How to Wet Blend

[@TheLastPariah89]

I've seen a fair few wet blending tutorials on youtube, but this has to one of the best. I actually feel like you taught me something, unlike the others that just show me what wet blending is.

[@Miniac]

Thanks for the kind words!!

[@XibaXela]

"First a message from whichever sponsor bid the highest" *no message at all* 😂

[@ToaMuzz]

This has helped me immensly! just gave it my first try and actually surprised how non scary it actually is

[@erikesspunkt3140]

This Tutorial is outstanding. I've been trying my hand at wetblending for some time now, but only after seeing this video i've realized my past mistakes and finally pulled it off.

[@joshholland90]

Great video. I had a wererat mini sitting around for over a year and had always planned to attempt my first wet blend to go from a dark pink at his finger tips and fade into a lighter pink then to flesh tone. I finally got around to painting him and your video helped a lot. I think it turned out pretty well for a first attempt! Thank you.

[@poppyappletree1400]

I thought this was a very nice introduction to this technique, and I also appreciated that the ad was at a defined point rather than a random interruption. Have saved this for future reference.

[@charlesfe]

For anyone just learning how to wet blend and getting frustrated, the Privateer Press method works with similar results and is very easy to pull off. Fully base coat the area in one color, let it dry. Mix around 50:50 matte medium to paint (any medium that improves translucency will work, PP was big on matte medium) and then apply this mixture to about 25% of the surface you want to blend. Now take a clean damp brush and pull the still wet medium/paint across part of the base color surface to create a transition. This method does not take long to master and is very quick to apply, so great for horde armies - it works very well for both cloth and flat surfaces (like sword blades). True wet blending will produce a better gradient since the colors are mixed instead of layered so this isn’t a substitute for that technique.

[@donalds1083]

That 1:1 wet surface was GENIUS! Can’t wait to try this out on some gifts for friends!

[@jossypoo]

Been taking metallics and colours, wet blending yellow to blue, it's been an incredible technique for getting a beetle-like carapace shine!

[@Rotmore]

All your videos are fantastic my man. I find myself watching your videos even when I know how to do the techniques already and always seem to learn another way of achieving the effect. Keep up the high quality stuff, you rock!

[@Miniac]

Thanks for the positive feedback!

[@rustedbeetle]

The horror... the horror. The tongue thing is back, and with no warning!

[@Miniac]

NO MERCY

[@swiftfated]

I want to shout out the book he opens at 4:13. Color and Light by Gurney. It is so helpful for basically every art form and it is the top book on color, light, composition, ect, that I've read.

[@Tegre]

THANK YOU! I just found this video, and was wondering about that! @Miniac no affiliate link for that one?

[@mofire5674]

Fantastic video

[@SpokesmaNofMadness]

Awesome channel dude! I just got into the 40k minis painting (painted my first 6 chaos marines he-he) and I'm constantly trying and testing any kind of techniques I can find. Any information that I can gather along the way really helps as I've never been an art person so to say, so at the beginning I had for all intents and purposes 0 knowledge as to how to actually paint. Happy to say, with a looot of research and practice I get better at it with each step and it feels awesome! So with that in mind, just wanted to drop by and say thanks for the vids - they are tons of help! Keep it up ^^

[@hl1796]

one of the most easy to understand demonstrate of technique, thank you for your work

[@npwroblewski]

Tiiiight.. expanding on this, I'd love to see a video on two brush, loaded brush and spit/void. Totally took my blends to the next level given we know when to use them.

[@LilithNerevarine]

1:54 I was surprised several times during this video by the appreance of the huge brush. Was eagerly waiting what you are going to use that for. :) Anyway, superb tutorial, many thanks, I have learnt alot!

[@mikeljokinecheveste1287]

Great video, I like the way you explain the technique(maybe a bit too fast, but if you have not get it in the first watching you can go back and watch it again, miracles of the video :) ), giving to the directionality of the brush stroke the importance it has. Keep on doing such good videos, they are useful and interesting. :)

[@Kinkykangaroo25375]

Another sick video. Thanks for keeping them hilarious and awesome!

