Sponge It Up!: Using Sponges for Basecoats and Painting

After the importance of your primer layer*, your basecoat layer is next on the Most Important List. In this, it has to be a perfect jack-of-all-trades, needing to attend to coverage, opacity, the unifying tone, smoothness, and sturdy adhesion with the primer and for the oncoming pigments. To do that, I've found that our historic artists famous for the durability of their paintjobs often sponge-applied their basecoats then let them dry for at least a week before proceeding, ideally two weeks (Julie Froelich often let hers dry for thirty days beforehand). Why such long dry times? Well, we need the basecoat to be fully dry and de-gassed and stable before we proceed. Plus, if anything funky with adhesion is going to happen, it’s going to happen when processing the basecoat and we want to fully know how that’s behaving before we continue. We don’t want an unwelcome surprise after the fact! And frankly, I’ve found that the longer dry times make a big difference down the line based on my own work and in my experience with my Vintage Custom collection with some pieces going back 44 years.

But how to use sponges to create a good basecoat? Welp, I like to use triangular make-up sponges for that. I bevel the edges with scissors to help mediate seams, too. So mix up your basecoat color, say half a tablespoonish for a Trad scale, dip your sponge in to get about a dime-sized amount onto it, then tap tap tap tap away on your model. Work quickly! Don't linger on an area but keep moving. Tap down seams and bubbles as you go. In fact, you can go over it once more while it's still damp to tamp down excess texture, too. Once the first layer is on and dry, you can apply additional layers to ensure sturdiness and even opacity. Then let it all dry thoroughly for at least a week before continuing with your paintwork.

Caveats:

• Work fast to avoid pilling or dried bits of paint from the sponge getting stuck in your basecoat.
• Keep your surfaces and sponges clean to avoid debris in your basecoat.
• Overlap edges to avoid seams or ridges.
• Be mindful of handholds to avoid fingerprints. I like to hold onto the back legs, do all the body, then do those back legs last.
• Don’t dab dab dab too hard or you’ll likely create a foam-like effect with lots of bubbles. Just dab enough to get the job done so practice practice practice. It’s all by “feel.” Now if you do get a foamy effect with bubbles — no worries! — just go over it again more gently to tamp it all down. You can also blow on the bubbles to pop them and then carefully sponge over that area again.

Tips:

• Dampen your sponge a snidge to avoid pilling and bits of dried paint sticking to your basecoat.
• Use a fresh sponge if the paint on your current one becomes too sticky or dry. I usually go through three to five sponges per Trad scale horse.
• Practice on a junker first to get a feel for this technique. It takes a practiced hand to do it well.
• In the nooks and crannies that the sponge cannot reach, apply the basecoat with a brush or airbrush.
• You can also use cut up squares of upholstery foam for more texture.
• You can reuse your make-up sponges if you pop them into a water cup when you grab another, then wash them out immediately after you’re done. Indeedy, the best ones are used!
• Your basecoat should be the medium tone or “unifying” tone of your color. However, sometimes you’ll need to start dark or start light for the effect you want. The point is, the basecoat is an integral part of your paintjob so give its tone some goodly thought.
• You can sponge on the basecoat in all the places you can get, putting on two good coats. Then you can go over it all with an airbrush filled with your basecoat color to get every nook and cranny and one final once over for true opacity and coverage. This is what I do, and it works like a charm. Now why would I even bother to sponge on a basecoat rather than just airbrush it on from the get-go? Because I’ve found in my experience that a sponged-on basecoat is tougher and adheres better to the primer than one just sprayed on. This is why I sponge-on two layers of basecoat first then airbrush as a finish.

Side notes: 

• You can use sponges to paint! Yes! Tap tap tap that paintjob on! And you can cut them into smaller bits for more control. However, I recommend upholstery foam sponges for painting rather than these make-up sponges (more on that in a bit).
• Don’t use a fancy make-up beauty blender, but those triangular make-up sponges. The latter are cheaper, more plentiful, and easier to handle.
• These sponges do wear out so throw them out when they become pitted, crumbly, ragged, and worn. But I’ve found that a single sponge is good for about three to five basecoats before becoming a problem.
• I do my basecoats in Liquitex Soft Body Acrylics. What’s great about this is that the Soft Body texture is nice and liquidy plus an acrylic basecoat will accept pretty much every kind of pigment from oils to pastels.
• You can thin your basecoat a bit with water (or the media-appropriate thinner) if that makes the process easier for you. Just not too much! Too much water can lead to a foamy texture. Plus, remember, you want coverage without drips and pooling. The more water you add, the longer you have to let that basecoat sit to dry, too.

