Was inspired by some of the art in this thread. Decided to take a break from card extensions. This took 4 hours and 50 minutes (actually timed myself). Is done with Prismacolor markers and outlined with a fine point sharpie:
@ Ondal the Fool and Queengothica13: You seem to be using paints, any tips and tricks to using this medium on playmats? Are they acrylics? Heavy or soft body? The marker work done by others looks awesome, but I'm horrible with markers. And tips on sealers for the paints? Any help would be appreciated.
I do use acrylics as the main media in my playmats. If you want to visit my deviant art page it's under kersmtgalters as the name. The very first one i did i took photos during each step as i knew it would be a learning process.
The first thing i do is draw everything out. EVEN though you can draw directly on the mat, i find that my pencils kinda scar the fabric a little because direct drawing on fabric is pretty irritating having to go over each line multiple times. I instead draw it out on paper then darken the main lines with pencil and transfer it onto the mat. It actually makes perfect lines this way. When transfering it all i do is draw my image, flip the paper over and trace my lines very dark, then when i flip it back over and place it on the mat i retrace my original lines, The paper will "give" into the fabric, and to prevent it from moving i tape it down, but your lines will be flawless.
The acrylics i use are just "basic" brand tubed acrylics. All i do to manipulate them is water them down or leave them thick. Mostly what i do is start kinda backwards from an actual picture/painting.
I start with the foreground, the reason for this is that the thinned acrylics do bleed when applied to the fabric. But For instance in the jace mat that i did, once you get the 3-4 thin layers of paint on his face (white and lighter colors do tend to need many more layers and are "stiffer" than other parts on the mat but still flexible), but once they are there, and dry, the background tends to avoid bleeding into that area because of the paint already on it, and dry.
I do several layers. I start light and work my way darker and finally i might add light highlights with a slightly thicker consistancy of my paint by not thinning it out as much. But for background i usually go really thin and watery, almost watercolor style, it bleeds but in that "background" effect that actually helps with depth. When you paint this that thin leave about a 1/8th of an inch from where you place your wet paint brush to the edge of your forground image, you will watch it bleed to touch the edge, give it a few minutes before adding more paint, because it keeps bleeding once it gets down in there. I do take some art markers and go over very tiny details or shadows once its all dry, but i try to avoid sharpie in black because it leaves this weird "sheen" that reflects a little coppery tone and it fades really bad over time. (learned the hard way).
Finally when it's done, i spray it with the "modge podge" brand mat sealant about 3-4 light layers. Let each one dry for a few minutes before the next to avoid it getting to "stiff" we want ppl to be able to roll them and we don't want the paint or sealant so thick that the image causes the mat to stay curled up when trying to unroll it.
That's about all the help i can offer. If you have specific questions i'd be happy to help though!
Queengothica13: Thanks so much for the detailed reply. I have some mats coming and was going to try my hand at markers as I'd never seen them painted, but now I'm looking forward to painting. I'm much more comfortable with my acrylics and your tips give me courage going forward
I just finished a project i had most difficulty with.. not the actual painting but the concept. It came out better than i expected it to after several attempts at figuring out a background and way to put a life counter on it without just being floating circles on the side. Hope you all enjoy!
Liliana of the Veil Playmat:
(i couldn't decide which picture looked best since the flash made parts look a little weird, so just posted 4 of them pretty similar).
hello again, I have a question to ask. Today someone bought me the color I needed so I worked on the background and the mystic once again so there would be more contrast and there are parts where something went wrong and I wonder what I did wrong...
Can you help me with that? <snippity snip>
Anyone who could give me some tips about this?
What you're seeing is pigment migration. When watercolors dry, the pigments move around and tend to go to the edges of the shape, where the material is driest. (That's how it works on paper, anyway. I don't know whether playmat material has different behavior.) It's got something to do with physics.
Anyway, the solution is to use less moisture so your surfaces dry faster and don't have unevenly wet areas that induce migration.
it sure has! and i'm lovin' this new technique, painting on cards is great don't get me wrong but oh how i've missed painting LARGE! lol. But i'm still so jelly at how amazing you are with markers... i just.. can't get them to work that way.
Hopefully this question doesn't go ignored like my last one!
Anyone know if there's anything I could put on the playmat I'm working on once it's done to protect the image? It's one of the mouse pad style mats and I'm using a sharpie on it. I really don't want the ink to get all smeared and crappy over time and I'd like the mat to stay clean overall if possible. I have one of those platic tubes to keep it in but that doesn't help me when I'm playing on it
Hopefully this question doesn't go ignored like my last one!
Anyone know if there's anything I could put on the playmat I'm working on once it's done to protect the image? It's one of the mouse pad style mats and I'm using a sharpie on it. I really don't want the ink to get all smeared and crappy over time and I'd like the mat to stay clean overall if possible. I have one of those platic tubes to keep it in but that doesn't help me when I'm playing on it
most of us use some sort of sealant spray, i use modge podge brand clear matt sealant spray (about 6$ at walmarts). Just 3-4 light coats protect the image way more than using nothing but there isn't anything that will protect it 100% forever. Using sharpies might be the bigger issue though. On my very first mat i did the border of the mat in a black sharpie, it seems to sink into the fabric and even after 3 layers of black sharpie it gets a slight redish sheen to it that looks a little off, that's why i switched to acrylics. Others use professional markers that i'm assuming don't leave the odd tone issue and also tend to bleed less. However, back to protecting it, any time you have your skin/oils/dirt touching parts of a playmat repeatedly you will eventually see wear, that's why after so long the only thing you can do is "touch it up" by repaint/marking it in. Hope this helps
most of us use some sort of sealant spray, i use modge podge brand clear matt sealant spray (about 6$ at walmarts). Just 3-4 light coats protect the image way more than using nothing but there isn't anything that will protect it 100% forever. Using sharpies might be the bigger issue though. On my very first mat i did the border of the mat in a black sharpie, it seems to sink into the fabric and even after 3 layers of black sharpie it gets a slight redish sheen to it that looks a little off, that's why i switched to acrylics. Others use professional markers that i'm assuming don't leave the odd tone issue and also tend to bleed less. However, back to protecting it, any time you have your skin/oils/dirt touching parts of a playmat repeatedly you will eventually see wear, that's why after so long the only thing you can do is "touch it up" by repaint/marking it in. Hope this helps
This does help indeed! Thank you! This is my first playmat and I will not be using a sharpie for later ones, I'm having the same problem with values and I had to do multiple coats for moast of it to get it good and dark. Do you know what professional markers would be best to use in the future?