[@chrisgriffith1573]

The more you work two colors of any hue, the more blending will occur. When the two colors are not primary or are opposite on the color "triangle" then you run the risk of turning out a neutral grey. These colors are best faded using a pre-wetted technic, let dry, followed by a wash of the lighter color into the stronger color. (ex. orange faded into blue, blue being the primary, strong color, orange being the weak color.) For more dramatic bounce of fades of this nature, pull a third color over the secondary, such as yellow. Yellow being a root for orange, one of the primaries of orange, opposite to blue in the fade I exampled. Some of the *best* colors to fade with are any two colors on the same side of the color triangle, such as a primary and a secondary. (green and yellow, blue and green, yellow and orange, orange and red, red and purple)...

[@Amah-Lady]

Thank you from my heart, your information made this video worth watching. Do you have a channel? I wish you the best. Maha

[@Grapist1]

Thanks for the detailed video, you saved me so much troubleshooting! I just started implementing this and I love the results :D

[@smirkingrevenge6]

Loving your vids Miniac - only stumbled across them last week and now watching them ALLLLL!!! Seriously man, awesome explanations, great detail and well paced. Love your mannerisms you're chucking in too *flicks tongue repeatedly*, and top production mate!! Keep up the great work =D

[@Miniac]

smirkingrevenge6 thank you!

[@cml222444]

I love your stuff. It is always helpful. I virtually learned how to paint from you. Carry On!!!

[@sstinger0137]

@Miniac, could you provide link to the book you referenced? I'm looking for more stuff to fill my brain with.

[@Shadenium]

Color and light by James Gurney .

[@chrisgriffith1573]

Getting rid of the "mass tone" as you call it, (the strip of heavy paint that appears when working thickly) is so simple: Pull a second wide dry *clean* brush across the two colors in the direction of the brush strokes a few times. Note that the brush has to be wide enough to cover most of the fade, then all you will have to do is swipe a few times and the ridges of heavy paint are smoothed out.

[@FromUsToAshes]

Are you just cleaning your brush inbetween each blend? The red/green blend around 5:40 looked like you were loading your brush with a bit more red and brown occasionally. Thanks for your help, whoever answers - appreciate it

[@xdevantx5870]

This intro is much better. Thank you for making these videos. Keep up the good work.

[@escherleduc9567]

Hey man thanks for the introduction I really like how you showed us how/ what wet blending looks like and an example/ or figure of speech. First. To give an idea. Thank you because I’m a very practical person when it comes to being taught things thank you. I like you and how you teach people how to paint and more about Warhammer plus more.

[@maximem.ste-marie3578]

best wetblend tutorial out there. by far

[@Rubrouck1220]

You deserve waaay more subs dude

[@EdwardDowner]

I love the effect of wet blending, but if I then have to highlight the blended area it's intimidating. Wet blending to do highlights and shadows is ok. But having to blend highlight colours of your blended colours... shivers.

[@abelbabel8484]

You can also load your brush with paint A, then dip the tip into paint B. As you apply you first get all B, then progressively more A.

[@larry4014]

This works?:'D

[@benn1181]

That's loaded brush technique.

[@abelbabel8484]

@@larry4014 Yeah, it does. It's best used for small areas though, because it's a bit less controlled and can be less smooth. But on the upside, it goes very quick.

[@kingjpeg]

Thank you so much Just what I needed 👍

[@apocalypticdreamers7104]

As someone that has been struggling for a while with wet blending, I'll give my two cents that maybe can help someone else: the base color can help a lot. Before blending, I paint with a slightly darker mix of the two colors, wait for it to dry and then do the blending on top of it. I find it helps obtaining a smoother blend. Of course, this works best with colors that mix well (i.e. blue and green or red and purple), weirder combination are still out of my reach!

[@SleepySoviet]

Thanks for the great video, but while I understand the concept of wet blending, I don't really understand how to apply it. I'm painting my space marines at the moment, and I'm not sure where I would apply wet blending while painting power armor.

[@definitelyadarkangel9225]

I've been wet blending my highlights in. It's tough and it takes a long time but it's the best I've gotten my highlights to look.

