So you want to sculpt your own miniatures for wargaming, dioramas, or collecting

But you don't know what kinds of materials you need or even where to start. In this brief tutorial I tell you exactly what you need to get and do to start in this terrific little hobby.

This article assumes you are wanting to sculpt your own minatures somewhere in the 15mm to 30 mm scale. This pretty much covers most of the wargaming and terrain stuff out there and this is probably what you are looking to make.

Ok, so how do you start? What materials do you get?

It's real simple, if you want to make miniature figures, characters, animals, beasts and all type of what not, and you want it to have really good detail then you should get one of these two different products. The choice is yours but I prefer the procreate. It has a longer working time and you get more in a package.

ProCreate

Miniature Accessories: ProCreate (Professional Sculptors Putty) This is an outstanding 2 part epoxy that is perfect for exceptionally fine detail of small miniatures. If you are making minis in the 25mm range this is the product for you. Has about a 2 hour working time before auto hardening. This workable time can be adjusted a bit. It has good consistency and doesn't stick to your tools much. This is my favorite. I have an extensive tutorial where I use this putty. If you want to learn more about this putty I have a page with tips, hints, pictures and more

Games Workshop Green Stuff

Games Workshop Green Stuff Modelling Putty This is an effective two part epoxy that you mix together and then sculpt. It doesn't have to be baked, it will harden over a period of time. It is about the same as ProCreate but in my opinion in not quite as good. It tends to be a bit stickier and not quite as good to work with. But this is a great way to inexpensively get started making your own miniatures for dioramas or wargaming. Comes in a 20 gram package.

Super Sculpey FIRM Gray- One Pound - Inexpensive and easy to work with. You can get a lot of practice with this and make some nice miniatures. But it isn't fine enough for real small minis in the 25-28 mm range. And to cure this you bake it in an oven. Nice product. A pound goes a long way. Stays soft forever so need to worry about shelf life.

So how do these Miniature Making Clays Work?

Well, they aren't really clay at all but a two part epoxy. One part is resin and the other part is hardener and they stay fresh for a long period of time until you mix them together. What you do is break off equal amounts of each and knead them together until they form a uniform color. And you are ready to begin sculpting. It's really as simple as that. One of these two products will get you on your way when it comes to sculpting miniatures.

But this is only the beginning - To learn how to sculpt your own miniatures takes time, practice and some skills. To do a nice job anyway! And you need to know things like making a wire armature which is a wire frame that goes underneath your sculpture. I have all of this laid out in a series of tutorials that take you through all the steps from absolute beginning where I show you how to make armatures to the very end where we paint and seal our miniature.

How to sculpt fantasy Miniatures

Looking for an easy tutorial to get you started?

How to Sculpt a miniature treasure chest. A treasure chest is a great first project to learn how to sculpt because it is very easy. You can get a good feel for the modelling putty. In this tutorial I sculpt three different chests and show you some techniques. I also use these chests as part of a Casting Miniatures tutorial. How to Sculpt a Miniature Treasure Chest

New Quick Tutorial: How to sculpt a miniature dwarf. A dwarf is a great first project because their body is easy to make. Their thick limbs and short size make them easy for beginner sculptors. See some pics and get some tips here: Sculpting a Miniature Dwarf

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Table of Contents for this tutorial

1. Miniature Home
2. Miniature Painting intro & overview
3. Painting Miniatures Tutorial start
4. The Paints
5. Preparing the Miniature for painting
6. Priming the Miniature
7. What to paint first
8. More Painting and the details
9. Close-up of the completed Warhorse
10. Adding texture to the base for realism
11. Tips and hints for painting miniatures
12. Diorama and Miniature supply Store
13. New Painting Miniature Tutorial: A Spartan Warrior
14. VIDEO TUTORIAL: How to paint miniatures
15. Miniature Paints and kits at Amazon
16. Ral Partha Miniatures
17. Links and info about manufacturers of miniatures
18. Understanding Miniature Scale
19. How to Make Foam Terrain for wargaming or dioramas
20. How to Cast Miniatures
21. Model Railroad and Trains

Sculpting Fantasy Miniatures

NEW: How to sculpt fantasy miniatures

1. Part 1 - intro
2. Part 2 - Drawings
3. Part 3 - Making Wire Armatures
4. Part 4 - Your first miniature 6"
5. Part 5 - Make a 3" miniature
6. Part 6 - the musculature of the 3" miniature Viking Warrior
7. Part 7 - Our first Armor - we sculpt the viking helmet
8. Part 8 - Sculpting leather and chainmail
9. Part 9: Adding Belt, bracers and boots
10. Part 10:Painting the miniature
11. Part 11: 25mm Female Warrior
12. Part 12 : The basic shape of the mini
13. Part 13: Completing the body
14. Part 14: Adding the swords and doing detail
15. Part 15: Painting and finishing the miniature
16. Sculpting Fantasy Miniatures Video Tutorials
17. Sculpting miniatures store- all the supplies you need.
18. Sculpting tips
19. Sculpt a Dwarf
20. Sculpt a Treasure Chest
21. Sculpt a miniature Raver and Gegenhound

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