Well, if you are capable of feeling your own fingers this Friday you might want to celebrate the awful weather by trying something new. Well do not fret I am here to inspire you! Here are five styles of customising that you just must try.
1. Mohair
The first technique that everyone must try at some point in their customising career is mohairing. Mohair (or similar) is applied to the model instead of a sculpted mane and tail.
If you want to mohair a model horse here are the supplies you will need:
- Model horse body
- Dremel (or similar) to remove mane and tail
- Mohair
- Glue
- Epoxy Putting (to sculpt a new dock)
Sana is a custom Weathergirl by Deb Brown. You can see her beautiful mohair mane and tail that just enhance her gorgeous colour and look.
2. Dip Painting
I first tried this a few years ago and it is so much fun! You may have done this previously as an art project as a child but it also works really well for model horses.
The basic principle is that you put a hydrophobic substance like spray paint or nail polish onto the top of a jar of water. Then (wearing gloves) you just dip your primed model horse into the water. The substance will adhere to the surface of the model horse creating a cool marble effect.
If you want to try this technique you will need:
- Primed model horse
- Nail polish, Spray Paint or Marbling Paints
- Old Jar
- Water
This little guy using nail varnish for this technique using blacks and pinks, it is really cute.
3. Etching
Etching is a method of customising where instead of adding paint you remove the original paintwork to create a new pattern.
To do this all you will need is a sharp blade or carbide scraper. You will gently remove parts of original paint work until you get the pattern you want.
If you want to try this technique you will need:
- Sharp blade or carbide scraper
- Original Finish model horse
Sunshine is an adorable little etchie that was one of my first custom models I purchased. The pattern is just beautiful.
4. Pencils
Pencils are often used in combination with other technique but did you know you can use them exclusively to create a model in its own right?
All you will need is some good quality pastel pencils (other pencils also work but I prefer pastel ones). You then use these to draw your pattern. This works best with colours like fleabitten grey rather than solid ones.
If you want to try this technique you will need:
- Primed model horse
- Pastel pencils (or similar)
- Sealant
Pastels were used in combination with pencils to create this adorable little fleabitten grey.
5. Colour Shift
Colour shift paints are so much fun! You can purchase good quality specialist model ones from Green Stuff World. They create a lovely metallic effect that shimmers in the sun.
If you want to try this technique the most important thing to know is that your base colour will impact your finished effect. The manufacturer will usually recommend black as a base to create the colour shift effect, but other colours can be used to create a beautiful shimmer effect.
If you want to try this technique you will need:
- Model horse painted solid black
- Colour shift paint
This cute dressage horse is painted with colour shift paint on his body with metallic mane, tail and hooves.
