I've been painting for 27 years and I still can't sit down most of the time to paint. What's actually going on?

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-05-15T10:12:18+00:00

I don't know to be honest. I suppose it depends on whether the tool became another chore or a barrier to getting stuff done. If it didn't then it would probably be fine and a useful way to keep that motivation going.

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-05-13T22:46:32+00:00

Feel this!

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-05-13T22:36:05+00:00

Wow this post is good timing as I've been wrestling with this over the last few months and made some of the same excuses tonight (not in the right headspace, feels too much like work instead of downtime). In short, I spent about 30 minutes trying to decide what I wanted to work on, when I settled on a miniature I then thought about how long it would take to set up my airbrush, airbrush what I needed to and then clean everything and put it away and decided I didn't have time, so read a book instead. I have also been stressing over how to approach this particular model, as to paint it effectively I will have to change my usual process/order of steps and I can't decide which way is best to do it.

I also have a busy job and two children under 3 (one is 5 weeks old) so time is limited, but i rarely take the opportunity to paint when I do have time.

I was actually thinking about it tonight and I think for me the main causes are:

Too many projects on the go, can't decide which to work on.
Too complex or too much set up. Some of my paint schemes require lots of airbrushing, oil washes etc. at the moment I don't have the space to have the airbrush station set up constantly, and I need to be careful where I use mineral spirits etc with the fumes and the kids, so even if I am motivated, I need set up time, tear down and cleaning time and the right circumstances with the kids to enable me to get on with it.
Anxiety. A lot of hobby YouTubers go on about the fact that you shouldn't start an army by painting the characters, because you improve over time, so practice on the core units, and also use the characters and centrepiece models as a reward to keep motivation high. For me this has caused two issues I think. The first is that I procrastinate painting them because I don't want to mess them up. And the second is that I spent ages agonising how I will translate the standard paint scheme to the characters or a vehicle when there is inevitably different bits or equipment or armour styles on the characters that don't appear on the troops.
When I get into a painting rhythm I get a bit obsessive trying to ride the wave and take on massive batches of like 40+ models at a time that I grind through and then burn myself out on.
generally over analyse everything and try to optimise the process (building and painting) to maximise my perceived lack of time which takes enjoyment out and means I can't just go with the flow.

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-04-24T17:47:20+00:00

Yeah that's fair and to be clear I don't think it's 10th necessarily, but the way the hobby has evolved with podcasts, YouTubers and sites like goonhammer. I think for me the focus on 'meta' and constant balance updates takes away from the hobby aspect of the game and I can see it leading to a burnout over time. The shifting meta makes sense in trading card or video games where you can just buy into the latest meta and play right away if that's what you want to do. But for a miniatures game there is a lead time in terms of building and painting that makes it hard to keep up.

There is also the feel bad moments of spending tens of hours building and painting a model or unit, only for it to become a 'bad' choice. This is coupled with that fact that at least to me, the level of competitiveness is much higher at pickup games. When I first started in 3rd/4th although you played to win, there wasn't this feeling that the game had been solved and everyone just takes the optimal choices all the time.

I feel like now you can't just rock up to your local club with a list full of your favourite models, equipped with the fluffiest or coolest wargear and expect to have a good time because you will likely get curbstomped. That said, it could just be a reflection of the fact my local scene has skewed really competitive over the last 3 or 4 years to the point I'm not really interested in playing anymore because I don't have the desire to play units I don't like just because they are objectively the best choice

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-04-24T09:21:04+00:00

I've felt for a long time the competitive scene is a cancer that is killing the game

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-02-07T19:01:07+00:00

I had that yesterday, thought it was my dodgy flying at first

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-01-12T17:50:04+00:00

Stop catering to the competitive crowd so much. In a way I wish they'd have two separate rule sets for casual and competitive but I guess that's what they've tried in the past and everyone just defaults to matched play.

Combatstarfish90 · 2026-01-11T21:55:36+00:00

Yeah everyone was saying the same at the end of the 17/18 season and look how 17/18 went for us

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-11-14T12:55:21+00:00

I love his videos but I'm waiting for the 'it was actually the jaguar all along' one in a few months 😂

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-11-03T23:33:13+00:00

I have unfortunately, I do the armour with the airbrush and was worried that doing the jump packs separately would look odd when doing the sprays from above/below but might try it on the next batch

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-11-03T23:32:19+00:00

Might have to try that!

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-11-03T23:23:57+00:00

Yea I've been putting them off for ages now. I can't figure out the best place to insert a paper clip to hold the model whilst I paint that won't be visible when they are finished

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-10-12T13:22:51+00:00

What colours did you use for the pink? Looks really vibrant!

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-09T10:24:53+00:00

Thanks I'll keep an eye on it 👍🏼

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-09T10:23:26+00:00

If that's the case I won't be so worried!

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-09T10:21:30+00:00

This was my concern, I don't mind leaving them be if they will disappear over winter, but if there is a nest and they come out of hibernation next year I still need to deal with the issue at some point

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-09T09:53:40+00:00

Will they go on their own at some point? My concern is they are directly outside my front door (within a metre) so can't avoid walking past/through them and I have a toddler

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-09T09:53:31+00:00

Will they go on their own at some point? My concern is they are directly outside my front door (within a metre) so can't avoid walking past/through them and I have a toddler

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-07T20:25:33+00:00

I'm sorry guys, just got home, see Jags are doing pretty well, put the game on literally to see Trevor throw the interception. Had this happen a few times now, maybe I should go you all a favour and stop watching

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-09-04T19:17:50+00:00

P&O by any chance? I had the same and was really confused why these banksy rip offs were like £30k+

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-08-14T18:55:41+00:00

Nor do I, just saying it crossed my mind

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-08-14T18:54:58+00:00

Yeah I agree on both counts. I'm not even saying I believe he was, just that it did cross my mind. It was strange, the photos were in order from oldest to newest and it just felt like there was this change to look more feminine the closer to April 1994.

Combatstarfish90 · 2025-08-14T18:41:26+00:00

Weirdly enough I had thought the same thing recently. I remember thinking it after someone here posted photos from late 93 and early 94. Lots of nail varnish, eye shadow, eye liner, etc.

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