The Aftermath...

It's done. Assembly complete, satisfying paint job, accessories and whatnot are all in place, everything is put away. There's one thing left... Your gunk-loaded hands. Plastic bits are under your nails from sprure clipping and sanding. The skin is stained with paint, glue, and filler. How would you clean this up? The only solution I know for part of this is nail polish remover. I use it to get the paint of my nails... Countless times have I been 'caught' Ferocious hand washing removes everything else.

I should get an apron for myself... Which material suits best? Cloth? Rubber? I should also get myself some disposable gloves for sure, but the gloves reducing my touch bothers me while I assemble or paint

Any pointers?

I know how it feels.

I blend flesh tones for my figures by a simple and easy method. Dollop up to four appropriate colours into the pallette, blend them, then pop a blob of the blend on the back of my hand to compare it to an immediately available sample of Caucasian skin. Then I fine-tune the blend until I can pop a blob on the back of my hand and barely see it, as I reckon that if it's that good a match for real skin, it'll do as the base coat, it's "cooked". to get it right, it can take up to six or seven little streaks of flesh-coloured paint on the back of my right hand.

One morning after a modelling session I went into work with the flesh tones still visible on my hand. my boss, bless her, took one look and asked how long I'd been working for Avon.

Apparently this is how Avon reps test flesh-coloured cosmetics to get the tone right for the person...

Carl

There has been some gossip around the site about your, ahem, fondness for rubber.......

John

I don't think I could build with gloves on, I just tolerate the mess. I do have dedicated modelling trousers, though, a knackered old pair of chinos, 'cos I can be absent minded and wipe brushes on them. Didn't have a great effect on suit trousers. Does remind me of chemistry lessons at school, we got our hands covered in all manner of rubbish, then cleaned them in carbon tetrachloride, a great solvent.....now recognised to be a carcinogen of some power.

Cheers

Tim

Pour some sugar into the palm of your hand then some fairy liquid wash hands with this delightful mess and it will remove most things wash off when ready its an old mechanics trick to get off grease

John,

One learns something new every day!

Fairy liquid (other washing up liquids are available) and a nail brush works for me.

In the old days it used to be crunchy washing powder and a stiff scrubbing brush but I think that was just my Mum being cruel.

I'll try that sugar tip next time I get a stubborn bit though John, thanks.

A good dolop of hand cream before starting helps as well. This one is curtesy of a painter I know, it's how he gets gloss paint off at the end of the day.