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How Many Miniatures Did You Paint in 2021?

This is the first year that I have participated in Hobby Streak, which is where you hobby at least 30 minutes every day and then post a picture of your progress on Instagram or Twitter. I’m currently at Hobby Streak Day 323. You can ready my in-depth explanation of Hobby Streak here, and look at some of the recent weeks here, here, and here.

But what I found really useful because of Hobby Streak is that I’m able to go back through Instagram and count how many models I painted this year. And, well, when I did this last night the number was… big. A lot bigger than I expected.

What’s Your Miniature Painting Process?

I have a very set process for hobbying and maintaining this blog, which allows me to get a lot done and still have a fulltime job and family life. And the answer to that is: I get up really early in the morning. Like, really early in the morning.

I get up every morning at 4:30am, go to the gym for half an hour, then get home with 2.5 hours to paint and write before starting my day job at 8:00am. I know not everyone likes this process, because for some people getting up that early is just awful. And there’s absolutely nothing special about getting up early. There’s a myth that there’s some kind of moral superiority of getting up early as opposed to staying up late and there really isn’t. Waking up early and painting for 2.5 hours every morning isn’t intrinsically better than staying up late and painting for 2.5 hours. The point is to do what’s best for you.

But the point is this: I get 2.5 hours of hobby and blogging in every single day. Every weekday, every weekend (I usually do more on the weekends), every holiday. If there’s any argument to be made for doing all of this at 4:30 in the morning it is this: it doesn’t interfere with other plans. Very rarely will you be out with friends at 4:30am and unable to get your time in.

In fact, to maintain the Hobby Streak, this summer I was in a rollover accident on the interstate and after being released from the hospital (I had a concussion) I came home and base coated a sprue of miniatures. Not really a full 30 minutes, but I didn’t want to break my streak.

What’s the Secret to Painting Miniatures So Fast?

You’re going to look at the list of miniatures that I painted in 2021 below and you’re going to think that it’s a ridiculous amount. And the truth is that yes, it is, and no, it isn’t.

I’ll spoil it right now: I painted 648 miniatures. 648. That’s a frigging ton.

But, if you think about it, that’s less than 2 miniatures a day, and if I’m painting for 2.5 hours a day, 2 miniatures in 2 hours isn’t that hard.

Here’s the deal. I have no illusions of being a Golden Daemon painter. I struggle to paint well a lot of the time. I have medical reasons for being a bad painter (tremors, numbness in my hand) but I also just am not trying to paint up to the standards of some of the great painters in the hobby. I think there’s a danger in this hobby that when we follow painters on Instagram, watch painters on YouTube, we think that those people are typical of the average painter. And the reality is that those painters are the people who are making money on commissions or tutorials or classes or YouTube videos. They’re not typical.

That’s not to say that I don’t try my best. I try really hard. And while there are definitely days where I painted 8 Roman Legionaries in a morning in a really rushed style, there are also days where I spent five days straight working on the same model, and I came out with some of my very proudest achievements: my Mumak of Harad, for example, is a model that I spent a long time on, and, to quote Gimli, it “still only counts as one.”

Is Hobby Streak Actually Making You A Better Painter?

I think it is. There’s a principle I learned of recently that if you get 1% better each time you do something, because of the compounding of that 1% by the end of a year you will actually be 37 times better than you were when you started. It sounds bananas, but I did the math and it really works. (You can learn more about that on the Disrupt Yourself Podcast. )

But I’m not always better. I consider my Hail Caesar models to be my freebies. I love painting them because it’s very easy to make them look good–primarily because you don’t see much of the model other than the big shield walls–and the shields are easy to get looking good. Yes, I painted a lot of sloppy Romans early in the year, but I indulged in some sloppy painting of Spartans just a few weeks ago, not holding myself up to the greatest standard.

But I am actually better. When you compare my first Hobby Streak model (this US Marine) against the latest Hobby Streak model (Karazai the Scarred) the difference is night and day. Yes, I very obviously put more time into the dragon than I put into the marine, but I am also a much, much better painter than I was 323 days ago.

Let’s Cut to the Chase. What Models Did You Paint in 2021?

