Modeller in crisis!

[slupanter]

Hi all has anyone ever had trouble getting into your modeling?

I've found I'm not wanting to sit down and paint and lost instest in my current projects.

[Ian M]

It happens. Some times I just get going and after a few minets I'm totally lost in time and space. Other times it just a case of put things down and do some thing else.

The biggest mistake is to force yourself to do some thing when your heart is just not in it. At the best you will end up with a total dog. At worste you will discover that plastic planes dont fly, and plastic tanks dont fly. Nor do plastic cars. Nor boats.

Hope you find your modeling mo-jo soon.

[Guest]

Happens to us all Alexander, for me it tends to be worse like now when I have so much to do, I find myself doing nothing.

It is no bad thing to have a break. It is a bit like insomnia, the more you worry about not sleeping, the less sleep you get. Just relax and accept that you may not be so keen at the moment and let it come back naturally, if you force it, it just gets worse.

One thing that many people do is to have a fun build just for the sake of it. Nothing special, a cheap and cheerful little kit that you may not have considered before and just build it. Don't worry about if the colours are right, in fact make them not right. A pink Mustang anyone? just do it for fun not quality. Sometimes it works but it isn't for everybody.

Don't just drop out though, keep looking in on here and checking out the magazines, you will soon get your mojo back as they say.

[Guest]

Yes , I`m having a nightmare getting into modelling at the moment , just sold my house and its getting right in the way LOL , on a serious note - remember this is just a hobby not a job if I was you put everything away and come back when your ready

Richy

[wonwinglo]

Alexander just as writers get writers block,and artists stare at blank canvases sometimes model builders go through times when they cannot settle into anything,my advice to you is just have a quiet break away from modelling for a while and come back refreshed again one day,we certainly do not want to loose you but this is an hobby after all and is supposed to be relaxing,so do not beat yourself up but think about our advice to you,best of luck,Wonwinglo.

[slupanter]

Thank you all so much. In away its nice to hear that other people suffer with painter pain. I've just started a job and having relationship trouble so I hoped modeling my be some solace but I still love reading the mags and will still post on here and read all your posts. I think/hope it will be a small break as I do love the hobby so much. I think your have all go it right in saying this is a hobby and passion. Just sods law I get painters pain in the mits of the group build. Thank you all I feel mucgh better.

[Guest]

As others say, its a hobby.

Over and above all it should be fun, unless you have a paying customer waiting for your current project, leave it, walk away and at some entirely random point you'll get the urge to go back to it.

[AlanG]

Been there many times Alexander. Had it with my JU87 GB kit. Best thing to do is to go away and do something else for a while then when you feel ready (normally happens when i'm at work and can;t do anything about it) then come back to the kit and carry on.

I find i really get it with long builds when i'm having to wait for paint or glue to dry.

I also find that i get the bug back by trawling the internet looking at other peoples builds on the kit that i'm trying to build. Then i'll suddenly go, could i try that?

[stona]

It happens to us all. You just have to take a break and come back fresh when you are ready. I've just had a break of a couple of months forced on me by work and other commitments. I've come back with a 1/72 Fairey Battle,inspired by other efforts in the GB that's not a GB,and have thoroughly enjoyed myself so far. It's not the best kit in the world but it's all been good fun.

Keep in touch with your mags and the forum and eventually you'll see something that tickles your fancy.

Cheers

Steve

[tr1ckey66]

Yep, I think everyone's been through it. Nothing I can add really that hasn't already been said. Maybe the present project is a bit too much or overwhelming perhaps? Maybe if you took a break and started something fun (a bit like the BOB non GB) you could get back your modelling mojo. Either way a short break couldn't hurt and then you could return with fresh enthusiasm.

All the best

Paul

[Guest]

I concur. Take a break. I took a break due to other commitments in the middle of the first group build. I just lost my inspiration. The Huey was put on hold too but then 8 months later I picked up a book about Apache pilots in Afghanistan and I got the bug again. Before I knew it the Huey was back out of the box and the dining room table was a mess! I look on modelling as zen meditation, as I am concentrating so hard on a fiddly piece of plastic I can't think about anything else!

I'd suggest reading a book involving your current build, it works for me. It might inspire you to have another stab, and remember, no one dies if it comes out wrong!

Tony B

[yak face]

Hi alexander, i think everyones been here at one time or another.the thing i did was to do something totally out of the ordinary, in my case a 'what if?' so i could just have fun and not worry about it being the right colour etc, also it helps if its a quick, cheap build too . As the others have said , if the current project has stalled, put it to one side rather than plough on , you can always come back to it later with a renewed interest. Keep the faith mate ,youll be back into it soon , cheers tony

[Guest]

I know what its like as Im my mum fulltime carer and my modelling had taken a backburner then its just come back and Im enjoying it so hang in there and it will come back.

[Guest]

Just accidently found something that may help.

A few weeks ago I bought a pot of acrylic paint.Ive been meaning to pour it into a glass airbrush jar ad dilute it with water, but not been bothered to do it. The coour was purchased so that I can paint the fuselage of a Seasprite.

Anyway, today I finally got round to doing it, mainly because I need the pot for a colour I have to mix. Anyway, thats going a bit off track.

Obviously I got as much into the jar as I could but there will always be a little in the original pot that you will never get out, no matter how hard you try so, being brought up in Norwich where we are as tight as a ducks backside I watered what was left down a bit more. The mix I would estimate would be about 1 part paint 10 parts water, we are talking really really watered down. I then painted a part that I have filled, not to test the colour but to test the smoothness. I then painted the fuselage. OK, its hard work and doesnt look finished, but its surprising how much alive the fuselage now looks.

OK, its not the most productive thing to do as the coat is next to useless, and acted more of a wash than a coat of paint, but it really really has started to come alive and now Im wanting to crack on and do more. Certainly given my mojo a bit of a top up.

[wonwinglo]

Penny what you did is known in the art world as 'The happy accident' the Chinese believe that by doing things even if they do not turn out exactly as we planned is all part and parcel of our learning curve,you have now witnessed the effects of ultra thin washes of paint ! just think what it would look like if you added successive layers which is how they used to paint cars by hand,a thin base coat was followed with successive layers of colour building up into a superb glaze of colour.

What usually happens in the case of acrylic paint is that the pigment breaks down to such an extent as it becomes unreliable needing more binder such as polyvinyl acetate,however if you dilute oil based paint you can go on and on until it becomes a fine glaze or wash of colour,keep on experimenting !

Wonwinglo