Now as for painting with sponges, here's a side-by-side comparison of the textural difference between an upholstery foam sponge and the make-up sponge...

"A" is the upholstery sponge, cut into a 1" chunk and beveled. But you can see the pores are bigger and its texture is squishier with more spring. As such, its texture allows for easier, smoother blending, but also a more speckled effect so you have to be finessed with it. Lots of practice! And work fast fast fast! Don't dawdle or you'll create pilling or lifting. And don't put too much paint on it as you work otherwise you'll create excess bubbles and foaming. However, not enough paint and you create pilling. It definitely has its Goldilocks Zones so practice with it on a junker to get a feel for it. And go through a lot of them to avoid pilling and debris, like I'll go through about 5-10 per Trad size model in one painting session. For that then, I cut up and bevel a bunch beforehand so I can just rotate through them quickly.

Caveat: It's very easy to create a heavily textured, pebbled surface with these sponges if you aren't careful, so practice first and remember to work fast.

Tip: Consider making the sponge ever so slightly damp to mediate pilling and to dampen down texture. Also make the  sponge's surface pretty rounded with beveling to help your blending best.

"B" is the make-up sponge, beveled. You can see that its pores are teensy tiny, almost velvety in texture being so dense, and the texture is firmer with slightly less spring. Now if you want a squishier texture, rinse the make-up sponge in water and squish out the excess water a couple of times, and let it dry. This will "loosen up" its firmer texture. But these sponges are more difficult to use for actual painting because they create more like discreet "blocks" of color that's trickier to blend rather than the diffusions of color that's easier to blend, like the upholstery sponges. This is why I use these make-up sponges for basecoating and the upholstery sponges for painting, as Julie Froelich and Laurie Jensen advised me to do. However, with pratice, you can make the make-up sponges work for painting as well, so give it a go and see which you like best.

So there ya go! Those are the basics, but the big takeaway is this: Practice practice practice on a junker first. Seriously. This technique takes a practiced hand and a sense of timing to avoid pilling, debris, and ridges, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes a breeze! And what’s great, the result is a rather sturdy basecoat that can take quite a beating and with enough tooth to accept paint or pigments really well. Like I drybrushed my acrylic paintjobs for years, grinding paint into the basecoat pretty strongly, and it all stayed put. So experiment, play around with this technique, and see if it works for you! 

*For primer, I recommend Dupli-Color Sandable Primer in White, Grey, or Rust. Just keep in mind that it’s a transparent primer, not an opaque one, so don’t load it on to make it opaque. It’s also a very “tight” primer that won’t gum up your tiny details if you use it properly and thinly. But it dries quickly to a lovely chalky, very sandable finish that accepts paint beautifully. However, I suggest letting it fully dry and de-gas for at least three days before applying a basecoat. Ideally a week. Why? Because we want that primer to be “cold and hard” before you proceed. In fact, I like to let my pieces sit for 30 days in primer before I start, when I can.

"Creativity is contagious, pass it on."

~ Albert Einstein

Sponge It Up!: Using Sponges for Basecoats and Painting

Speckled Sparkle: Painting With A Toothbrush

 

Introduction

It’s always a good painting day when you can Pollock paint your plastic pony! Whee! Yes…splatter flecking does have a place in our painting repertoire even today, and not only is a lot of fun to do, but it can be applied to many different colors and patterns. So let’s talk about this wild technique that has been with us nearly since Day One we started customizing. Indeed, it’s an old, time honored method that still has a lot of love today, making it an important skillset to have in our painting know-how. So let’s go!…