6 US Marines
1 Hogwarts 3D Print
1 Heavy Mortar Team British 8th Army
Normandy 3D Printed Church
Normandy Walls
Normandy Farmhouse
5 Japanese Infantry
2 Continental Army Infantry
5 Man Artillery Team Continental Army
4 Continental Militia
20 Continental Infantry
4 Woodland Indians
6 Redcoats
2 British Dragoons
2 British Dragoons
2 British Dragoons
2 Samurai
4 Samurai
4 Samurai
4 British Dragoons
2 English Knights
3 Tank Traps
2 Kharadron Overlords
4 Kharadron Overlords
Kharadon Overlords Frigate
3 Kharadron Overlords
30 British Commandos
6 English Knights
3 Les Grognards
1 Roman Captain
12 Roman Legionaires
4 Celtic Warriors
8 Roman Legionaires
8 Roman Auxiliaries
6 Roman Auxiliaries
1 Konflikt 47 Mech
5 American Konflikt 47 Power Armor
10 Les Grognards
4 Roman Auxilaries
3 Soviet Werebears Konflikt 47
3 Gellerpox Infected
10 German Stormtroopers Konflikt 47
5 Primaris Incursors
10 Primaris Intercessors
American Mech Konflikt 47
3 Bladeguard Veterans
1 Primaris Chaplain
1 Soviet Powerarmor Konflikt 47
2 Primaris Assault Intercessors
1 Centurion
3 Ork Mega Nobz
1 Squig Rider
7 Plague Marines
2 Shermans Flames of War
8 Infantry Flames of War
8 Infantry Flames of War
5 1/30 Scale American Airborne
1 Mortarion
10 Cursed City Hostiles
8 Cursed City Heroes
4 Cursed City Skeletons
2 Cursed City Zombies
3 Cursed City Rat Swarms
2 Saurus Riders
1 Carnosaur
4 Saurus Warriors
1 Vampire
1 M18 Hellcat
1 Sherman Firefly
1 Japanese Oni
5 German WWI Infantry
1 USS Northhampton
5 German WWI Infantry
1 Doc Ock
1 Red Skull
1 Captain America
1 Black Widow
1 Captain Marvel
Engine of the Gods
1 Sherman Easy Eight
1 M10 Wolverine
Bastilodon
12 US Infantry
1 Stegadon
1 1/30 Scale Sherman
4 Bases of Epic American Civil War Union Infantry
1 Tauntaun
1 Ogor
1 Stonehorn
4 Nighthaunt
1 Lady Olynder
4 Banshees
1 Nighthaunt King
1 Tauntaun
3 Nighthaunt
1 Black Coach
1 Reikenor the Grimhailer
2 Nighthaunt
1 Chaos Cultist
3 Nighthaunt
3 Stormcast Annihilators
1 Yndrasta the Celestial Spear
1 Knight Arcanum
2 Stormcast Eternals
4 Kruleboyz
12 6mm German WWII Tanks
12 6mm German WWII Infantry
4 Kruleboyz
5 Star Wars Legion Rebels
5 Star Wars Legion Rebels
6 Stormtroopers
2 Stormtroopers on Speeder Bikes
2 Chaos Space Marines
1 Venomcrawler
1 Chaos Possessed
Armada Orc Ship
3 Bladeguard Veterans
Primaris Ancient
Primaris Chaplain
3 Primaris Annihilators
6 Primaris Reivers
1 Invictor Warsuit
6 Primaris Intercessors
1 Goliath Rockgrinder
5 Death Korps of Krieg
5 Assault Intercessors
5 Death Korps of Krieg
3 Primaris Aggressors
1 Centurion
1 Achilles Ridgerunner
7 Primaris Incursors
5 Ork Kommandos
2 Ork Terrain Pieces
3 Bullgryns
2 Centurions
1 Bomb Squig
2 Primaris Eliminators
3 Primaris Hellblasters
10 Necron Warriors
7 Sludge Infantry
1 Sludge Cavalry
1 Morghast
1 Ossiarch Bonereaper Cavalry
3 Necrons
3 Ork Kommandos
1 Chaos Obliterator
5 Zephyrim
1 Sisters of Battle Hospitalier
2 Penitent Engines
5 Sisters Reptentia
1 Sister of Battle
1 Castigator
10 Arcoflagellants
5 Delaque Gangers
2 Dwarf Bloodbowl
1 Inquisitor
1 Mumak of Harad
5 Sisters of Battle
1 Canoness
1 Primaris Bladeguard Captain
3 Primaris Bladeguard
1 Judiciar
1 Primaris Ancient
1 Primaris Chaplain
1 Primaris Librarian
5 Assault Intercessors
3 Primaris Aggressors
1 Emperor’s Champion
1 Gothic Cathedral Wall
1 Primaris Captain
3 Serberys Raiders
5 Pteraxi
1 Swampboss on Skumdrek
1 Mirebrute Troggoth
1 Armiger
4 Adeptus Mechanicus Rangers
1 Ad Mech Guy on Treads
5 Primaris Incursors
1 Black Templar Captain
Techpriest
2 Dothraki
1 Dothraki
Targaryen
1 Marshcrawler Sloggoth
3 Deathwatch
1 Dankhold Troggoth
2 Deathwatch
1 Soulblight Gravelords Vampire Centaur
2 Sanguinary Guard
1 Stormcast Eternal Vindictor
1 Primaris Lieutenant
1 Primaris Incursor
4 Spartans
1 Akhelian Allopex
1 Lotann the Soul Warden
4 Spartans
1 Volturnos
3 Akhelian Guard
1 Namarti Reiver
1 Akhelian Leviadon
1 Eidolon of Mathlann
1 Karazai the Scarred

