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Blizzards, Flags and Snow

Yes we are still in the grip of winter here on Shetland, now some may think it is normal and although in other parts of the world on the same latitude we would be ice bound and having to fight off Polar Bears, we are lucky that the Gulf Stream passes close by and keeps us relatively warm. However every so often we get a decided chilly snap, and we certainly have one now. This morning at 07.30 we were down to -10 C and at 09.00 a mere -5C. The last time it was this cold was 10 years ago when my son was born. It was so bad then that the health visitor couldn’t get to see my wife for two weeks… on the up side it is nice in the snow…

Not a bad morning to walk up the track to get to the car…
Looking across the frozen loch…this is tidal. Not a bad view from the local shop though…

Tonight when we went to do the horse, a blizzard set in, luckily the yard’s owner brought him in so we could head back home…

It’s windy and snowy… I hope I don’t need to go out tomorrow!

So after I got back in I did a bit more in the flag… still a long way to go, but on the way…

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Working on the Flag

Tonight we played games with the kids until quite late so I never really got anything done. I did manage to get another layer of the grey-blue on the flag as well as tidy up the white bits, the red centre will have a gold skull in the centre with the usual battle honours (wish me luck on that one!) it will have gold and silver on it too as befits a regimental standard.

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A Bit More Work

So I got on for a bit more this evening, whilst watching Evolution with the kids. Not a huge amount but still slowly pushing onwards to get these finished.

The flag is now a slate blue colour, not sure what the centre will be yet.

Really just some tidying up, the skin tone, and some of the unit insignia to do and then sort out a fur colour for the hats. Should hopefully be finished by Friday.

It is a bit like trying to think through fog today, but I have sort of broken my rule on not buying any miniatures, but these are some 1/35 native Americans to do as a diorama. I fancied something a bit different (as if I haven’t got enough to keep me going). This is what I went for in the end….

There were some really nice options. I quite fancied a horsey one but thought I wasn’t quite ready to make reins out of plasticard, so instead I choose something with loads of War paint. It should be here by next Wednesday. Now to be honest if there had been a Samurai one I would have gone for that 😂

Hopefully I will have a better day tomorrow, and be less in a harrumph. This lockdown is getting to me more than the first one… on the upside the sky is still light at 17.30, not daylight, but the year is certainly turning.

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Did I Actually Achieve Anything?

I spent this evening watching the Firth Element with the family and painting Valhallan’s and an Ork… the problem is I cannot really tell where I have been.

Actually I can tell where I have been with this guy…

As for the Valhallan’s, mainly rolled blankets and the like on them…

Today my son’s mate came around to ‘play’ in the snow. My boy decided he wanted a barbecue, so winter barbecues are now a thing in our household 😂.

It was really pleasant when the sun was out.

I forgot to say last night that the car started being an arse. It is still a bit lumpy today, looks like the injector is blocked again. Hopefully it won’t take long as the other one really isn’t designed for snow.

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New Reading Material

I never got anything painted this evening as I was busy reading my new books. I have been waiting for the first one for an exceptionally long time. I. missed it first time around and never saw it again on anywhere, but the other day two popped up on EBay so I blagged them both. One for me and one for my mate. £15 well spent…

Duel allows you to play a character from one of the Elvish forces in Valon. Duels are for personal and regimental honour. I haven’t really looked at it properly, but I did enjoy reading the background fluff.

The second book was my kickstarter from long ago, it got sent on 18th December but sadly all of the ones sent that day disappeared. Luckily I was able to obtain a replacement and it came today too…

I do like making terrain and have some ideas for a new diorama. I will show you the end results when it appears.

I have found another series that I like… Snow Piercer… basically post apocalyptic daftness, set aboard a perpetual motion train that is 1000 cars long. I have pretty much binge watched the whole of the first series and am onto the second. This came about by me choosing something new or different to watch on Netflix.

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An Ork, a Dwarf and Some Valhallan’s

Walk into a bar… well okay probably not. Tonight I got some more work done on the above.

Not really much to see, I did the webbing leather brown and added the green to the headwear and water bottles. Still a long way to go, but it is definitely more progress than of late.

I am probably closer to finishing the three Alternative Armies ones than any of the Valhallan’s.

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Valhallan’s Off we go Again

Tonight I booted myself up the backside and sat down and did some painting. I managed to get them moved forwards a bit. Still a long way to go, but definitely heading in the right direction.

I will need a second coat on the green of the hats and equipment.

Snow is still lying, which is a bit unusual, the last time it was like this was ten years ago. We still have another week of it at least.

More snow heading out west…
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Not Much Achieved

Tonight the Northern Lights were meant to be visible so I was outside getting hypothermia trying to spot them. There were more snow showers about which blocked the view North. The stars were quite multicoloured so I reckon there was something happening… lots of photos on Facebook. Living in the bottom of a valley can be a disadvantage…

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Winter Camo… a Success

Well as it is still a bit snowy outside I decided to take the walker out for a bit of photo shoot in it’s unfinished state… evidently it is quite effective 😉

Funny but true, I actually lost sight of it in the IPad camera app and actually thought I had missed it.

Luckily the missile is going to be military green with a black warhead. So won’t stick out like a sore thumb.

Tonight I worked on it a bit more and got it to the nearly finished stage.

The lighting was a bit harsh, so the white has caused a weirdness that isn’t really there in reality. I will get it photographed in natural light tomorrow. I also painted the boots of the Troopers this evening too…

When I base this up I might add clumps of snow, but will check with my mate first to see what he wants.