[@rebelwarlock]

Slurping at the camera is a like from me. The rest of the video was pretty helpful, so that's a subscribe from me.

[@Chocolate83Bunny]

so yesterday i was painting my first model ever and decided i had over-shaded and over-highlighted some areas. i tried getting my brush wet with water to soften it up and blend and it didnt work. so i decided to put some brush cleaner (not acetone but some non-dangerous alternative, it doesnt say what) and used that to melt off some layers and brushed it all around. Since there was a lot of black, it made my necrom very dirty and grimy looking, and had various stained/dirty patches which ended up looking pertty nice. My question is, is this an actual method? or is it just wet blending on crack?

[@plasmofandwedge7142]

I used this method on my Belisarius Cawl miniature I got for my birthday it was fun painting it and using this technique thanks

[@Miscast]

You're my hero

[@Miniac]

Miscast Terrain

[@kevinst.pierre4413]

Awesome vid/tip. But I've seen an number of painters continuously lick their brush. (or suck it?) What are they doing? Am I NOT seeing this correctly?

[@selenadoo3758]

How viable is this technique for small figures like 20mm that I paint? I more or less learnt normal layering, but it does make sort of super clean and sharp paint which is not completely realistic. I was thinking about trying blending, but such small figures, with tiny wrinkles and item on them.. not sure if they give enough space to do this?

[@tommyd2235]

You both gained my respect and freaked out my girlfriend with that Hannibal Lector lick-n-pop.

[@Miniac]

mission accomplished

[@paranormalalexdiakonis7997]

Very cool. Definitely needed this video.

[@woutervanasseldonk8600]

Thanks for this vid, I can wetblend to some degree, but I do not feel like I'm 100% in control so any videos on this are very helpfull.

[@Miniac]

I'm glad to be of help!

[@Scherdnr]

More gooood stuff from the good good painter guy!

[@Miniac]

Scherdy thanks, Nick!

[@questgivercyradis8462]

What climate are you in? I can only accidentally wet blend when I go into a painting frenzy. Usually my paint dries nearly instantly due to the dry air where I live. How much drying retardant should be used to prevent this? A drop? A blob?

[@chrisadams5168]

Could you wet blend with a glaze over a Metallic object to give like the image of a spell washing over the armor or a moving object reflecting off it?

[@QDIGS06]

I dont know what is going on. When i try to blend with all of these methods, either another colour is pushed/pulled away and no blending is happening. If there is too much water they tend make puddles. If there is less solvent, u will get stripes no matter what is the order of blending. The colours im trying to blend are gauss blaster green and moot green.

[@AshBlat]

Dude do you have any tips on how to manage to larger area when wet blending?!? Painting capes and cloaks for example, you base coat the whole thing and start to wet blend in the highlights and by the time you’ve gotten half way the base coat has dried :(

[@MrSJPowell]

First, dry time extender is your friend. Second, break the piece down into smaller chunks. Instead of blending the whole thing, blend one fold at a time. Third, in that same vein, look at Scott's video on glazing, as that's also a part of getting a smooth blend.

[@0AbsolutZero0]

Every time I try this it just straight mixes the paint and I get one solid plane of the mixed color. How do I avoid this?

[@migueldiaz3262]

From my own experience, sounds like the paint is too thinned down. You may need to add a "paint base" to the paint you're using, this is the solution that houses the pigment. One of my "I don't have the cash for that stuff" tricks is to add either a thicker matt or hi-gloss finish to the paint, but it must be THICKER than the paint you are using. Although blending should smoothly blend, if the paint is too "liquid" it just becomes one uniform coat. Another tip would also be to do an initial layer and let it dry, go over it with the same color and then proceed to layer down the next paint, it gives a strong presentation of the initial color, and will not be faded out by the second coat. I went to school for art, not saying I know the whole subject matter, but these are some tricks we use to give the illusion of blending or to compensate for cheap paints that were too "watery".

[@OriginalDecurse]

This guy is friggin awesome

[@Miniac]

No, you are!

