True-Metallic Metal is the technique of painting metals using metallic paints. This concept may seem very simple, and it can be, but there are a lot of complex details to achieving a great look that truly pops!

This tutorial will dive into an easy True-Metallic Gold recipe! It is very easy to adapt to any paint style and can be used to go further into the depth of the gold. The technique I am showing you here is the same as the one I will be teaching at the Las Vegas Open in February in my True-Metallic Metals class. The class will dive more in depth into the true details of painting metallics.

Today I’ll be using several colours to achieve the effect I want. The colours I am using are:

• Rackham Black
• Citadel Calthan Brown
• Privateer Press Blighted Gold
• Privateer Press Rhulic Gold
• Privateer Press Cold Steel
• Vallejo Model Air Chrome
• Privateer Press Beaten Purple

Step 1

As always I start with the figure primed in Mr. Surfacer 1200 light grey primer. I love Mr. Surfacer because it has great coverage and holds paint extremely well, and with it being a neutral grey it allows me to add in my own shadows and control the colour rather than settling for black shadows.

Step 2

To begin I went ahead and blocked out the Red around the wing we’re working on. This way the gold stands out against the grey for photography purposes.

I begin with a basecoat of Calthan Brown, but you can substitute this for a similar medium brown. I use the brown to provide a solid base for the gold.

Step 3

I then apply a second basecoat of Blighted Gold (P3). Blighted Gold serves as a great base for strong gold tones and can be used itself to create a unique pale gold.

Step 4

I begin building highlights by mixing 50/50 Blighted Gold/Rhulic Gold.

Step 5

I continue building my highlights. I move to pure Rhulic Gold for a highlight before adding in Cold Steel in a 75/25 Gold/Steel mix.

Step 6

At this point I begin increasing the shadows. I take a mix of brown from my palette, I recommend Umbral Umber from Privateer Press for this step because it has a hint of green in it.

Once the brown has dried, I then glaze Beaten Purple into the shadows. I do successive glazes to create an intense purple hue into the shadows.

Step 7

This is where I add my final highlights. I do a two part highlight. The first part is a mix of Vallejo Air Chrome into the previous highlight mix of 75/25 Gold/Steel. Then I add my final highlights of pure VA Chrome.

Step 8

After seeing the final product, I decided to push the purple shades a little bit more so I did one final glaze on Beaten Purple.




Good luck everyone! I can’t wait to see how you adapt my technique to your own style and see how far you go!

Happy Holidays!

Comments: 1