow, where some paint came off, and her sleeves.

I'm still not satisfied with her eyes, need to work on them a little more.

Pics will follow, didn't take any last night (^_^);

Not much to report because...

2007-07-12T21:03:00.000+02:00

...yesterday I had a very busy day and so I was just too tired to paint last night. Too bad: it was too good to be true for me to finish a model in 2 days... oh well, welcome back to reality!

My cat has a mycosis (a fungal infection) and we have to treat it, but with him it's just impossible: between my mother and I we couldn't slap some of that purple crap on his paws and now I wonder, since she's moving to Palinuro tomorrow, while I'll follow next week, how the hell she's gonna handle it alone! (?_?)

Thanks God tomorrow is Friday!

Shinku with Kun Kun Wip - Stage III

2007-07-10T01:21:00.001+02:00

Left to do: legs, Kun Kun, eyes (what you see is just a color test), some touch ups on ribbons and sleeves/hands where some color bled. Assemble it, of course. Since I work at night these photos are taken with flash as usual, so you can't see the shading done on the hair... I'm pretty satisfied about it actually: I was considering adding some chameleon gold to it, but then I decided I like it as it is, maybe with just some more highlight. If everything goes as planned tomorrow she's finished and I should be able to post up some decent photos in 2 days.

The base is another matter: I'd like to try and sit her on a carpet, but that's a little complicated and it will probably have to wait till September.

Well, this is it for now!

Shinku with Kun Kun Wip - Stage II

2007-07-09T00:55:00.001+02:00

It's really going smoothly... I hope to be able to keep it going like this, and I might actually use Shinku for one of the many contests running this year.
Ok, some tecnical details: she's being airbushed with Createx colors, although I'll probably use Americana too at some point. For her dress I used Opaque Red, Clear Dark Brown for the shadings, Clear Leaf Green and Clear Forest Green for the bows.

More to come tomorrow... hopefully! It's a Monday of a horrible week starting, but at least I'll manage to relax a little with Shinku and Kun Kun!

Shinku with Kun Kun Wip

2007-07-08T14:06:00.002+02:00

Although I already have some models to finish, I just couldn't resist and tackled this one too. Shinku is the first original I start: the cast is quite good, barely noticeable seam-lines, pinholes only where they will not be seen, some cleanup to do especially on her ponytails.

Here she is, cleaned, washed and pinned!

More to come!

Rozen Maiden Models

2007-07-08T13:02:00.000+02:00

Rozen Maiden is my latest discovery anime-wise, but needless to say I found out about it through Garage Kits. I've just finished watching both seasons plus the OAV and I also gave word to my comic shop guy to start looking for the manga for me (I only have #4 at the moment).
Here are the kits I got so far:

I got these 2 from Yahoo Japan because I couldn't find them as recasts... they cost some $$$ but it was totally worth it! This Suigintou is the most beautiful one around IMO and Shinku is just too cute and peaceful looking. I already started the pinning process on her because I couldn't resist.

To place Rozen Maiden models scale is quite difficult and they are often refered to as non-scale. These 2 are quite large, I'd say a 1/5 scale maybe if they weren't supposed to be dolls. Since they are though, and thus they are smaller than average anime characters, they are then to be considered even bigger. However all this is too complicated, so let's just say they are a very nice size to work with! (^_^);

The followings are recasts I already ordered and paid for (after sorting my credit card problems due to the trip to Spain) but I'll be getting them on September because in a few days I'll be leaving for Palinuro: another Suigintou, sitting on a street-lamp with a real light inside, my fav character Suiseiseki and another Shinku.

This one is still in preorder: there aren't many models of the boyish doll Souseiseki, twin sister of Suiseiseki. This one is nice, although I suspect it's rather small. So I'm on the hunt through YJ to find some more.

Wishlisted:

Geesh, if I lived to be a hundred and worked on models everyday I couldn't finish all the models I already own, let alone the ones I preoredered... well, it will be my legacy to some lucky one!

Shoot...

2007-07-06T01:47:00.000+02:00

Almost a month with no new posts!
I just came back from Spain last night, and the truth is that lately I've been so busy that I couldn't update my blog nor finish poor Holiday... and to think she was supposed to be ready in few days!
Anyway, I'll try to post something about my trip soon, including the goodies I got there! (modeling-wise, i don't think anyone would be interested in seeing my new skirts and shoes and stuff like that! LOL)

The End-less Story

2007-06-10T22:44:00.001+02:00

Mgrrr! (>_<)

Painted the boot, I remove the masking material only to find out that the leg I "surgically" fixed is broken again!
At least the pin did the job, so I have to simply treat the crack as I would a seamline... but it's still annoying to have to redo the paintjob on the leg when I planned to have the whole model finished by tomorrow.