What You Need

• Toothbrush: Any manual toothbrush will do, new or used. I actually use the free toothbrushes I get in my go-bag from my dentist! Just keep in mind that different degrees of softness and hardness will produce slightly different results so experiment to see which effect you prefer. And the harder the toothbrush, the easier the technique because you get more “flick.” However, the harder the toothbrush, the bigger the speckles whereas the softer the toothbrush, the small the speckles, generally speaking. So pick carefully and experiment.
• Roll of paper towels or a few sheets of white printer paper: You’ll want to do a test flick on the paper to get out excess paint and make sure it’s the right consistency so you get the flecks you want. Never just flick right onto you model as that’s just asking for blobs or drips, a big mess. Always do one or two flicks onto your paper before you hit your model.
• Old towels: You’ll need as many as necessary to cover your larger work area to protect it. This technique is messy so if you don’t want flecks on something, cover it up or move it away. This includes your floor and walls.
• Old clothes: You’re going to get paint and speckles on your clothes so wear ones you don’t care about!
• Small bowl: You’ll mix and thin your paint in this.
• Acrylic paint: This is the ideal paint to use because it dries so fast, is easy to use with water clean up, and thins easily with water.
• #6 Brush or some kind of "workhorse" mixing brush: You’ll use this to mix up your paint.
• 00 Round brush: You’ll use this to touch up some flecks to fix them if they streak or get weird on you.
• Hand hold: Know where you’re going to hold your model firmly and carefully as you definitely don’t want to grab onto finished areas and smear your beautiful speckles before they’re dry.

The Idea Behind The Technique

The goal is to run your thumb through the paint-laden toothbrush to flick speckles onto your model. It randomized and somewhat uncontrolled, but with practice, you can hedge your bets with a bit more control.

Tips To Get The Best Results

• Practice on a junker first to get a feel for this technique. It’s all by “feel.”
• Your hand has to be at the perfect angle to the model so you create circular or slightly oval flecks, avoiding streaky or “shooting star” speckles. Practice on a junker and you’ll get the gist of this technique quickly.
• Holding your hand at different distances will garner different results. For instance, closer and the bigger the flecks but father out and the smaller the flecks. However, the closer you are, the more control in an area you have whereas the farther away, and the less control you have. It’s a balancing act. But for a starting point, try holding your hand about 4" from the model and adjust according to your own comfort zone.
• How hard your flick the toothbrush will produce different results. The harder you flick, the bigger the specks. But don’t flick too hard or you’ll create “starbursts” or streaky shooting star flecks. There’s a Goldilock’s Zone for the pressure you need so practice first.
• Take breaks! Your thumb and hand will get tired faster than you think, so break the session up with some hand rest.
• Don’t drench your toothbrush because that’s just asking for blobs yet don’t be timid either since you won’t create sufficient flecks without sufficient paint in the toothbrush. There’s a Goldilocks Zone and you’ll find it with practice. This is how doing a test flick onto paper once or twice helps to mediate blobs or lets you know if you don’t have enough paint in the toothbrush.
• Make sure your paint is thinned down to the proper consistency, about that of 2% milk or ink. And use water to thin, not acrylic thinner. Consistency is important: Too thick and you’ll create braille dots and blobs but too thin and they’ll run and drip. So practice on a junker first. 
• You don’t need to use a lot of paint for this technique so don’t think you have to put a big ol’ blob in your little bowl. Usually, just a dime-sized amount will do because once it’s thinned with water, it’ll make quite a bit of paint for you.
• Generally speaking, the less paint there is in the toothbrush, the smaller the flecks whereas the more paint there is, the bigger the flecks, so practice. This also means you’ll need to re-dip your toothbrush and re-test on your paper regularly as you paint because you want to create a consistent look over your model and on each side.
• You can use different colors of speckles for different areas on the body or for variety…or not. It’s up to you or what your reference is showing you to do.
• Use good reference photos so you know where to concentrate your speckles. Like notice on many fleabitten horses that the speckles tend to be sparse on the underbelly?
• Layer your speckles with different sizes and colors for dimension and interest.
• Use a contrasting color so your speckles show up well. However, using more subtle speckles can produce depth and interest, too, so play around with color with this method. Refer to your references, too — what are they telling you to do?
• This technique has a high degree of chaos so be ready to relinquish any sense of real control over it. If you want a more realistic fleabitten or speckled effect, handpaint them on instead. 
• Don’t worry about getting flecks onto areas that will later be painted over like the mane and tail. So that said, flicking is best done when all the shading and highlighting is done on the model but before the nitty gritty of clean up and detailing.
• Always allow each layer to dry thoroughly before proceeding with the next layer otherwise you’ll have flecks bleeding into other flecks into big drippy blobs.
• Some horses are lightly fleabitten or speckled while some are heavily so, so pay attention to your references and flick accordingly.

