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How do!

This year, I have mostly been painting my backlog. Because as a formerly Reluctant Painter, I’ve a massive backlog of models. Which in a sense is a waste of money, as once bought and assembled? They were just sitting there. Gathering dust. In the spare/hobby room. But as I’m now on day 93 of doing a bit of hobby every day this year? I’ve belted through it.

And I know I’m not the only person hesitant to put brush to pot to model. So I figured a thread of general tips on how to motivate yourself might prove interesting. Everyone’s welcome to contribute. But as is tradition? I’ll go first.

1. Commit to your bit. Even if it’s making yourself find an hour or two a week? Stick to that. And pick a project or milestones you think you can reasonably tackle. For instance, if your free time is limited? There seems little point in deciding “this year I’ll paint a Chapters worth of Marines to Golden Demon winning standard”. Some blessed folk can speed paint to a ridiculous level of competence, but they’re few and far between. So maybe aim for a squad a week or a month.

2. Sort yourself some display space. Here I went ambitious and bought a pair of display cabinets. One of which is now dangerously close to being stuffed to the gunnels with finished models. But not everyone will have the space or pocket for such a solution. But even just space on a bookshelf or mantelpiece will do. Because once you can see your progress, there in front of you? I’ve found that to be super motivating, far more so than just stuffing them in a miniatures case.

3. Don’t beat yourself up if you can’t commit to the full bit. This might sound contrary to tip 1, but it’s not. Couple of times I’ve not achieved what I wanted over a given weekend. But, as long as you did something? You’re still further along, and progress is progress. Even a tiny amount of hobby is better than No Hobby.

4. Having a hobby space doesn’t mean a separate room. I do all mine in my front room, in front of the telly, using an occasional table. I’ve sorted my lighting out in that bit too. By using the occasional table, I don’t need to fully pack away after each session. Which of course in turn means I’ve minimal setup for the following sessions.

5. The only person you’re letting down is you. Which probably sounds super judgemental, but it’s not meant to be. Should I miss a day or two over the year? It…doesn’t really matter. This isn’t dieting or quitting smoking. There is no square one to go back to. Maybe commit to doing extra over the next week or few weeks to “make good”.

Right. Next posters tips please.

Good advice.

Uncle Atom from Tabletop Minions has multiple good motivation-related videos: https://www.youtube.com/@tabletopminions/search?query=motivation

I think the most important thing is that not every tip is for everybody. For example, many people swear by having a list of things to paint, which helps you get organized and see your progress as you check items from the list. But for others, the list doesn't work at all and has a contrary effect by reminding you of everything you have not done yet, and discourages you.

A couple things that work for me:
- don't batch paint too many near-identical things at once. 5 models is ok, 10-12 can work, 20 is way too much and becomes a chore
- don't fight your brush. If your brush is starting to be too old, even if you love it, replace it.
- unless you are painting for a competition or have very high personal standards, don't sweat the little stuff that's never going to be noticed. "Perfect" is the enemy of the "good" and also the enemy of the "done"
- speaking of which, know when to call a model done and be happy with it
- but also don't be afraid to stop working on a model for a while if it is a chore. Unless you have a deadline (and not a self-imposed one, but an actual deadline like a competition or a game for which you absolutely need your minis to be painted), there is no gun on your head to finish something. Move to something else (painting, building, scenery...) for a while or take a couple days off, and often you will return to your previous model with renewed enthusiasm
- don't burn yourself out!

On point number 5:

Sometimes it’s good to have other people to let down. One of the things that keeps me motivated and moving is my blog here. I’m OK with letting myself down, but am much less reluctant to let other people down. Even if none of the people who follow me would bat an eye if I dropped off the face of the earth for a couple weeks, I don’t want to potentially let them down. So keep up my pace.

Other thoughts:

Set goals, but make them achievable. It’s easy to give up on things that seem out of reach. It’s also OK to miss them. If you are not missing them, you should probably set them a little higher.

Do different things.
One day I’ll assemble.
Another I’ll batch paint.
The next I’ll paint display quality.
I might make some terrain.
Build part of a table.
Paint the terrain or table.

Change it up. The hobby isn’t only about painting minis. It helps me avoid burn out and always have projects getting done, even if it only two trees for my gaming tables.

1) organize
2) know where you're at, and make improvements
3) pics, painting log/gallery
4) finish each batch before moving to the next, avoid half finished projects
5) make your hobby space relaxing and time efficient
6) get the right tools for the right job
7) give yourself prizes for completing batches
8) sell/trade off unwanted items

I'ma weigh in on this too.