Damn Thai Resin!! (x_x);;

Pinned to the base...

2007-06-05T00:02:00.001+02:00

...But I still have to paint that da...rling boot! (>.<)

This is where I'm stalled with Holiday

2007-06-04T19:53:00.001+02:00

As I mention previously I'm having some problem in getting the second boot to look exactly like the first one... and I like the first so much that I don't want to change it.

The reason why I didn't paint them at the same time is that her right leg had to go through major surgery: the whole knee area is resculpted with Aves Apoxie and I also had to put a pin inside. The heel of the boot is also new as the original got lost when the leg dropped from my table. I also recreated the brim of her hat the same way becasue it snapped in my fingers ... did I mention this is a very brittle Thai? I guess I did! (^_^);

So busy!

2007-05-27T22:07:00.001+02:00

Uff! I haven't had the time to update in a very long time... I started a new course of studies which kept me quite busy in the past week and I couldn't even work on my models much.

Here is a sneak peak of my Holiday... she's been almost ready for weeks. I really like how the hair, jeans and the leather turned out but I had to redo the skintone on her torso, so I'm not posting any photos of the front.

This photo was taken with bad lighting and the flash... hopefully she'll be ready in a couple of days and I'll post proper ones.

Haruka & Mitsuki - Finally done!

2007-05-09T14:15:00.001+02:00

Finished! But I do want to correct some stuff I don't like, especially Haruka's socks.
More photos here:
http://www.hobbyfanatics.com/index.php?showtopic=12345

Ooops...

2007-05-03T19:35:00.001+02:00

... I forgot to paint Haruka's stuffed toy! (^.^)

Haruka and Mitsuki - another work in progress

2007-04-29T01:29:00.001+02:00

Almost done here... started them about a week ago (well, some minor prep-work was done last summer) and it's really amazing that it took me so short!
Here the 2 girls are being tortured for sake of the glueing process:

Eyes:

Left to do are the shoes, small hair pieces, some cleaning and attach them to the base.

My latest Yahoo Japan purchase

2007-04-26T18:33:00.000+02:00

Just got this one a few minutes ago:

It's a 1/6 Yuna from Final Fantasy X. I find the pose a little static, but it's the only version I know of her in this outfit. I'm hoping one day to be able to display it together with the gunner version from FF X-2. Isn't her dress something? ^_^

Goth Dressed Devil Girl - Daylight photos

2007-04-18T15:18:00.001+02:00

Not much better but... maybe a little bit? Hope the shading is visible enough at least on her legs, since the rest is in shadow!
I have some clean up to do, some dust particles were invisible to my eye but not to the camera's.

Goth Dressed Devil Girl - Part II: Painting

2007-04-17T23:03:00.001+02:00

Today I managed for the first time to use my airbrush properly! I always ended up flooding the parts with color but today I managed to mist it as it should be done.

I painted my little "Hearthbreaker"'s skin (you'll find out why I call her that) and I also shaded it. Now, these photos suck because I took them tonight with artificial light and flash (2 big No-no): if I have the time I'll take better ones in daylight tomorrow and you'll see that the skin is not as pinkish and gloss as it looks now.

I used Americana's Mocha as base color and shaded with Createx Transparent Orange. It's the firt time I attempt something like this as so far I always mixed my skin tones and shaded with chalk pastels... however I find that with an airbrush the result is much more subtle... I'm really happy about it!

Too bad I have to strip and redo the skirt: the black came out very nice (higlighted with a very subtle purple) but I messed up the hot-pink frill and so now I'm soaking it in Vanish to attempt to do it again tomorrow.

More to come then...

1/6 Faye Valentine at Hobbyfan

2007-04-16T21:06:00.000+02:00

Today we finally reached the 10 requests needed to get this beautiful Faye into production again.

Now she's available for preorders and I wish to thank all the people who helped me to get it recasted again... you guys rock!

