Rain stops play ! and just as well .........

 

So we had planned to do some gardening - but it's raining hard and blowing a gale = so I've lit the fire and unpacked a special parcel that arrived this morning !

A parcel from Irregular Miniatures ! . The combination of the ease of painting , an O.S. look , cheapness (unit deals) and the superb mail order from Ian Kay sealed the deal . The building blocks,  French and Prussian Infantrymen .

Thank the Lord it's raining ! got these cleaned up and glued onto pennies . I'm going for 1860/70s Europe with a hint of Featherstone - minor Germanic states and Austro-Hungary to taste . Units of 20 figures with 2 Officers , so here we have my first two units ready for painting .

A couple of Brigadiers for my Franco-Prussian (?) forces . The only sad thing is I've run out of undercoat spray , so will have to undercoat them by hand I think. Thinking probably about 6 units per side plus Artillery and Cavalry. I wonder if it will keep raining this weekend ?............

The Donald Featherstone Tribute Project.

 

Over the last few years I have been quietly selling off my less used collections , mainly for the money which has been reinvested in my gaming hobby (usually Wofun 2D ) . One of the main prompts for selling a collection was the rules used for it and their playability/ complexity , I have come back to the simpler Old School types .

The copy of the above rules where kindly gifted to me by Ross of Battle Game of the Month a couple of years ago . My thoughts have turned to a new project to use them , the figures would have to be simple O.S type , cheapish , probably 25mm and easy to paint in an high gloss Old School manner.

I did something similar about ten years ago using Spencer Smith FPW , sadly I sold them on (for a good price) and perhaps I have always regretted it - but I needed the money at the time  (for a new computer I think ?) , so what I'm going to try and reproduce is something similar . Using Featherstone's Horse & Musket rules , 25/28mm figures , singularly based (busy collecting pennies) Old Schoolish paint job with a Toy Soldier high gloss finish . I will be investigating possibilities and reporting back .....

PS the above Spencer Smith range are no longer available in the UK and have to be bought from the USA which I expect  will be VERY expensive !

A Birthday present to myself.

 

I have been painting some figures for a friend and with the money earned I decided to put a bid on these chaps on eBay as a potential birthday present to myself.(my other birthday presents being of a more essential nature -socks and a new fleece top)

Nobody else seemed interested in them and much to my surprise I won them (I decided I wasn't getting into a bidding war)for £36 including p&p which I thought reasonable

They are 54mm by Steadfast Soldiers - a firm I haven't heard of before and beautifully painted in enamels . An unusual subject and as I haven't deployed a Machine Gun on the tabletop before, potentially a shock  for 'Blue Army' when they confront it ! 

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Another jaunt out in the sunshine.

 

It must be over 50 years since I last visited Heysham and thought it high time for another visitation ! . We will ignore the nuclear power station and concentrate on the old part of the village and it's headland . A view through the door of St. Patrick's chapel built in the 8th century  with Morecambe Bay beyond . Tradition has it that the saint landed here from Ireland .

Excavations have shown that there were burial within the chapel and the surrounding areas all dating from the 10th century 

There are these six stone cut coffins with slots for crosses , they were probably used as ossuaries to hold the bones rather than bodies .

Another view of them with an impressive vista of the bay .

A not to successful panorama shot (clicking on it may improve it)

Just down the hill behind the chapel is the stump of a  headless cross .

Just down the hill is the 'modern' St. Peter's church which was consecrated in 967 AD , there is evidence of an earlier wooden structure nearer the bay .

Heysham is mentioned in the Domesday Book but the first written record dates from 1658, the remains of a dated cross - 1696 ..

In the church is a Viking hogback tombstone .

Another view with Mrs K for scale, the carvings on it represent the stories of Sigurd the dragon slayer and Sigmund , but with some Christian symbols -  scholars think it is part of transition from paganism to Christianity .and it is one of the most impressive found in the North of England.

A 13th century sepulchral slab with floriated cross and sword (not sure if the sword means the occupant had been on crusade ?) We rounded off the trip with cakes and teas at the cafe run by church volunteers - another 'Grand Day Out' 

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YeeHa ! (now with added lasso)

 

Several weeks ago (.: Reclaiming 'Buffalo Bill' .) I cleaned off this Buffalo Bill figure and have got him painted up,varnished and provided with a lasso made from some parcel string . He needs a bob of 'bluetack' on the saddle to keep him mounted and I've added a base to the horse to help with stability .He is the last of my 'to do' painting projects for the moment and as the Summer seems to have returned it's back to gardening again.

Getting the builders round.

 

I've had these 28mm buildings since Christmas and thought it was time to get them built. The Chapel on the left will be used with my Medieval 'Lion Rampant' collections and the log cabin on the right will do in an  American  setting , seeing the sun is shining I will get them sprayed with undercoat before continuing with the garden transformation. 

'Brae Heghland lads'

 

As the Summer returns I've got theses Schneider home-cast Highlanders based and painted (I've just noticed I have forgotten to base one of them - Upps !) . They are rather strange figures more "Brigadoon" than historical uniforms but with a certain style about them . Sadly only 4 of them so I will have to keep my eyes open for a few more.