That’s a total of 648 models.

Big Question: How Do You Afford to Paint So Many Models?

This is a very valid question, because this plastic is expensive and so are paints. There are three answers:

1. I have a hobby allowance built into my monthly budget, part of which is paid for by my Patreon, and part of which comes out of my monthly paycheck. I reinvest any money that I make from this website into the website and part of that is investing in the hobby: it’s what buys me copies of Marvel Crisis Protocol and Star Wars Legion and Silver Bayonet and Sludge.
2. I sell them. I am not precious with my models. While I keep the ones that I am most proud of, I have no problem with flipping models on eBay. While some models don’t fetch a big price on eBay, almost any Games Workshop mini will get a decent return, so I get to paint them, see which ones I love, and then sell them for about 60-70% of their original price. It still doesn’t make them free, but it allows me to paint 648 models in a year.
3. I repaint them. Like I said, I’m not precious with my models. And even some of the ones that I’m really happy with I have no problem repainting. I made an entire homebrew Space Marines army, the Rock Badgers, and then I stripped them and began painting a new homebrew Space Marine army, the Knights of the Grail.

Does This Mean You Don’t Have a Pile of Shame?

Heavens no. One thing you might notice is that sometimes it will say I painted 2 Sanguinary Guard, or 5 Deathwatch, or 1 Ogor, and you think “there’s a lot more than that in a kit”. The answer is that I sell a lot of these (I sold all the Ogors when I decided I didn’t like them) or I let my son paint them (he painted a TON of my pile of shame this year), or I just keep them to paint later (those remaining 3 Sanguinary Guard are sitting on my desk looking at me, waiting for paint.)

Trust me: I still have a substantial Pile of Shame.

Did You Actually Complete Any Armies This Year?

I did. I completed two Space Marine armies. I completed my Idoneth Deepkin army. I made playable forces of US Marines and British Commandos. I made two Kill Teams. Plus I made enough models to play games like Star Wars Legion and Marvel Crisis Protocol, as well as converting models for Silver Bayonet and games like that.

What Is Coming for 2022?

I’m not sure yet. I’m disappointed by Games Workshop’s announcement yesterday that they’re selling a new Idoneth Deepkin boxed set but aren’t including any sea creatures! That’s the only reason I collect them, and now I guess I can’t expect any new ones for a while.

I don’t think I’ll do any more Bolt Action for a while because I have a LOT of Bolt Action (I play Bolt Action more than any other game).

I love me some Space Marines and I will undoubtedly strip and repaint these models at least one more time to make a new homebrew.

I want to do more Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game. Not sure what yet.

I also got an Orruk model (The Mouth of Mork) for Christmas, along with some Rubric Marines and Treebeard, so those are all the next things on the schedule.

And that’s it for now.

What did you paint in 2021? What do you have planned for 2022?