When To Use This Technique

This method is great for:

• Fleabitten greys: Use acrylic paint colors in various hues based on Burnt Umber or Burnt Sienna or Mars Black or Ivory Black, or a charcoal color. Study your references to see what color your flecks should be over which areas of the body.
• Appaloosa patterning or certain ticking effects: Use Titanium White (which you can also mute if you mute your whites) to create white speckles in key areas.
• Roans: You can use various colors and Titanium White (you can mute it if you want to) to build up a speckled look for a roany coat.
• A template: Use a muted tone to lay down a template or “sketch” for later more-refined handpainted fleabites or ticking in order to reproduce that look of “organic chaos” so characteristic of these effects.
• After sealing: If you’ve painted your model in oils first, be sure to seal it with a varnish or Dull Cote or similar sealing spray that has “tooth” then let that dry. Then do your acrylic speckling on top otherwise the acrylic won’t be able to stick to the oils well enough and those lovely flecks will just rub off with time.

Trouble-Shooting

Oopsies are going to happen with this technique, even if you’ve being using it for years. It’s just the nature of the beast! That’s the price of chaos…more chaos! But it can all be fixed because, remember…it’s just paint! So here are some common errors we may encounter and how to fix them:

• Shooting star or streaky flecks: Easily fixed with the appropriately colored body color paint and a small round brush, painting key areas of the steak to break it up into dots. Or you can paint over it completely, your choice. Voilá…fixed!
• Blobs: Your paint is too thick so thin it down with more water. Hopefully you tested your flecking on your paper first so you determined this before hitting your model! Now if you didn’t, wipe it off quickly, and you can even use a bit of water with a shop towel to get as much off as possible. Then let that dry and restart with thinner flecking paint.
• Drips: Your paint is too thin so add more paint. You can tell if your paint is too thin by looking at it in the bowl plus it’ll be a lighter color on your paper than the intense color you intend. If in doubt, flick onto a junker to make sure first before hitting your model. But as you learn this technique, over time you’ll be able to tell quickly if your paint is too thin just by looking at it in the bowl.
• Oversized flecks: Sometimes a random fleck will pop out that just bugs you with how too-big it is. Easy fix…just paint over it with the appropriate color body paint.
• Donut specks: When the centers of your speckles tend to be paler which indicates your paint is too thin. Thicken up the paint a little bit then go back with a 00 round brush and fill in those middles carefully.
• Lack of variety: If you’ve been too timid with your flecking, you piece may lack a variety in size or color with your flecking. So just take a small 00 round brush, and carefully dab on some diverse flecking in key areas. In fact, you can go back in like this to accentuate certain areas or to “move the eye around” on the model better.
• Flecks that are too tiny: You need more paint on your toothbrush and get your toothbrush closer to your model.
• Flecks that are too big: Try less paint on the toothbrush and hold it a bit farther away from your model.
• Mismatched sides: You want to have a consistency in speckle density and general sizing on either side of your model, so compare the two often and make adjustments.

Conclusion

There are five main things to keep in mind with this method. First off, it’s all by “feel.” There are so many Goldilock’s Zones with this technique, ones that you only learn by doing, and doing a lot. Which brings us to, second, do lots and lots of practice on a junker model first! The good news is though, it’s a very easy technique so you’ll get the hang of it quite quickly I wager. And third, as-is it will produce more of a Vintage Custom feel to your piece. Now if you want a more modern look, you can handpaint over them to refine them, morphing the effect into the more specific standards we have today. Fourth, always use good references to work from so you can somewhat place flecks where they need to be in the proper hues. And fifth, remember to have fun! It’s amazing to see your paintjob “wake up” with this method into your full vision, so don’t let that moment slip away by being too caught up in chasing “perfection.” Let wabi-sabi rule the day and just enjoy this exciting painting experience!

