OK, Before you guys crucify me! I realized that Tamiya ENAMEL paint and thinner are NOW listed on amazon! They were not there when I started to plan for this video, so please excuse that remark I made, looks like you can get *some* paint colors but it's very limited in variety, still I've posted links to what you can get. 😅 Hope this tutorial is useful, please no hate with the remarks in the end, those are just my thoughts, you can agree to disagree if you like, everybody is entitled to their opinion, even me so please remain respectful or the banhammer will come down.

I'm not a modeler or painter at all and not a part of the community - I happened to find your channel and was hooked from the first Princess video (Mars). I couldn't, and still can't, understand why people give you crap for using acrylics. You do some amazing magic with shading - as a person who can barely draw a stick figure - and it fascinates me every time. I'd always say 'Oooh, it's magic dust time!' when you'd start shading with the acrylics! I'm endlessly impressed with your eye work! Keep using your magic dust!

👀 It wasn't until I heard you say it that I realized that not being able to have access to things that 'real artists' use like airbrushes and good paint was keeping me from trying to move forward with any of my kits. I have so many but I've been self-sabotaging to the point where I couldn't make a single thing. It's a little embarrassing, but I'm over 30 and still growing in my confidence. XD I'm gonna start my first kit this October! No more hesitating!

I don't want to downplay the amount of practice and hard work you've put in, but you have a gift. I love watching you create.

I have shaky hands (way too much coffee daily) so this technique always catched my eyes. Ordered tamiya enamels last week to finally try it, but had to study the technique just watching and with auto generated subs on JP videos, so this came just in time. Both halves of the video were very good, it was an entertaining rant on the second half, thaks a lot!

👀👀 I actually really appreciate your candidness and honesty when it comes to your craft. Not just Japanese modellers but anyone who's been engaging in a craft for a long time can sometimes forget that they were a beginner too, that no one ever saw the mistakes and awkward growth periods before they were confident sharing. But I love that you share your mistakes and talk about the hard parts of the art and guide through everything. Wishing you lots of love!

I've used Testor's enamel paints for this, it worked successfully. Had a problem where too much re-doing the enamel lines and smearing may stain on the overcoat, though can't say if it's a particular issue with testors or enamel in general.

I honestly took something out of this video I’ve watched you for years and I really think you did a great justice to all artists that are in there head 😂 I am not a gk painter though I’d love to get into it but I am a watercolor “anime” artist and I constantly compare myself to others and get into long art blocks bc of it and mostly I’m comparing myself to official artists and people who have spent years doing it when I’ve only been doing it for 1/4 of the time

I really enjoyed your discussion about the beauty of individual styles, and art being a form of personal expression, not a mandate to follow One True Style, it's such an important concept for so many creative fields!

👀 We support gatekeeper door smashers here!!

Thank you so so much! I've seen this in time laps videos for years but never someone explaining!

leona you're the GOAT!! I was so fascinated by the japanese painters using this technique but I had no idea how they were doing it. I even saw one guy practicing on white plastic spoons 😂 I found a local hobby shop that imports some tamiya products in utah, I guess a shopping trip is in order!

Oh! I find this really interesting, because I used a bit similar method while repainting dolls (yes, I know you have rocky past with doll community) - before I had sealant! I used acrylic paints that I know would not stain the vinyl and then with small sponge with acetone correct mistakes and "shape" for example eyes or brows until they were symmetrical! I still used it sometimes as the first "layer" before using sealant, pastels and colored pencils.

As someone that just use decals for eyes, totally agree with your rant!

So lucky found your channel. So much easy understanding tips. Your works is so beautiful.

👀 Although I'm not a GK artist, I love watching you work. There's something so satisfying about watching these figures come together, bit by bit. The technique creates a really beautiful result, but it also seems to be quite time-consuming and part of me wonders, if adding so many layers doesnt add unnecessary bulk, since the models are so delicate. Your rant at the end of the video was very refreshing! Art is an expression of the self, not a metric used to compare people with each other.

Woah, the countdown intro messed with my head a little, but it was neat. Lol Thanks so much Leona for the information!!! We always love new techniques to try and test out! I struggle with hand steady issues because of having blood sugar swings. This could really help me out, especially by being forgiving for "sketching" out the eye design!❤❤❤ Love your work so much!