Goth Dressed Devil Girl

2007-04-16T01:24:00.001+02:00

I need to take a break from Ryoufu since her skirt is driving me insane!! O_o

So I decided to start on a model I've been dying to work on. It's an original character and here is the art she's from:

Of course no way I'm gonna paint this tartan, since I can't even paint a simple one apparently. But I don't care... since this is a very popular model lately, and I got bored to see it looking always the same, I decided I want to go with a different color scheme: it's gonna involve black, purple and hot pink I think.

If it comes out alright I might use this for the Hobbyfanatics contest, so I'm not gonna post any photo over there right now.

So far I'm at the pinning stage; I've also primed some parts and started painting the skirt.

The hardest part to me will be to mod her stockings because I don't have the tools (scribing saws) to do what I want... however I suspect that even with the right tools it wouldn't be too different! :P

I'm hoping to be able to keep the skirt removable, it'd be a nice touch. I tried to apply some magnets I got months ago but it didn't work... I suspect they are way too small since I got the tiniest the shop sells... that or I just couldn't use them properly!

However for the first time it seems I did a good job at pinning, so that might be enough.

We'll see...

Time to wish you all a...

2007-04-04T20:50:00.000+02:00

Some models I'm trying to get through preorders

2007-04-03T13:16:00.000+02:00

Hiya! I'm trying to get into production these models and few more requests are needed:

This is a 1/6 scale Asuka I ordered here:

http://www.e2046.com/product_info.php?products_id=1475

1/6 Faye Valentine from Cawboy Bebop. I requested it for production here:

http://www.hobbyfan.com/product_info.php?products_id=280

10 orders are needed and we already have 7... not bad really!

And another 16/ Faye with Ein. This one you can order at

www.animeboxonline.com

Ordering here is a little different: you have to email them at

box@animeboxonline.com

with "Cawboy 04" in the subject. Once 20 orders are reached the model goes into production. So far we have 11 or 12 I think... but this is uptdated to a couple of days ago!

In any of these cases you don't have to pay anything before the model is ready for production.

Hope this little "advertisement space" will help the number of preorders needed for them to go up a little! ^_^

Denise Delightful Dookers Ferret Rescue

2007-03-30T21:09:00.000+02:00

Today I updated the banner exchange page with Denise's one. Please visit the website... so many photos of cute ferrets! ^_^

My new toys

2007-03-30T01:14:00.003+02:00

I just got myself some new tools for my models: some foam boards and a foam cutter... I hope to use them to make interesting bases but we have to see if I'll actually be able to get something off them! :P

While in Trento I also went to a very nice DIY store and stocked up with paints and a couple of large wooden bases. I got some Americana acrylics to try out and a pot of Sandstone textural acrylic. I wish I had this store down here in Naples but unfortunately I don't!

I do have a couple of DIY stores in town and they are also rather large but they don't carry any interesting material... well, at least from my point of view! :P

Now if I only could finish that damn skirt (Ryoufy Housen from Ikkitousen... why does she have to wear a tartan??!) I can move on and start preparing for the 2 contests we'll be having over at Hobbyfanatics toward the end of the year (yes, I do need a lot of time!).

Arrgh!! It sucks! Still a lot to learn about masking and airbrushing!

And I'm back!

2007-03-29T16:42:00.000+02:00

My little trip is over...

I didn't manage to do half the stuff I planned, but that's quite normal. No Austria and no villages in the valleys as it snowed a lot and traveling by car wasn't the safest thing to do. However I managed to spend some time with my bro and his lovely cats.... and to play a lot of videogames on his Xbox! ^_^

One day we went to this brewery and although I don't drink I couldn't resist and tasted some of my brother's beer (Forst)... well, I felt tipsy immediately! Good thing I wasn't the one driving (but I wouldn't have gone near any alcohol if I had to, I'm a very responsible driver!). Anyway, it was a very nice place, I tasted some Austrian Franks and a real Strudel (not the industrial kind).

Little trip

2007-03-20T21:11:00.000+01:00

Tomorrow morning I'll be going to Trento, in the north of the country, to visit my brother who lives there with a girfriend and 3 cats.
It's a 9 hours drive and, in spite of the lovely weather we've had through the whole winter, now that is officially spring the weather sucks: it's cold and snowy so the trip will probably be even longer.
However I hope to be able to post updates from there with some nice photos since it's a beautiful mountain region. I'm also planning to spend a day in Austria while I'm at it.
I'll be sharing all this with my best friend, whom I'll call here Kekkosoul since this is what he calls himself on the net.