I want to highlight your point 4 (Hobby Space) and expand on that.
4a - (A Paint-by, like a drive-by but with paint) Setup the tools and hobby space in such a way that it would be possible to sit down grab a paintbrush and paint for 5 minutes and then put the brush down get up and walk away.
For me this was huge, because most days I only have 10 or 20 mins here or there, and hobby is impossible if it takes 5 mins to just set the work station up, and then 5 more to break it down and clean up. I found my self making progress on a mini all throughout the day.
Tips for that:
• Use one color at the time. Drop of color and paint with that until it dries or is used up, that way when 20 mins are up I can wash the brush, place it on the table and run away on errands. No time wasted on palette clean up.
• Or have a wet palette with the lid, than can be closed and thrown into the refrigerator.
• Have all essential tools and colors with model close by. I not only done this in my hobby room but also at my work or travel by equipping a small hobby kit. I used it when I get an hr or so of down time at work mother-trucking or when out with family, I even painted models on the sprue on the go and finished them later when I had more time.

Also, highlight your point 2 regarding display.
I tried that and gave up on it, the display shelf is cool, but without expensive case and good lighting finished models overtime turned into dark dust/cat hair/fiber covered clumps and I had to put them away. HOWEVER! That is the reason I no longer do terrain work even though I enjoy it more than mini painting, I do not have space to store finished terrain pieces. Yes, agree that as soon as I get space I will dive into beloved diorama and terrain hobby.

Also, I wanted to add a point that I believe to be crucial. It is a bit philosophical and deep because it ultimately stems from a reality of how person sees self and personal future, And that stems from subjective/objective reality, And that in turn stems from person's (World-view) .
6 - Enjoy the Process.
This point is best stated with a question: How do you begin to Want? And applies to different aspects of life such as: -we all know that excersise is good, but how do you want to do it when you don't want to do it? Because humans will always always do what they want to do, no matter what, it can be: exercise, smoke, drink, paint, read books, hang out with peeps, game, heal kittens, and do that one thing that gives you that dopamine hit, even if the person and/or people around are suffering from it, humans will find the way to do what they want. So it is interesting to me to find out how I can begin to want something, because once I am wanting it, then I know I will do it and find the way to get it no matter the circumstances.
So far I have learned that the "motivator" and the "purpose" in work and hobby HAS to be (Enjoying the Process) the slow and the boring part, in order for the work or hobby to be sustainable!!!

I worked on it, and tried to slow down and "force" my self to enjoy the de-spruing and de-moldline-ing stage, priming, and all the slow steps in hopes that that will grow those neural pathways in my brain into a (hobby enjoying department tree) and over time I will begin to WANT to be engaged in the "slow and the boring" process that will drive my hobby. I tried it, but it kinda help but it did not work, because when I ask my self a question of : (Would I still do the hobby if I could no longer share my work with the online hobby community?)
And my honest answer has to be Not really. And then I ask my self next logical question: (Would I still do the hobby if nobody but me will ever see the work I have done?) And my honest answer is, probably not. And the next logical question I ask my self: (is my hobby motivator conditional on the outside circumstances?) and the answer is Yes, therefore I know I do not have that "want" for the hobby in me, that means my "want" is else where, probably like most things, in self. Or perhaps my motivator for the hobby is actually in listening to podcasts while I paint lolz?

So, enjoying the process is the key! The problem is: who has it has it, who don't they don't, but how to find that key for me who don't has it, because I want to has it? How do I want the wanting?

I find reason and purpose, "wanting" to do all things, including the hobby, is through the Christian worldview is meaningful, and that stands on Christ Jesus alone. For me outside of that everything is ultimately meaningless, including the hobby, given enough time.

From my personal experience, I found that starting out with basic, simple things to dare try your hand helped. I started really painting with my Germans, an army that visually mattered less than my crons or my IG, so that I had only very simple stuff to train on.

Or speed painting techniques that let you enjoy the process more as it goes faster and achieves decent results more easily. That helps getting used to it and starts the virtuous circle.

Besides, I painted always having a YouTube tutorial or my second hand copy of "painting citadel miniatures" (old version) at hand, so when in doubt or looking for a technique, I could stop, read carefully, and repeat.

Over time I started to get better and dared to go on with my necrons, then my now finished IG.

In terms of educational videos? I highly rate GW’s ones.

Yes, there are far better painters out there. But GW’s video setup is really good. You get not only clear visuals, but nicely angled so you can see how they apply the paint.

For someone who grew up with the very old “painted it red, details, ????, collect your golden demon” GW paint guides, these videos are really, really good.

They’re also nicely paced, with nothing rushed - just what you need when you’re starting out and learning how your brush and the paints behave according to one another.