So with all that under your belt, get out there and make your model sparkle with speckles! You totally got this! We can’t wait to see what you make all speckled n' special!

“In the midst of chaos lies creativity.”

— Unknown

Speckled Sparkle: Painting With A Toothbrush

Black Magic: A Versatile Powerhouse

Introduction

The color black is ubiquitous and integral when it comes to horse color but all the same, it's a tricky color when it comes to actually painting with it. Nature has a perfect handle on it, of course, but we have to learn the ropes if we ever hope to wield black smartly. Really, while it seems simple enough at first glance, it’s really not as straightforward as it seems. Indeedy, black has its peculiarities we need a handle on if we ever hope to wield it adeptly and ping our target colors, so let's talk about this complicated color a bit.

The Dilemma

You see, using black in a mix can be a bit of a dilemma. Why? Well, because black tends to kill a color outright. What does that mean? In essence, black tends to destroy a color's luminosity, saturation, and glow and can muddy a color faster than just about anything. Lean into blacks too much or become too dependent on them then, and the adaptability of our paintjobs can suffer for it. Blacks can also skew a mix into unpleasant directions with its different undertones so knowing how "warm" or "cool" a black is can be critical for avoiding unwelcome results. Like if we try to blend a black into the golds of a buckskin on the legs, we get green? Yeah, that. So we need to use blacks with caution and really know how to use them before simply adding them onto our palette. For this reason, using color theory to mix up a complementary mix is often the better option rather than using black to dampen or darken a color. For instance, to dampen orange or rust use blue or green rather than black. Or likewise, instead of using black to darken Burnt Umber, use a dark blue. In this way, applying color theory often gets us to our target color much more effectively and vibrantly.

The Spectrum of Blacks

However, that said, sometimes black is called for so how we use it can be instrumental to our success. But first we need to understand the different blacks before we can tease out how they behave in mixes. So to that end...

• Ivory Black: With its blue cast, this is a cool, transparent black. It was made by burning ivory in the absence of oxygen, but now it's made from the bones of animals so it's not vegan-friendly.
• Mars Black: A brownish (therefore reddish) warm black, this is an opaque powerhouse that's super powerful in mixes so be careful with it. It's a synthetic iron oxide pigment made from iron sulfate reacting to an alkali.
• Payne's Grey: With it's very blue, cool cast, this transparent dark grey can look black with layering. It's typically made from combining blue pigments with reds or violets to create a "black" color.
• Carbon Black: A true neutral black, this is a powerful opaque color that's immensely versatile in mixes, being neither cool nor warm in undertone. It's made from the soot created by the partial combustion of natural gas.
• Lamp Black: A cool blue-toned transparent black, it's made from the soot of oil lamps (so it's not vegan-friendly if the oil was derived from animals).
• Bone Black: A very warm, brown-toned opaque black, it's made from the charred bones of animals so it's not vegan-friendly.

Homemade Black

Beyond pre-made blacks though, we should also know how to mix our own black because these mixes can often garner even more complex, adaptable, and richer hues. So to do that, think about mixing a cool blue like Ultramarine Blue with a warm brown like Burnt Umber. Another option is Prussian Blue with Burnt Sienna or Red Oxide or Alizarin Crimson or Terra Rosa or Burnt Umber. Or yet another way to create black is by mixing Alizarin Crimson and Phthalo Green, or Phthalo Green with Quinacridone Violet. Also consider mixing dark blues or greens with Raw Umber for a new set of blacks. And yet another way to make a highly adaptable black is to mix our primary colors together: Red, yellow, and blue. Just not in equal proportions, mind you, so go easy on the yellow. So there's lots of ways to mix up a host of blacks for lots of versatility on our palette! Like if we want to create that purple or blue cast sooty bay? Well, mixing our own black is a handy way to do it!

Oh, but it doesn't end there! Also think about cutting those pre-made blacks with Burnt Umber or Raw Umber to brown them up a snidge for a more natural effect. Just keep in mind that Burnt Umber is a warm brown and Raw Umber is a cool brown. If we mix the two together first then, we'll get a more neutral brown to add to our black. The point is, this is a handy trick if we're trying to blend blacks with golds, for instance. That brown component will help to prevent the green effect so often encountered when blending golds and yellows with blacks like on buckskins, some duns, and black bays.