I always wondered how Japanese modelers do this. Didn’t see it explained anywhere especially not in English so thank you for making this video! Thought I feel like I will have a really hard time obtaining these items where I live. But it’s gonna be on my shoppinglist for my next Japan trip!

👀 As a fine artist I also think your rant at the end needs to be heard by other artists, crafters, and markers. I like my art to be unique. I like unique art. I also like recognizing artists by their work. I really like being creative and trying new things even if I fail; I also encourage my art students to do the same. Keep being you!

👀 Thank you for giving your opinion and life lessons. This is what I’m learning on my part in art. Putting your soul into art is SO important! I always love to watch your art and process, remind me of what art is all about. It sucks that you get so much Flack for just doing your own thing.Glad that you got the chance to try it out. Gonna show my friend some more or your videos since he is currently enjoying the, as he puts it “Gundam GK brain rot” haha 😂

I really don't want to initiate another "watercolor pencil for eyes" debacle but I have seen miniature painters using oil paints and oil paint thinner to do layering. Vould it work for GK? Or the waiting dry time/material is incompatible?

👀Super helpful video as always. Not knowing Lacquer/Enamel layer technique, I've been imitating Japanese style to a degree with just acrylic and taking many hints from yours and other videos on figure eye painting. Very insightful rant too. I'm not a perfectionist and I was realistic about my current skills in my gk journey, and I think I've been content with my own work by using a mix of techniques made available by you and the Japanese artists to make something I'm satisfied with.

👀👀👀 Your rant at the end was the pep talk I really needed even though I'm not a GK artist. There's defiantly the same mindset when it comes to the digital art/traditional art/fan art communities of "well why don't you do x" or "why isn't your style like y". It's so easy to just throw your own soul/style into the trash and just not develop it at all. I know my art suffers from trying to be like everyone else that doing personal work is frustrating which is why I started learning 3D art to get away from it for a while lol. Thank you as always Leona for your words and your art! 💜

👀 agreed with pretty much everything you said. Japanese culture does hammer on doing things a certain way that has been tried and tested trough the ages, although this is not unique to their culture. I think a lot of inexperienced painters will be like this too (i.e. not daring to deviate from the "norm"). The cool thing is that maybe the non-japanese GK community will come up with new styles, which in turn might influence the Japanese community. This is also something we see with art and music and so on :) cross cultural pollination as it were And of course, amazing video as always! :)

Thank you for putting all the pieces together. you're the 👸

👀 long live THE Resin Queen!

Thanks Leona for share your work and thoughts but also your personal history. You inspire me and give me strength to push tru my skills but also my body.

Your best rant so far! That's very insightful. Really got me thinking. It's true, (I paint tabletop minis), I can usually tell which (famous) artist painted which minis, but the Japanese style tends to look the same. Impeccably painted, but the same. This is probably going to keep me up all night

My dear Leona, what you say is so deep and broad, the technique and the tricks, the method and the soul, the perfection and the authenticity, the philosophy of art... What would become of Picasso if he changed or corrected just one of his strokes? It wouldn't be Picasso. Art is evolutionary, and you are a great artist, your seal and your style is unmistakable in your work, which makes you a Master. What you teach can be applied to other areas of art (even life and oneself) and the best thing is that with your videos we can try to do something creative as a beginner or neophyte. Thank you very much and greetings from CDMX.👀

OOOOOOOH, you finally demystified this for me. I see Japanese painters always use this in their videos and while I have an idea what they were doing, I never knew the exact products and details. Edit: I would also like to add, I've seen some of the Japanese painters take advantage of the glossiness and mask out the eyes and mouth to keep the glossiness of the figurine. I think it looked really nice.

I really agree with lots of your points with your "rant". I didn't think it was a rant at all. 👀 I do a lot of different kinds of art and find myself often "outside" of the social circles of any given group because I'm not a specialist to any of them. I really love your videos because you also take things from multiple spaces and put them to good use. Thanks again for your videos. You deserve better from the internet community.