From there? That for me is when the myriad other tutorials come in, because they can and will go into much more depth and literal detail than GW, who are there as the First Port Of Call for many new hobbyists.

Also? Invest in brush soap. Friend bought me some for Christmas a couple of years back, and I can’t do without it. Well maintained brushes make your money go further, and prevent frustration when a rogue bristle paints a line impossibly thicker than itself, bodging an otherwise neat line.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Finally for now? Definitely got to endorse a “I can leave it like that” painting station. You can make one, have dedicated desk, or buy one.

Oh, and personal peccadillo? If like me you live in a hard water area (so Chalky, the literal White Cliffs of Dover are just a couple of miles away), use filtered water. It might be psychosomatic, but I swear I get better, smoother results after the water has been filtered.

My first suggestion is, enjoy the models you've finished. I make sure to keep my newly painted models sitting on my desk, in my line of sight for some days or weeks, while I try to keep built or basecoated ones out of sight. That way, I'm not looking at a pile of shame, but at a cool thing I did. Your note on display probably serves the same purpose.

Second, play games. If I have a game scheduled in a couple weeks, that's great motivation to get a particular unit or model finished in time to use it. And after the game, I can usually think of another unit that would have been just the right tool for that situation, and that motivates me to get them painted. And so on, and so on.

My main frustration with painting has been failing to achieve anything approaching to what I would deem an acceptable look. It was never a matter of technique or motor skills, but for some reason my miniatures always looked ... off.

So recently I decided to give it another go and I actually found out what my actual issue was all along. I bought a large paint set with 60+ colours years ago, thinking this would be a good purchase to get back into painting. Turns out that particular line of paints is extremely glossy, which led to all those frustrations about a weird looking paint jobs. I never thought about swapping paints because I had spent a chunk of money on that set.

Now that I've swapped to another explicitly matte paint line, things are suddenly working out a lot better and I'm actually looking forward to painting miniatures again.

tl;dr

If your results are consistently bad, try changing the tools

Mothsniper wrote: Also, highlight your point 2 regarding display.
I tried that and gave up on it, the display shelf is cool, but without expensive case and good lighting finished models overtime turned into dark dust/cat hair/fiber covered clumps and I had to put them away. HOWEVER! That is the reason I no longer do terrain work even though I enjoy it more than mini painting, I do not have space to store finished terrain pieces. Yes, agree that as soon as I get space I will dive into beloved diorama and terrain hobby.

I do see where you’re coming from. Not everyone has the same space and opportunity to display everything all at once.

But.

If you can display your current project, before consigning it to storage? You can dodge the dust and see how far you’ve come, and in time, how little you have to go.

For me, that really provides motivation. To the point that once I’ve got my current Epic Scale projects done? I’ll have six of eight shelves in my first cabinet populated with painted models.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 BertBert wrote:
My main frustration with painting has been failing to achieve anything approaching to what I would deem an acceptable look. It was never a matter of technique or motor skills, but for some reason my miniatures always looked ... off.

So recently I decided to give it another go and I actually found out what my actual issue was all along. I bought a large paint set with 60+ colours years ago, thinking this would be a good purchase to get back into painting. Turns out that particular line of paints is extremely glossy, which led to all those frustrations about a weird looking paint jobs. I never thought about swapping paints because I had spent a chunk of money on that set.

Now that I've swapped to another explicitly matte paint line, things are suddenly working out a lot better and I'm actually looking forward to painting miniatures again.

tl;dr

If your results are consistently bad, try changing the tools

This too.

Dropper Bottles were a revelation to me. It might sound stupid for my mass painting preference? But having that puddle of pigment ready to go works better for me. And, at no point having to dip my brush into the pot? My brushes are lasting longer as I’m not blobbing the ferrule with dried paint.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:

Mothsniper wrote: Also, highlight your point 2 regarding display.
I tried that and gave up on it, the display shelf is cool, but without expensive case and good lighting finished models overtime turned into dark dust/cat hair/fiber covered clumps and I had to put them away. HOWEVER! That is the reason I no longer do terrain work even though I enjoy it more than mini painting, I do not have space to store finished terrain pieces. Yes, agree that as soon as I get space I will dive into beloved diorama and terrain hobby.

I do see where you’re coming from. Not everyone has the same space and opportunity to display everything all at once.

But.

If you can display your current project, before consigning it to storage? You can dodge the dust and see how far you’ve come, and in time, how little you have to go.

For me, that really provides motivation. To the point that once I’ve got my current Epic Scale projects done? I’ll have six of eight shelves in my first cabinet populated with painted models.