On a similar note, if we lighten our different blacks with white to produce a grey, we'll find that this yields us a whole series of different kinds of greys. For example, Ivory Black will produce a cool, blue-toned grey while Mars Black will give us a warmer grey then Carbon Black will render a more neutral grey. So if we want to neutralize that blue-tone in an Ivory Black grey, for instance, we can add in some brown, like Burnt Umber, to cancel out that cool undertone. But knowing which black to use can also be instrumental in targeting the different kinds of greys such as porcelain grey which tends to have a comparatively bluish cast to it, or using Mars Black for a rosegrey with its warm undertone. So a better understanding of blacks helps us to better understand our greys, with big implications for our paintwork from color mixing to skin color to hoof color to the palmar feet to chestnuts.

That Good Ol' Black Magic

Okay, now that we have that all under our belt, how do we apply it? Well, think of it this way: Black is our lowest note possible, right? So we can use it to deepen the dimension of our paintjob in those coats that call for black like, for instance, on bays, buckskins, grullas, blacks, greys, and roans. For instance, on sooties, notice how the sooty pattern deposits black on key areas on the body and head? Or on a grey pattern, note how the darkest values stick to the joints on the legs and characteristics areas around the body? Or on varnish roans how the darks stick to characteristic areas?

Or on the other hand, pay attention to when black may be needed to dull a color such as on some silvers, grullas, duns, or mushrooms, or classic champagne. Indeed, black can rip the vivid quality of a color right out, making it a handy means to mute color into those odd tones hard to get at any other way.

So pay attention to where the lowest notes are on your reference(s) and determine whether that calls for a black, then follow suit. This will give your paintjobs added realism, depth, and dimension, and more intensity with their impact. Likewise, think about using black as a muting agent to dull and skew colors with purpose. Absolutely, knowing how to dampen any color with black is one of the most useful skillsets when it comes to duplicating horse color! The trick is though learning caution with black, of using the bare minimum to get the job done. Why? Because black is an inordinately powerful color, even in its transparent forms, so a little bit really does go a long way. So add in blacks a teensy bit at a time until you build up the color to what you want because once you add it in, there's no getting it out!

Another trick to using black is knowing what to mix it with to get some really neat browns and rusts and such. For example, mixing a black with Red Oxide, a bright rust color, produces a super versatile brown that's great for everything from basecoats to blending, particularly on bays and sooty bays or some unusual chestnuts. Or try it with Burnt Sienna or Terra Rosa for some variety. Or think about mixing a black with bright orange for another interesting muted rusty brown that can be helpful for black bays and chestnuts, in particular. Dark hooves also benefit from black, of course, both for coloration and for muting as does dark skin and chestnuts. Another key insight is knowing when to mix in some brown into our black if yellows or golds are involved to prevent that greening effect so typical when we blend those two together. What's more, on some fuzzy foal coats, like especially for bays or blacks, think about basecoating the piece in a black-based hue then drybrush your additional colors and highlights on top to create lots of "pop" to the fuzzy texture. That dark basecoat will remain in the hair creases as coloration and shadow, adding welcome dimension to fuzzy coats. So add it all up, and black can be applicable to lots of colors and effects so play around with it to discover what it really can do for you.

Conclusion

Put it all together then and we can apply black on our palette with a lot more color savvy to not only avoid unpleasant "dead" results or green skews, but to also achieve a richer, deeper look to our coat colors. So the overall trick with this powerhouse hue is knowing the "temperature" of our black to stay on target and to avoid unwanted greenish or bluish results. Get a handle on that, and we're well on our way. The other thing to know with using black on our palette is to mix in just a little bit at a time because it tends to be a strong influence. Really, once we add black, we can't go back! So use it with great caution and carefully, adding only small amounts at a time to achieve the target color.

Once we get a handle on black though, a whole new section on the horse color spectrum opens up to us. Because black isn’t just like any other color…it’s powerful and omnipotent, but it can also be highly versatile if we know how to use it well. Black is bold, beautiful, and bountiful, so play around with it and practice, and you too can add that enticing black magic to  your paintwork!

“I’ve been forty years discovering that the queen of all colors is black!”

— Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Black Magic: A Versatile Powerhouse