👀 here learning how to paint miniatures and enjoying the process ans what I can currently achieve with my current skill level 🎉

👀 totally agree!! I'm sure that some would be horrified that my first several kits were painted in whatever colours I thought would look great instead of replicating the originals 😮 just to try things out and see what works is important to every artist. Thank you for giving us your voice ❤

I have been revisiting figure painting after doing mini painting for a many years. These eyes look way easier than a tiny miniature. 😅

It works with revell enamels too, they’re a lot easier to come by in europe BUT they’re mainly used for military models so colors for anime figure eyes are not that easy to find.

Great video Leona. I have some good news though! Testors used to be what we mecha modelers used for our version of this technique in America. They're getting harder and harder to find though. Thankfully, there's a KZfaqr named BarbatosRex who recently started making his own enamel model paint. Right now it's a little tough to get sometimes because it's only available on GundamPros, but from what I hear, it works perfectly for enamel washes and details. The colors are kinda mecha oriented but I bet plenty would look great on figures!

So you can find a lot of Tamiya paints and other goodies at RC Hobby stores. I know a it doesn't occur to many to look there considering they are painting miniatures or garage kits, but there you go. The RC hobby store will have a paint section that is like 4x the size of the paint section at a hobby store like Hobby Lobby, or the local Gaming store.

Thank you for the tutorial and time to teach this technique.. Agree with what you say no technique is the best method. Just like 5+5 =10 and 12-2=10 as well. Result is still the same . "All hail the resin queen" again thank you for sharing your no filter & honest opinion.

Lo del rant: Lo he visto mucho también en los artistas/dibujantes. Antes de que Pixiv tuviera una opción para poner la pagina en Ingles, la única manera de acceder era si tenias un buen dominio del Japonés (y aún lo necesitas para ciertas cosas, como yo que casi siempre uso materiales tradicionales y no están traducidas). Así que mucha gente no podía poner sus dibujos ahí porque pensaban que la pagina era para dibujantes "profesionales", pero cuando uno tenía una cuenta, veía que era nada más ni meno que un DeviantArt pero en Japonés, o sea, podías encontrar dibujos muy elaborados y dibujos... eh. Mi punto es que es cierto en tu punto que a los Japoneses se los idolatran demasiado en todo y mucha gente se olvidan que ellos tienden a buscar el perfeccionismo que llega a ser enfermizo. Se pueden aprender una u dos cosas, tanto de artistas Japoneses como de artistas locales o extranjeros, pero al final lo que importa es como te acomode y ver si ciertos tutoriales te ayudan o no. Pero al final lo que importa es más la practica.

👀 I really like your videos and all the hard work you put into each and every figure! All the tutorials are so informative and useful!

👀 I have been making models/figures literally for decades (for longer than you've been alive I'm sure). I'm still not afraid to try new techniques/paints/tools whatever, in the search of a better (a.k.a. more satisfying) result. I've watched your videos for a few years now and enjoy your perspective on kit making as well as you talent in doing so (yes I said talent, sue me) and I agree that there are as many different ways to make a GK as there are people who make them. Some are better than others, but that's the way of anything and in the end, it all comes down to one thing: Do you enjoy doing it? No matter the technique or multiple techniques that is all that counts. I love this hobby and always will. You've helped me along the way and I look forward to learning more. Thanks.

👀! Don't have anything super valuable to add but always enjoy your videos, and rants, learning from your perspective

I've tried doing this, but with leeched and heavily thinned oil paints. Had some decent success but will need to experiment more. AK interactive has a similar "cleaning stick" that seems to work along with mineral spirits for the oils. One thing to be careful when using oil paints is to use a "non staining" pigment. Dry time is longer, but leeching the oils help alot.

Thank you for posting this, had seen JP modelers using this technique for a while and was under the assumption that they were using opaque colors and not clear. Another possible alternative to the Tamiya enamels are Humbrol enamels and are easier to find here in the US at least. As for the Mucosal clear, seeing as it does seem like the only way of getting it is to go to Japan, what would you say the color exactly is? From the video it looks like a clear red with some what almost looks like some clear orange added. Would like to know as it seems like something that could be reversed engineered, or at least some kind of formulation that is close using available paints.

👀 love the message at the end. and i agree. i will say the way you your kits is great, like i'm always impressed. and for the people that say this way of painting is overrated. Take your Sass and put it in your pocket. if this helps people get the look they wanted to always make but for some reason never could pull it off, just let them try it. making art is a process of finding stuff that works for you and of course experimentation.