[@Angelos966]

I know this is an older video but I was curious since contrast paints have you tried wetblending those? I understand they closer to how a wash would function so I was curious if there would be a difference in application on how to wetblend or if you would simply follow the same steps as before like you showed in this video.

[@Zectari]

Where did you buy those plastic squares for testing?

[@thecomedian5933]

Anyone know the mixture of water to paint for wet blending? Or is it just no water?

[@traylorcrook]

What is the book you reference at 4:15?

[@Nixorrell]

"Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter" by James Gurney. Just slowed the video down to scope it out myself.

[@TheOliverNitzsche]

@@Nixorrell Thanks a lot!

[@enochdarkk7871]

If TJ Miller and Logic had a baby it would be this guy. Great tutorial.

[@quintz01]

Thanks for the video, was just starting this technique :)

[@Miniac]

You're welcome!

[@tuskgora]

Hi there. Firstly, great video and a big help. Im practicing on squares and it seems no matter how much i water down or use glaze medium i still get brush strokes. Ive tried using different brushes and applying different pressure with the brush but it doesnt seem to help. Any suggestions? Im using vallejo game colour. Thanks for any help

[@TheVoxChannel]

What color of blue is used at 4:30 on the square? And the blue on the bird? That is the richest most vibrant blue I have ever seen. Please I'm desperate to know.

[@sirgeilington]

1:29 i thought for a moment: whats he doing with a bush of dry grass

[@TheIcemanModdeler]

It's been a nightmare to paint with acrylics, if i wet the surface before applying paint and a little water it creates a border around the area i painted, add too much water and the paint will start to drip down, plus the paint and water on the figure dries in a few seconds. Think without using paint retarder all of this is useless and the working time of the paint is way too low, i even use a wet pallet to no avail.

[@jamiejoss7340]

I have a newbie to painting question about wet blending. I tried it out for the first time the other day and I was really happy with the results. I then added a shade and now I don't see much of my wet blending work, it obscured my results. Do you avoid applied a shade when wet blending?

[@classicsteve22]

What kind of brush pops into frame at 0:43 ?

[@Miniac]

Steven Gonzalez size 20 natural miniac bristles

[@classicsteve22]

+Miniac xD

[@NicholasGeorgePrior]

What is the book he references at 4:10?

[@Shadenium]

Color and light by James Gurney .

[@KungKras]

The problem I alwayhs have when trying to do this is that either my colours dry out before I can blend them, or they become too diluted with water and doesn't cover anything and just end up gathering in the crevices. Am I doing something wrong or am I just really, really bad at fining the optimal dilution for my paints?

[@KungKras]

@@digitalbear8809 Thanks a lot for the reply. I guess the paint medium evaporates slower than water or something. I'll try to practice some more to see if I can getthe hang of it!

[@KungKras]

@@digitalbear8809 I tried it one one of my chaos sorcerers, and after some practice, it worked!

[@craig6526]

The first video I watched was useful, the second had me chuckling a bit, this video as the third I've watched just straight up has me laughing at your personality. Funny shit

[@TheManAmongAll]

I find everytime I go to add a second colour or even feather out the first with a wet brush that it's begun drying and their are tide marks ... :| I've tried retarder but can't figure out how to get it to mix well with my paints, feels too gloopy. Should I buy another bottle, is mine maybe a bad batch? Or should I use something else like a glaze medium?

[@TheRunesmythe]

Another thing you could try is flow improver; in my experience, flow improver tends to keep the paint thinner and wetter for longer than something like drying retarder. In general, most (if not all) flow improvers will call for them to be diluted to a specific percentage with water, which should also help you keep the paint wetter longer.

[@wardude2260]

No ad came up >:D

[@Miniac]

Mid-roll ads are hit or miss. Sometimes it's a banner, sometimes it's a skippable ad, sometimes its a full ad, sometimes it's nothing, sometimes the viewer has adblock xD

[@AddamsFactory69]

Turn off Adblock and support these tutorials!

[@wardude2260]

I don't have AdBlock, the video just happened to continue normally. Ads are always hit or miss.

[@Miniac]

Wardude yep!

