The Little World

A custom colour is defined as any admixture of standard paint that reproduces perfectly some particular hue or shade.

It may be produced by any modeller who has a spare bottle and a mixing spoon. In keeping with colour and art theory, it is best mixed from a light colour with careful application of dark. This can be via a pipette but this risks too much at once. Most successful colourists do it drop by drop.

It needs to be done with a knowledge of the differences between enamel, acrylic, or lacquer to avoid straying into sludge or explosions. It also needs to be done in good light, and with frequent test applications…some colours lighten on drying, and some darken. A few blister, give off noxious fumes, or run for federal parliament.

When the perfect colour is ready, it should be applied to the model right away…before there is any alteration in consistency. It should be sprayed or brushed over everything needful – now – and not parcelled out over several weeks.

And mix enough so that there is some left after the completion of the model for touch-ups and afterthoughts. Above all, have enough so that you do not have to try to duplicate it halfway through.