I'm very excited...

... if only he didn't decide to leave at 5 a.m. *sigh*

Banner Exchange

2007-03-20T15:11:00.000+01:00

E2046: Resin Model Store from Hong Kong

**********************************************************

Pitanga, a dear friend and fellow modeler from Brasil

**********************************************************

StayPuft is one of the best modelers I know and a true friend! He also works on commission.

**********************************************************

Denise is a fantastic lady who takes care of ferrets, many of them with serious health issues. The shelter is located in the state of Washington, too far away for me to visit but the web is a wonderful tool even because of reasons like this!
Donations are always welcome as the fuzzbutts need a lot of assistance and vets' bills are expensive.

1810 K Street SE, Auburn, Washington 98002
We are a non-profit, no-kill ferret shelter dedicated to
* the care of homeless ferrets
* placement into permanent loving homes
* hospice for the elderly, sick and terminally ill
* ferret education

Email: ferretladee25@yahoo.com Phone: 253-797-9115

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CafePress. an online store where you can get your own customized items like apparel, mugs, magnets and many others.

Banners... again!

2007-03-20T11:06:00.000+01:00

I just added the half-size one at the bottom of the page... I also think I'm gonna edit the large one too with "Stuff from Misato" instead of "Misato-chan"...
Later...

Edit: Ok, my banners are ready, all the 3 sizes commonly used.

Let me know if you like them or if you have suggestions for improvement, will ya?

My banner? I need help!

2007-03-19T23:41:00.000+01:00

I've been trying to come up with a nice banner as I want to be able to exchange it with my friends, but I'm obviously having issues...
What I managed to get so far is at the very bottom of the page but I have to also make the half one and the small one (do they have names? I'm new to the Banner world!)

Now, aside from the look, which is not definitive, it looks so small to me! It is 468x60 but it looks smaller than any other I've seen. O_o
Bah, I guess it's the late hour that makes me say stupid things!
Anyway... in the next days I really want to start the exchange with you guys, so if you feel like posting my banner and have yours posted here... let me know!

Ni-hao! ^_-

Father's Day

2007-03-19T10:28:00.000+01:00

Today is S.Joseph Day and also Father's Day: being Italy a Catholic country the 2 celebrations fall on the same date. Tradition is to have a typical cake named "Zeppola di S.Giuseppe". In the photo you see my mother's personal version of it since on top of the custard there should only be a cherry... however with jam it's much tastier! Yummy! ^_^

Her "zeppola" is so popular among our friends that we expect a crowd tonight here at home!

I need a break!

2007-03-16T12:41:00.000+01:00

Ok, I admitt that this is an excuse to talk about my beloved Palinuro and to show some pretty photo I took there.
Palinuro is a very small village some 2 and 1/2 hours away (by car) from Naples, my hometown. There I've been spending most of my summer vacations and, since I now own a house there, also some weekends. During summer it's a lovely place but very, very crowded while during the rest of the year it's lonely and relaxing... pure balm for my soul.

I do wish I could live there permanently as I'm truly fed up with metropolies, especially with one with so many problems as Naples, but it'd be even harder to find work there so at the moment it's not possible... however I alway keep an eye on the job offers for that area too... who knows, I might get lucky for once!

Now just look at the photos and tell me if it's not a beautiful place... this is where my heart truly is!

I finally did it!

2007-03-14T16:13:00.000+01:00

What did I finally do?

Nothing special really, sorry to disappoint you all! I just finally went for a haircut since my hair was begging for it since last November... I'm so lazy sometimes!

While I was at it I also got back my lilac hairlocks, I'd been missing them!

I obviously took these photos in front of a mirror and I didn't bother to change clothes (I'm not that vain! ^_^) so I'm wearing one of my old workshirts... thing is, everytime I wear one of them I never spill any paint on myself, while I do the few times I paint wearing anything else!

I guess the Murphy's Law is the only constant thing in the Universe (or at least in my life! ^_^).

BTW, I so wish this blog would allow emoticons, it's really a pain to upload them!

A memento...

2007-03-13T12:43:00.000+01:00

Today is my father's birthday: he would have been 70 but he left us 10 years ago.

Love you daddy!

Meet Akira!

