Model Builder International Pilot Issue Model Builder International Pilot Issue | Page 22

US Army photograph, Cpl. Bertha Flores
Flesh Tones
All of the flesh tones were painted using Vallejo
acrylics. A base coat of light flesh tone was applied
in 2-3 coats to ensure a good covering, followed by
a wash of burnt sienna. Other colors used were a
mix of paints from Vallejo’s flesh tones set. Various
mixtures of the base coat and warm flesh tone
were used to blend and layer finally ending with a
light dry brushing of the pure base coat color.
Weathering
Weathering of the figures was done conservatively.
I started by applying a wash of dark tan to the
recesses. Extreme folds and recesses were given
a wash of medium brown. Care must be taken,
however, to avoid completely covering the ACU
pattern. I continued the weathering with highly
thinned deck tan. To keep this wash from running
into the recesses, I loaded the brush with paint and
then touched it to a paper towel to draw off excess.
This was almost like dry-brushing, but like the dark
wash, I made sure I kept this color from covering
the ACU pattern. Finally, I took this same mixture
and applied a second, and where needed, a third,
coat to areas of the uniform such as the tops of the
thighs and the elbows to show wear in the fabric
itself. Because I was using a highly thinned acrylic
I was very careful not to “pull up” the ACU pattern
itself by painting one stroke at a time, allowing it to
dry, and then wash, rinse, and repeat.
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Decals
Posters and US flag decals were simply images
pulled from the Internet, resized, and printed from
my color printer on regular paper. The posters
were given a wash of heavily thinned acrylic tan
for aging, but be careful when handling them - the
ink from printing will tend to run a bit if they get too
wet. They were then crumpled, rol Y[