Russian Line Musketeers 1812

My second entry to the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge was on Sunday with these Russian Line Infantry for 1812. Once again they are wearing the 1808 pattern ‘stovepipe’ Shako, this time covered with an oilskin cover to keep them clean on the march. I will eventually get some infantry with the 1812 Kiwer Shako but many regiments hadn’t adopted the new style before the French invasion. One thing my troops have in abundance are Greatcoats. So as well as making my figures considerably easier to paint than the French troops, they were also much more comfortable in the harsh conditions of the Russian winter. Ironically as my boys are warmer than the Frenchies the greatcoat is also a great way to show the cold by dusting its lower edges with frost. 

Russian Line Grenadiers 1812

The Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge started a little over a week ago and I completed my first EVER unit of 28mm Napoleonics. These are part of a joint project with Ray and we are doing The Retreat from Moscow in 1812.  These are 1812 Russian Grenadiers, but they are wearing slightly out-of-date equipment. They still wear the 1808 pattern ‘stovepipe’ Shako with its enormous plume. From February 1811 regiments started being equipped with the new ‘Kiwer’ style shako with a much thinner Plume. Still, many had not received these before the French invasion in 1812 and some regiments didn’t fully change to the new regulation uniform until 1814. 

I monetized my channel and nobody noticed

A year ago I took the advice of a couple of well-respected YouTubers and decided to monetise my channel. I never expected to make much money but monetization enabled me to control when and where adverts would show in my videos, and even a degree of control over what type of adverts I wanted shown (or more accurately what I didn't want to appear). I have earned more than I expected and all of that revenue has returned to my hobby and the channel instead of going to 'the man' at YouTube.

Painting Together: The Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge

This week I am talking about the benefits of painting together to get projects finished.

Collaborative painting, whether that is sitting down with friends or taking part in a competition like the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, can boost productivity and keep the paint flowing. I have painted whole armies during previous challenges, sometimes two at a time! This year I'm tackling something new but I know that whatever I start will be finished by the end of the competition in mid-March.