[@YouTube-Grifter]

Wardude Mine was a 4 min Paco Rabanne ad, I always watch the ads for channels I'm subbed to

[@pepe-roni1702]

this is super great and a good video but i have some questions. what should the paint/water ratio be and how did you get an undertone instead of masstone? any help would be apreciated.

[@egd277]

Question. Do you move the brush in one direction, "down", lift it up, place it, then move down again. OR do you move the brush up and down quickly moving the paint in 2 directions?

[@Shadenium]

I have the same question but to me it seems like he does it in up-and-down motions. If it was only one direction he could have moved away all the paint from top to the bottom, creating difference in saturation.

[@ringheader]

"We are Farmers" commercial bid the highest for me. 👍

[@salibaba101]

Does anyone know what wood elf model that is? It looks cool!

[@Miniac]

salibaba101 nomad prince from GW

[@Warrelwind]

Almost fell of my chair when I heard "Paint more minis" Looked a way just at that moment

[@Slashaboyz]

What are the best times to use wet blending? Cloaks? Flat surfaces? Etc.

[@Miniac]

I like to use it initially to start a transition between two colors. I can't think of a specific time wherein wet blending is preferred. On super small areas where you can't apply a whole lot of paint, it can be difficult, but other blending methods are also difficult in that same situation. I use it rather liberally all over a model. It really does come to life on large surfaces, however, because then you can see all the transitional colors.

[@Awcamawn]

Awesome video. Just getting into the hobby and your tutorials have been great. Just finished my own Nomad Prince. Would love to see some Wanderers painting tutorials!

[@Miniac]

Wade Long oh man you asked for it!

[@VikingFyre]

This video is helpful but does it apply to larger minis, like something that’s...I dunno, 4 inches wide and 7 inches long?

[@dr_arcade]

So we use two brushes when wet blending?

[@Miniac]

No

[@dr_arcade]

@@Miniac oh, i thought u were switching brushes. My bad.

[@Sakurajima616]

You my friend, are a dammed painting Genius.

[@Shadenium]

He's more of a skilled media presenter of painting person. Masterpieces from geniuses are actually on coolminiornot website.

[@TheRunesmythe]

This is a technique I still need to play around with some more; in my initial attempts I actually found it quite intimidating since if it goes wrong, it goes spectacularly wrong and you wind up with a muddied color. Still, once you've become comfortable with it, its a great technique. On a semi-related note (because it does deal with the video) when you did that weird southern accent while searching through submission photos you sounded oddly like Matthew McConaughey.

[@Miniac]

My Matthew McConaughey impersonation is on point.

[@waterface111]

hey this is great!! could you show how to apply this technique into a nighthaunt chaingrasp for instance?

[@eizenrose]

i'm looking to blend metallic red and metalic black for a sort of flame effect, its going to be on a wing on a gunpla, the surface will be flat but its a bit large, probably around 1x2 inches, anything i should watch out for? really nice tutorial btw, subscribed

[@wilhelmeniabilliedoherty5917]

Possibly a dumb question, but... how did you clean your brush so fast between colors? It almost looks like you do it in a single motion. It takes me a good 30-60 seconds to clean a brush, usually...

[@alphonsecoco3]

One thing he does well that I can't is he doesn't load the brush completely. It's probably a swish swish and dab the brush on a towel. Since he's wetblending, a little dampness is fine, and the color on the brush is part of the wet blend, so maybe he doesn't need to be as careful?

[@TheCimbrianBull]

Great tutorial! This inspires me to give it a serious try. Oh, and the slurping sound took me by surprise. But in a good way, though. The outtakes are hilarious! :-)

[@Miniac]

Let me know how it goes!

[@kaptaingarden944]

Dude you seem totally plastered in this video 🤣 luv it

[@owendaboss9159]

What brushes do you use because I was looking for new brushes that are cheaper and will last longer than the citadel ones.

[@Miniac]

OWENDABOSS Raphael 8404

[@owendaboss9159]

Miniac thanks!!

[@TheFlyingPilgrim]

What paints were you using for the Nomad Prince? It looked really good and matt.

[@glitch200]

Hi, i recently got into Guard and wanted to paint them like the Mobile Infantry from Starship Troopers. What colors would i need for this?

