Prep
Clip, scrape mold lines, wash oil, or clean print supports before any paint touches plastic or resin.
Miniature Hobby Notes
Finish the first miniature before you buy the rest of the kit.
A short painting order and a buy-later list so the first mini actually gets done.
Painting a first miniature without waste is mostly a short order of operations: prep, primer, base, shade, then varnish, plus three upgrades that can wait until mini two. Miniature Hobby Notes keeps the guidance practical and gear-light so the first figure gets finished rather than the cart getting filled.
Your 5-step first-mini path
Tap a step to highlight the matching card. Keep the path short; park the extras on the buy-later list.
Primer
One thin prime in grey, black, or white. Follow the actual product's recoat instructions before the next coat; whether a full cure is needed before topcoating, handling or assembly depends on the product and the conditions, so check its label rather than assuming one rule.
Base
Block the big cloth, armor, and skin areas. Two thin coats is a useful beginner starting point, not a guarantee for every paint—follow the label's coverage guidance.
Shade
Wash or dark tone the recesses, then a few raised edges. Stop when the silhouette pops across the table.
Varnish
Seal after you accept the paint job. Matte or satin is enough for most tabletop handling.
Three things not to buy yet
- Airbrush kitBrush thinning first
- Extra primer colorsOne can is enough
- Specialty stacksTechnical pots can wait
Turn the path into a printable checklist
The Miniature Painting Checklist Generator runs in this browser tab. Tick the stages you plan to paint — cleaning and assembly, priming, base coats, washes, layering, highlights, varnish and basing — then set the batch size, paint range and tabletop or display standard. It returns an ordered, numbered checklist with the key parameters for each step, ready to print, copy or download as a text file. The plan stays on your device.
Five next jobs, by session
Pick the job that matches the session in front of you. Each card opens an existing guide on that job, not a shopping list.
01
Painting order
Base, recess, layer, then edge highlight. A desk sequence you can finish in short sessions.
Layering guide →02Airbrush
Brush control, thinning and trigger discipline before a batch or a booth.
Airbrush guide →03Primer and varnish
Prime early, varnish late. Zenithal is a next-rep technique after a clean single-color prime.
Primer guide →04Print cleanup
Resin: follow the exact resin and printer instructions for the wash liquid, wash, post-cure and when to remove supports — water-washable and solvent-washed products differ, and used wash liquid is not drain-safe. FDM: remove supports and sand; no resin wash or cure.
Print guide →05Starter kits
Small core acrylics and two brushes beat a mega-kit. Open a guide only when you know the gap.
Paint set guide →Plan a terrain print and finish
Three routes through one terrain project, in the order the decisions come up. Start at whichever one matches where you are stuck.
1 · Choose the printer, then check the fit
Terrain runs into the build volume before anything else does.
2 · Size the piece, then price the plate
Match the footprint to the models that stand next to it, then work out what the plate costs.
3 · Finish it so the paint stays
Terrain is handled more than any single miniature, so work out why paint is coming off before you touch the model.
How this page is put together
1
Numbered technique
Steps you can run after dinner—prep through varnish—without inventing a new workflow every session.
2
Not a ranked mega-kit
Technique comes first: a short order of operations so you buy only when a named gap shows up, not because a bundle looked complete.
3
Full print-to-table path
The page covers cleanup and prime through paint, base and table for Warhammer and D&D on a kitchen table, not a dedicated room.
First-mini FAQ
Do I need an airbrush for the first miniature?
No. Learn brush thinning and clean prep first. An airbrush is a buy-later multiplier for primers and batches once mini one is finished.
When should varnish go on?
After you accept the paint job and base. It protects handling; it will not fix thick paint or skipped cleanup.
What creates the most waste on mini one?
Opening too many products before one figure is done. A five-step path and a short hold list beat a pile of half-used specialty pots.
Where do print cleanup and primer fit?
Cleanup sits at the front, but it is material-specific: resin prints need their own wash and cure procedure, while FDM prints need support removal and sanding. Primer follows either route, applied per its label; after that, base, shade, and varnish keep the same order whether the model is kit plastic or a 3D print.
Where should I go after this page?
Open the technique guide for the next skill, or a gear reference only when a specific gap shows up. Finish mini one, take one note, then start mini two.
Ready for the next rep?
You have the path: prep, primer, base, shade, varnish—and three upgrades still on hold. The next win is a second finished miniature, not a second shopping cart.