From the painting desk #80 – I came, I saw, I was inspired
July 28, 2025For the first time in my life, I took part in a painting competition! I’ve been going to Ropecon, Finland’s main gaming convention (well, I say gaming, but it’s just a big overall geek fest) yearly since the mid-90s, and finally decided to put in an entry in the painting competition, Cold North Open. We threw the idea around with some friends – mostly non-painters – last year, thinking that it might be fun to participate just because. We did!
I was going to go all-in, but then my initial plans didn’t work and time ran out, and I was going to call it quits as a result. In the end, I decided to go for it anyway; life is short and there was nothing to lose. Enter three days/evenings/nights of merciless painting and a very sore neck, and I had this:
Click for a larger version
The model, which I entered in the Trench Crusade theme category, is a lovely, lovely model from Lost Heresy Miniatures. I’d seen the model a while ago, but since I’m not particularly into Trench Crusade, I’d kind of passed on it. Now that I was painting for a competition, I figured it would be a good opportunity to paint something for the fun of it.
In the end, I didn’t have success in the competition (should’ve probably gone a bit more grimdark for the setting), but apart from a moment of disappointment, it didn’t really bother me all that much. I’m happy with how the model turned out, and received some great feedback from the judges to improve further – essentially, all the skills are there but I need to think things a little differently for competition painting. I listened to a couple of great lectures – given by excellent Finnish miniatures painters – on competition painting and colour theory, and rather than intimidated, I felt really inspired!
While I’m not thinking of going all-in on competition painting or becoming a stellar painter, it also did feel really nice to push my skills a bit. Actively learning new things and pushing your skills can be really fun if done without pressure, and to be honest, I’ve been painting for such a long time that a sort of stagnation and routine has set in. It’s not a bad thing as such, and I’m really happy with how I paint, but I also really enjoyed focusing intensely on making a single model really nice. Also, as I don’t play a lot of miniature games, painting and storytelling are my main ways of engaging with the hobby, so improving my painting can and hopefully will increase my enjoyment as a whole, I think!
Dawn of the Lead 
Good for you, Mikko! 🙂 That’s a really nice mini and I like it having a bit of colour! I haven’t yet seen a Trench Crusade-inspired mini that I didn’t like!
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Thanks John! TC is starting to gain a fair bit of traction around here, as of course Tuomas Pirinen is Finnish so he’s kind of a minor national hero when it comes to miniaturing stuff 😀
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I’d have said that this was a winner! Of course, everything could always be improved, but at the same time, if it’s good enough for the table top, it might not be good enough to win a painting contest. I actually throw a few of my creations into a painting contest at one particular convention – sometimes I win, sometimes I don’t. I like the idea that you are trying to push the boundaries of your current skill levels Mikko. Good for you! Ironically, as we get older, it gets more and more difficult to see the miniature’s details anyway! So, by the time we’re really old everything looks great! Nice post!
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Thanks for the comment and the kind words, Mark! I did just get my first reading glasses a few weeks back…
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Well mate it’s a win to me. Gold medal to you from me. I think, although maybe not as grim as trench crusade is, it’s still grim and the green just makes the whole mini pop. I honestly think this is one of your best painted minis. Good on you for entering and giving it a crack and even more good on you for taking it all as a positive.
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Thanks Luke, much appreciated!
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Looks ace to me dude – lovely blending & a nice touch with the magic glow!
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Thanks Alex!
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I think its great. Certainly better than I can do!
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