[@TheRunesmythe]

I'm guessing you mean the film, in which case I'm referencing this photo ( futurewarstories.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-weapons-of-sci-fi-morita-rifle.html ); the color of the uniform/body suit underneath is a light gray with a slight warm tone to it (something like Vallejo Game Color Cold Gray, which despite the name is actually a warm gray, or some GW Dawnstone mixed with a small amount of Ushabti Bone) while the armor is a dark gray-green, much like an olive drab (most dark olive drab colors should work). If you plan to use a wash for shading, I would recommend either Army Painter Military Shade or GW Coelia Greenshade with either Army Painter Dark Tone or Vallejo Model Wash Gray. Highlighting the body suit, I would go with adding in an off-white (like more Ushabti Bone or Vallejo Model Color Iraqi Sand) and the armor with something like Straken Green or Nurgling Green (GW), Vallejo Game Color Dead Flesh or Army Painter Necrotic Flesh.

[@NoxArcana92]

This is super late to the gamer and I know know if anyone knows, but does anyone know what color theory book he was using? It looked pretty good.

[@Shadenium]

Color and light by James Gurney.

[@MirKoTrio]

I love your video stile! keep on man!!

[@Miniac]

Thank you!

[@MrFerned]

What's that book about pain and colour?

[@Miniac]

Color and Light by James Gurney

[@Asumis1988]

what Miniature is that?

[@kaozthemage2633]

Great Videos sir.

[@gameinthelifex]

Great video man, thank you. Did you ever do the vids on glazes and feathering?

[@Shadenium]

Now he did.

[@brumengrudgebearer7817]

Hail Miniac!

[@peetwi]

This guy is the nuts

[@Chalkstix]

Love your videos, Mini Maniac Man. Very interested in getting better at blending myself. Most videos I can find of blending, however, are done on smooth surfaces. I'd like to blend some hair on my Harlequin models, going from orange to yellow. How do I blend non-smooth surfaces? And do I make the orange-yellow blend before or after applying recess-shade?

[@alphonsecoco3]

Here from your bearded dragon memorial vid. Baby scott!!

[@davedogge2280]

Am I right in stating the following about the various techniques or am I wrong ? anyone please correct me if I am wrong. 1. Layering is a painting process whereby we apply lighter painted highlights on top of darker already dried base paint layers. (always lighter paint on top of darker dried paint). 2. Glazing is a painting process whereby we apply darker painted layers which are very thinned down onto already dried lighter paint layers (always darker on top of lighter). 3. Feathering (or dry blending) is a process whereby we have a dried base paint layer and we attempt to create a gradual colour transition of the paint we are applying to the dry base paint. The paint we are are applying has a thick starting point and then with a damp brush (damp with only water no paint) we then gradually spread the paint from it's starting point edge across the surface of the dried paint. The dried base paint may be darker than the paint we are applying for the feathering or vice-versa (I'm saying this because miiniwargaming guy from another said so kzbin.info/www/bejne/jGnViYKilNJrm9k ). 4. Wet blending which is perhaps the most advanced technique has the aim of (like feathering) to create a gradual colour transition but unlike feathering we are spreading WET paint from darker to lighter paint (and vice-vera), such that ALL paint we are applying and mixing is wet throughout the process at all times and there maybe two or more lighter/darker paints used in the transition process (often wet paints with intermediate light/darkness are used in this process. Often a liquid retardant is used on the paints we are applying in order to keep the paints wet as we blend them into each other.

[@auto1nfanticid3]

incorrect on number 2. glazing just refers to the consistency of the paint. I have seen plenty of pros glaze up to a higher color, its just less common and harder to do. also i would consider washes as part of layering and they obviously go darker. youre also missing the loaded brush and two brush blending techniques.

[@klausklausensen5042]

Can someone tell me what he is mixing the water with for a longer wet surface? I'm from Germany and dont understand it and the subtitles says he is mixing it with regards XD

[@Shadenium]

"Retardant" - the one that slows down X.

[@spaghettini3609]

Thanks this helps me cause I just started that’s a lot!!!