I hear that comment about talent often when it comes to sewing even though I see myself as handyman. People often are just envious but don’t want to go through the hassle of leaning and telling me they don’t have that talent. At least in this craft people who don’t follow patterns to detail aren’t looked down upon. More the opposite. And even after 15 years I still see myself as average. It is part of craft to always learn something new and let be inventions be part of that life. 👀

People bothered by what medium an artist uses for _their own_ pleasure are gonna die if they discover experimental art

👀 i was waiting for this vid!! thanks!

👀👀 yoooo technique is just another tool in the arsenal ;) I’m happy you know more than one way to paint eyes. I for one have terrible steadiness, so the more forgiving the better 😅

👀 now that is next lvl

👀I've been following your work since the Princess Serenity video and, while I've had difficulties in acquiring a couple of pieces of safety equipment delay my working on the handful of kits I've gotten, this video has articulated something I've noticed in the difference between the way I approach some projects compared to the way a lot of people whose finished projects I've seen and whose tutorials I've watched. More or less everything I've seen in said hobbies is more "Soul focus" and I get it, for some things it's what I'd do as well, but there are also a lot where I don't and am more "Technical focus"; often I'm trying to recreate a manufactured product, either to restore something, recreate a thing that would be expensive to buy, or match to a set that is missing the character I wanted. I can appreciate the artistry of the people who do their own versions, and the end results look amazing, but at the same time I often end up thinking "This is lovely, but doesn't fit to what I'm trying to do". Even though your sensibilities are the opposite, your description made it click exactly what I had been aiming for....or maybe with some of these hobbies, my creative voice is being one of the few people who favours matching the factory (^.^') Going back to your point on techniques being developed to solve problems is interesting too since things I've learnt on your channel have actually helped me find solutions for issues in the hobbies I have had the chance to do. One in particular has a issue where there are more people who try to do factory style designs, and the ones replicating the original series look good, but the more recent incarnations are difficult to replicate with the usual materials, so a lot of people have trouble replicating the small details or getting the finish just right. But seeing your tutorials has helped me figure out ways I can get the results I want (^.^-)

👀And I agree with you totally! Art is what you make of it, not what others tell you it is.

👁👁 I love your message about artists and techniques, thank you for saying it so eloquently!

👀 Preach Leona!!! 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🙌🏾

👀 Love your videos.

👀 it was actually very interesting to see the process and hear it explained in more detail. speaking personally, that method would probably be easier however, I just don't like it as much as your usual style. so jury's still out on this one for me.

Excellent video, I'm still more comfortable with my current paints, but one day when I have the supplies I would love to try this technique, so it's very helpful to see it in english ^^ Loved what you said at the end, too Leona, thank you for this video 👀

👁️ Oh Leona. I have been watching you paint for many a moon and I have always enjoyed the fact that you are so genuine. If anybody's panties get bunched they can just head on out of here 😂

👀 thank you so much for everything you do and for share all your knowledge and opinion! ❤

👀 👀 👀 Art is such an expression of oneself, thank you!!

I still have a lot to learn from you.

😊 excellent video, I’ll have to give this a try.

it is possible to get enamel paints in the states. they are usually sold as model car paint. normal paint thinner can work.

👀 Many truths have been spoken, applies to garage kits and many other creative hobbies as well, no one is less than!

👀 you go queen

This was a wonderful video, very informative. One question however. Where does one get garage kits? Especially those that you have to sand and fix snd stuff

🌹 rant away Resin Queen ! And fyi your work is amazing

👀 So, on the side of 'these products can be hard to get and costly' You may be able to mimic the transparent look of this technique with watercolors that haven't been thinned much, and MSC (or other sealants after testing compatability). Maybe even gouache. Something to try if you're interested.

I've tried to watch other artists' GK videos, & I can't, they're so boring! I'm not part of the GK world, just a fan of yours! 😁💜 I hope someday I'll be able to afford to commission a GK by you!!! Or a few 😂 That's one of my goals in life!

👀 Leona bashing the japanese modelers!! /jk Appriciate you showing this method and expressing your thoughts ^^

👀 I don’t know one way or another. I’m just dabbling with clay sculpting. But I always watch your entire videos❤

👀 Gatekeeping art techniques is a new one 😂😂 Leona, just remember that a hate watch is still a view and a hate comment is still engagement.