Spoiler:

Automatically Appended Next Post:

 BertBert wrote:
My main frustration with painting has been failing to achieve anything approaching to what I would deem an acceptable look. It was never a matter of technique or motor skills, but for some reason my miniatures always looked ... off.

So recently I decided to give it another go and I actually found out what my actual issue was all along. I bought a large paint set with 60+ colours years ago, thinking this would be a good purchase to get back into painting. Turns out that particular line of paints is extremely glossy, which led to all those frustrations about a weird looking paint jobs. I never thought about swapping paints because I had spent a chunk of money on that set.

Now that I've swapped to another explicitly matte paint line, things are suddenly working out a lot better and I'm actually looking forward to painting miniatures again.

tl;dr

If your results are consistently bad, try changing the tools

This too.

Dropper Bottles were a revelation to me. It might sound stupid for my mass painting preference? But having that puddle of pigment ready to go works better for me. And, at no point having to dip my brush into the pot? My brushes are lasting longer as I’m not blobbing the ferrule with dried paint

.

I will definitely give it a try!

I have a year to date shelf, where I display all my progress for the year. Lets me see at a glance how I’m doing towards my yearly goals. And at the end of the year I tally the results, make sure everyone gets their glamor shots in the light box, and then move things to their final home

Date & sign the bottom of your models when you finish one. It's fun to look back and see what year you made so-and-so, and helps establish a timeline so you can see your progress in skills.

If you don't have display space, it's pretty inexpensive to get one of those plastic memorabilia containers or any other small, clear sealed box as a substitute. I've used clear deck boxes for both storing projects and temporary display before.

While it doesn't fit my needs, https://hammerthebacklog.com/ has a very interesting corporate project management take for getting your models done.

Fire_Forever wrote:
Date & sign the bottom of your models when you finish one. It's fun to look back and see what year you made so-and-so, and helps establish a timeline so you can see your progress in skills.

Or, upload to the DakkaDakka Gallery. It will datestamp them there, and can show the uploads in date order. Maybe save that for groups of models, but it'll work similarly.

That mostly works too. I like signing my models because sometimes I'll paint very similar troops years apart, plus it's nice to think one day when I'm gone someone will inherit my models and maybe wonder about the person who left their name on them.

Pictures are definitely a nice thing to have as well. As a bonus they're a lot more portable than the actual models.

Also? Make a note of your recipe.

I came back to my Legions Imperialis stuff, and realised I couldn’t quite remember how I did the bases.

It was nothing fancy like, but I couldn’t remember exactly which paints were involved. I figured it out, as all the paints I’ve used so far this year sit atop the Magic Box O’Stuff. Narrowed it down and figured it out.

So if you’re one to flit from project to project (a perfectly valid approach!) Write It Down! Nowt worse than revisiting a project, and realising you can’t remember how you did it first time round.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Also? Make a note of your recipe.

I came back to my Legions Imperialis stuff, and realised I couldn’t quite remember how I did the bases.

It was nothing fancy like, but I couldn’t remember exactly which paints were involved. I figured it out, as all the paints I’ve used so far this year sit atop the Magic Box O’Stuff. Narrowed it down and figured it out.

So if you’re one to flit from project to project (a perfectly valid approach!) Write It Down! Nowt worse than revisiting a project, and realising you can’t remember how you did it first time round.

One perk of blogging. I not-infrequently go back over my own posts to remind myself how I did things.

It helps to write up painting schemes and recipes on the computer so you have something to go back to if you forget.

Documentation is important.

I keep all my recipes in a blank hardback sketchbook - it's great because I can dab paint into it as I'm working along with any ratios, brands, stencils, banner designs, model counts, colour schemes or anything else I want to reference later. Also carries all my mini paint swatches for quick comparison.

Another tip for motivation for me is to change it up every so often. I tend to get tired of painting squads that are all the same colors, so even though I primarily collect Blood Angels, I'll buy minis outside the scope of that range so I don't get too bored. That's the one thing I think painting Gunpla has over Warhammer - different mobile suits, even those in within the same faction, can have wildly different color schemes.

Have your painting setup always ready, so that you can sit and paint without delay. I think what often stops people is the thought of preparing everything first, so they wait for a special occassion to do some painting.

I often sit for 15 minutes to do something with my models when I have only so much spare time, just because I don't waste time on preparation, setting up etc. And it's enough time to paint one colour on a couple of figures ("friends called that they are going to be 15min late? Ok, I will drybrush armour on this unit"). Even these short sessions quickly add up.