2007-03-11T12:24:00.000+01:00

Here I introduce that pest of my cat, a 3 years old male named Akira (although we usually just call him "cat" or worse names! ^^)

He's a real witch cat, doesn't like to be cuddled, he bites, he scratches and he wakes up very early in the morning... then he decides we have to get up too since he's awake, so he opens doors and does all the tricks he learned to get us on our feet!

Sometimes I do wish he'd act like a sweet kitty at least an hour a week, but at the same time I sort of respect his wild attitude... I'd probably behave the same way were I a cat!

Oh and... did I mention that of late he only drinks from his own glass? A crystal glass, of course: mine is a classy cat! ^_^

My models

2007-03-10T11:51:00.001+01:00

Time to post my finished models. I want to make clear that I'm no way as good as some people from the forums I mentioned in my previous entry... but I have fun and I'm learning! ^^

All of my completed models are handrushed but, after few failed trials, I finally got an airbrush I like and I'm slowly learning to use it and to take care of it (it's an Iwata Revolution gravity feed) so my next one is gonna be a mixture of both techniques.

This is Rei Ayanami from Neon Genesis Evangelion (Shin Seiki Evangelion), one of my fav anime. My first Garage Kit ever, handbrushed with artist acrylics. Her skintone is way too "healthy" for Rei (who is probably an albino) and the whole model completely lacks of shading except for her hair... today I'd do it differently but two years ago I didn't know any better! :P

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As anybody could easily guess Misato Katsuragi (again from Evangelion) is my fav character. However this time I had a lot of troubles putting together this model as it was a terrible Thai recast: the material used wasn't resin at all but some very hard and brittle stuff. It took me months to complete because I had a lot of accidents in the process and I had to go back some steps more than once. Pinholes and general surface imperfections didn't help either but I did learn a lot while building it!

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3rd model: Asuka Soryou Langley, again from Eva. I really had fun with this one and, although it was again a Thai recast, it was actually of excellent quality. There's a whole story behind this little scene and, although it's not in it, you should watch the anime to understand it. To summarize, Asuka just arrived in Japan from Germany and she's staying at Misato's (hence the boxes). She's reading a magazine because she's on the cover as the 2nd children (yes, "children", not "child")... she's very vain, so she really enjoyes this. Then she puts the magazine down and looks at the photo of Kaji-san because she has a major crush on him. I used this as my entry for the E2046 Winter Contest 2005 in the Diorama cathegory... only I found out later that a diorama is supposed to display at least 2 figures interacting. Oh well, I still like it, although maybe today I would use different colors for her clothes (I used black and red as those are her Eva-02 colors).

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Little Memoru (or Memole, in Italian) was done for a dear friend of mine. Although I'm not really into "cute" models I grew fond of this one! ^^

This is probably my best so far and the last one I actually completed as I'm really slow at assembling and painting. I also have the bad habit of starting new models before I complete any, so right now I have several on my workbench at various stage of prepping/painting.

This is it for now... hope to be able to post a new one in a short time since it's almost done! ^^'

Carmen Consoli Live

2007-03-08T16:53:00.000+01:00

A couple of days ago I finally managed to go see Carmen Consoli in concert again, since last spring I had to give up. Although it was definitely not my first one, it was my first time at one held in a theatre... very weird! I was used to sing a lot, jump, dance... you know, the stuff you usually do in such occasions; however, this time everyone was very quiet, just some applause at the end of each song.

I was sort of embarassed at first but then I thought, the hell with the others, I didn't spend 40 euros to sit down quietly and if they didn't like her they shouldn't have come in the first place!
So I started having fun and at one point I also managed to go under the stage to take some nice photos... well, what do you know! As soon as my friend and I reached the stage a lot of people followed us, joined us singing and in a little while almost the whole theatre was doing the same!

Carmen seemed quite pleased!

First Entry

2007-03-08T15:25:00.000+01:00

Well, here I start this new task: being constant and keeping a nice, updated blog. The reason why I chose English as a language is because, although I'm actually Italian, I'm a member of a couple of international on-line communities. However my Italian friends are more then welcome to leave messages in the language of their choice between the two!^^

My main interest right now is modeling: this is a rather creative hobby I've been enjoying for the past 2 years and that is absorbing me completely. I am lucky enough to have a spare room in my apartment where I can mess up as much as I please...here are a couple of shots of my workspace (warning: order maniacs, keep out for your own safety!) :

Later on I'll post photos of the few finished works I have and of the in-progress ones.