Para la gente en México se puede conseguir la pintura enamel de Tamiya en Aliexpress relativamente fácil.

👀 Considering what you said about how there’s a bit more openness to the kind of experimentation that isn’t for the sake of achieving perfection in the West, do you think there are any parts of this enamel-over-lacquer process that you may consider integrating into your workflow, rather than the process as a whole? Coming from a non-garage kit painter, the capability of being able to “refine” a thin sketch layer with the paint thinner sounds like something that could be really nice on its own, not necessarily to compensate for shaky hands, but just for the potential benefits of being able to work over top of a sketch you can finesse without dealing with some of the drawbacks of acrylics like dry time and buildup. Just curious; the whole process sounds like an interesting group of “ingredients” that painters could add to their workflow maybe in piecemeal rather than the whole thing :D

@Leonasworkshop It is always an entertaining chilling time with your videos. Keep doing you

Testors enamel paint with thinner mix

Will Revell enamels work for this technique? They are quite a bit easier to obtain in the US than the Tamiya.

👀 as a digital artist, I agree

👀 heck yeah this true 1000% and thank you for talking about this because this also applies to all forms of art and I am so happy you addressed this. Keep up the amazing awesome work you do y no les hagas caso a esos haters 🙂🙃

👀 I’m curious about your friend’s ska band! I have similar feelings to him about oreskaband. So good, but missing that soul that ska needs.

👀 Woaaaaaa me gustan mucho sus videos por las diferentes técnicas que usa, pues para mí se pueden usar esos métodos en otros tipos de trabajo, gracias por mostrar que hay muchas más cosas que experimentar fuera de cualquier "caja" 🥰🥰🥰

i am curious if testers paint can be used to a similar effect? since that is an enamel hobby paint brand available in america but sadly they have no clear colors to my knowledge.

👀. 🙏🏾 I appreciate the message 😊

Dumb question can you do this by using Vallejo paint over the mr color clear gloss?

Eye decals are available... 😮😊

👀 great advice!

👀Great video!

👀 I love your work! :)

👁👁👁Love your video girl! You inspire me so much to pursue my art. So thank you!

👀 Loved the video and the rant is SO ON POINT!! I’ve dealt with more than my fair share of gatekeepers in creative things, and it’s crazy how far some people shove their heads up their own asses!

👀 great video as always señorita leona

Random but I like your Diablo 4 shirt 👍

👀👀👀👀 love you!!! :D

👀Techniques are means to end, not the purpose. Of course I think it's good to study different techniques, but keep open mind and figure the idea behind them, properties of the tools and such. For example the eye painting technique can teach you how enamels work with lacquer paints, and this allows various other "cheats" like cleaning up lacquer paint job masking lines with enamels, without worrying about paint messing up wrong areas, or so called reverse wash technique where you use different enamel color on lacquer base color, allowing you to easily remove the enamel color from raised details and so on.

👀 fun video, and don't worry, people will find the silliest things in any creative hobby to fixate on as the golden standard. For us artists, it was anything copic for ages, which is insane because the price and bar to entry is ridiculous for beginners.

I think another thing that doesn't help the placing on the pedestal is the fact that Japan does have a lot of painters that are in fact Master Class as far as how well they can paint. You see them more in other model kits though I've noticed. But there are about as many who aren't from Japan so it's really silly if they use that arguement, Japan has more in a single location sure but that really shouldn't matter since again there are just as many outside of Japan in various other countries. As you also state there is a bit of preference to things like how you do this. Just like how you mention some people come up with ways to get around a problem that works for them be it shaky hands or something else. There is nothing wrong with using "cheat codes" if you're not doing something harmful, like this eye painting technique. Of course that's not to say there aren't genuinely wrong ways to do something. 👀

👀 these words make me feel better about my crusty kits. Gk building can be an intimidating world, but sometimes I notice the loudest criticism comes from people who don't participate in the hobby.

which matte sealer did u use to make it less glossy when ur done painting?

You could try the little cheap and nasty Humbrol enamels, they should be back on the market after being reformulated.

Wow! You look great! Keep on doing whatever you're doing. It's working! Thank you by the way for the tips and this technique.