Cyel wrote:
Have your painting setup always ready, so that you can sit and paint without delay. I think what often stops people is the thought of preparing everything first, so they wait for a special occassion to do some painting.

I often sit for 15 minutes to do something with my models when I have only so much spare time, just because I don't waste time on preparation, setting up etc. And it's enough time to paint one colour on a couple of figures ("friends called that they are going to be 15min late? Ok, I will drybrush armour on this unit"). Even these short sessions quickly add up.

This is real nice when you have the space for it.

I work from home these days, and between a quick coat before work, my lunch/15 minute breaks, and a little time in the evening I can easily bang out a couple tyranids in a day. Let the contrast paints dry while I work.

Just sitting down once a day and putting a layer down is huge. Even big projects will melt away with slow steady progress. Removing the barriers to putting the brush to mini helps the whole process. Slow and steady wins the race.

 Nevelon wrote:

Cyel wrote:
Have your painting setup always ready, so that you can sit and paint without delay. I think what often stops people is the thought of preparing everything first, so they wait for a special occassion to do some painting.

This is real nice when you have the space for it.

I hear this often, but really, how much space do you need? You may have everything set up on a painting tray and put on top of your wardrobe for example. Just take it down, set it on the table and you're ready to go. Space needed: top of your wardrobe. Time to set up: seconds.

Storage area is not so much an issue as space to put it. When I was in my army NCO room, the space I needed to store my stuff was nothing, but when I actually wanted to paint, making room to set up actually required me to tidy up the room and crank a lot of stuff on a narrow space, then put everything back in place.

Though in my family home that definitely holds true as I have my own working tables that I can turn into painting desks in seconds.

Cyel wrote:

 Nevelon wrote:

Cyel wrote:
Have your painting setup always ready, so that you can sit and paint without delay. I think what often stops people is the thought of preparing everything first, so they wait for a special occassion to do some painting.

This is real nice when you have the space for it.

I hear this often, but really, how much space do you need? You may have everything set up on a painting tray and put on top of your wardrobe for example. Just take it down, set it on the table and you're ready to go. Space needed: top of your wardrobe. Time to set up: seconds.

There have been times in my life where I didn’t even have a top of the wardrobe space. Not many, but enough where I get the idea how it impacts people. These days I have the space, but also a cat. Luckily I have a dedicated hobby room and can close the door. But if you have a cat, and try to put stuff on top of the wardrobe, they will gladly get it down for you. Probably at 2 in the morning.

These days you can get some nice on-the-go project boxes which help make painting on the move easier. Also good for if the FLGS has a paint night. For some people painting together is another good motivator. I used to do that when I lacked space. Kept all my supplies in card boxes. Not optimal, but it worked. Pro-Tip: some paints freeze better then others, but to be safe don’t leave any in your car when it gets too cold out.

Well of course you may always go with stories like "When I was living in an igloo I didn't have a wardrobe..." or "During my time on the ISS I didn't know where the top is..." etc. I still think for the vast majority of people here an available drawer or a top of a piece of furniture isn't an issue.

Whether you’ve space for a permanent or semi-permanent setup, the takeaway here is your painting sessions needn’t be especially involved.

If you plan ahead? You might only need a couple of paint pots, suitable brushes, palette and a water pot. So whilst getting your toys out does eat into hobby time, it can still be quick enough for a 15 or 20 minute session.

I’m about to turn my brushes back to my 28mm Heresy tanks. Being Dark Angels my undercoat does….well most of it, let’s be honest. But from there, even if I only do one track an evening, and some spot metallics here and there? It’s all progress toward that model and the overall project being completed.

I’ve genuinely found embracing “little and fairly often” has increased my hobby stamina. I’ll do a bit on lunch, setting me up for pre-dinner session after work. And if I’ve nothing else on that evening? A bit more after dinner, if I feel up to it. And some days? I’ll go absolutely ham and just crack a model out in a day.

Fiddlier bits I might leave until I can do a batch, so it doesn’t feel like I’m wasting paint when I only need a teensy amount.

The takeaway here is "remove as many steps as possible between you and painting."

If you have a mobile setup/container, get it closer to your actual painting area. If you have all your stuff in multiple boxes, try getting it into one. If it's already in a single container, try finding something that requires less setup/unpacking. Get a sealable water pot so it's already on the table, no trip to the kitchen or bathroom necessary. Have some paper towels at hand. Put your brushes standing nearby rather than tucked away in a case with caps or a drawer. Premake the papers/towels for a DIY wet palette.

These are all only examples and may or may not be applicable to individual hobby situations, but the basic idea is always the same. The fewer steps required to actually get painting, the better. It's mise-en-place but for hobby instead of cooking.