When A Straight Line Is Needed

"The Coal Barron"
1:9 Scale Limited Edition Artist Resin
Photoshoot taken in the strip mines of NEPA.

The painting production on this beautifully sculpted resin was going very well, until I hit some of the more tricky details.

After painting the primitive leg markings on this gelding, I was uncertain how I would handle the dorsal stripe. Dorsal stripes are normally seen on grulla colored horses and leaving it out was not an option.

I wanted the stripe to be pronounced, crisp, and straight. Using an airbrush for this detail in the past left me with a bit of a sprayed mess to clean up and touch up. I couldn't keep my hand from shaking and in turn, the line was wobbly. Also, the end result was not crisp enough for me, so I decided to use a simple mask to create the stripe this time around.

I was concerned when coming up with a mask for the task. Tape seemed too sticky and could pull up my base painting. Glues or a wet mask was out of the question. In the end, I chose to try some PostIt Notes. I'm happy to say that this idea worked and worked very well. I documented the idea.


After many layers of base coat
Tricky details like leg markings and a dorsal
stripe need to be added.


The PostIt notes worked beautifully!

I decided that tape would probably stick too firmly onto the horse and ruin the base coat so I tried some PostIt Notes and they worked out perfectly! They stuck to the body and did not lift when the airbrush was sprayed. They offered a crisp clean line and best of all, they came off easily without ruining my work.


The careful removal of the notes.


A successful reveal!