I'm not exactly sure when I'll have this thing done, I only work on it during my breaks at work, but I'll get a pic posted once it's done. So far my friends really like it.
This does help indeed! Thank you! This is my first playmat and I will not be using a sharpie for later ones, I'm having the same problem with values and I had to do multiple coats for moast of it to get it good and dark. Do you know what professional markers would be best to use in the future?
I'm not exactly sure when I'll have this thing done, I only work on it during my breaks at work, but I'll get a pic posted once it's done. So far my friends really like it.
Prisma Color and Copic brands are i think the most popular markers to use but they are really expensive, i use Faber Castell pitted markers/pens also expensive but i only use them for fine detail once i'm done with the acrylic paint, so i don't over use them. Copics do have refillable cartridges so i think in the long run those are the best but once again pricey to start. Glad it helps and can't wait to see ur finished product!
Just out of curiosity, where do you guys and gals usually get your playmats to work on and what color do you usually use? I hear some people use blank, white playmats but I'm having a hard time finding some.
Finally got around to trying hand-drawing a playmat. Markers on fabric is definitely a new medium to me, but I am pretty happy with the way it came out. It was a learning experience, the next one will be better. Based off of Blightning, original artwork by Thomas M. Baxa.
Just out of curiosity, where do you guys and gals usually get your playmats to work on and what color do you usually use? I hear some people use blank, white playmats but I'm having a hard time finding some.
Ebay is where I got mine. I didn't have any luck at any of the local game shops.
Finally finished my first playmat. The image is not magic inspired or magic related at all, it's just something I thought would look cool on a playmat. I'm happy with the end result. It took a very long time for a couple reasons, one is that stippling usually takes a while (the bamboo in the foreground was not done with stippling) and the other is that the mat was like a sponge for the ink (I went through 2 and a half of those ultra fine point retractable sharpies). These pics aren't the best quality due to poor lighting, I'll hopefully get another pic posted later with better lighting.
I'm interested in some information for creating custom playmats. Are there any threads here that give some good tips/tricks for making playmats? Or other sites?
Heres my first attempt at a playmat. Gotta say I really enjoyed this much more than my attempt at altering cards. I did cheat and transferred Superman with pencil shading on the back of tracing paper. Its still a work in progress. Currently Im looking for a good picture of the Daily Planet to place on the right side. Id also like to incorporate a life counter into it. On the left side I was thinking a simple head shot. Im open to suggestions.
I'm interested in some information for creating custom playmats. Are there any threads here that give some good tips/tricks for making playmats? Or other sites?
Thanks in advance
trial and error, along with the rest of us. my big piece of advise is thus:
You will typically get better results with better materials.
trial and error, along with the rest of us. my big piece of advise is thus:
You will typically get better results with better materials.
Thanks for the advice. Reading some of the stuff I found on the Internet, I was a little confused with the whole Sharpie issue. Some people warn to stay away from them, but they seem to be one of the most popular mediums. Even with some of the bigger names in the industry.
I guess figuring out what works is part of the process.
Just out of curiosity, where do you guys and gals usually get your playmats to work on and what color do you usually use? I hear some people use blank, white playmats but I'm having a hard time finding some.
I buy mine from SCG when I alter at their events. $10 per mat and they don't have any logos plastered on them like the Ultra Pro "artist mats"
RG Xenagos, God of Revels
BG Meren of the Clan Nel Toth
GW Arahbo, Roar of the World
I do use acrylics as the main media in my playmats. If you want to visit my deviant art page it's under kersmtgalters as the name. The very first one i did i took photos during each step as i knew it would be a learning process.
The first thing i do is draw everything out. EVEN though you can draw directly on the mat, i find that my pencils kinda scar the fabric a little because direct drawing on fabric is pretty irritating having to go over each line multiple times. I instead draw it out on paper then darken the main lines with pencil and transfer it onto the mat. It actually makes perfect lines this way. When transfering it all i do is draw my image, flip the paper over and trace my lines very dark, then when i flip it back over and place it on the mat i retrace my original lines, The paper will "give" into the fabric, and to prevent it from moving i tape it down, but your lines will be flawless.
The acrylics i use are just "basic" brand tubed acrylics. All i do to manipulate them is water them down or leave them thick. Mostly what i do is start kinda backwards from an actual picture/painting.
I start with the foreground, the reason for this is that the thinned acrylics do bleed when applied to the fabric. But For instance in the jace mat that i did, once you get the 3-4 thin layers of paint on his face (white and lighter colors do tend to need many more layers and are "stiffer" than other parts on the mat but still flexible), but once they are there, and dry, the background tends to avoid bleeding into that area because of the paint already on it, and dry.
I do several layers. I start light and work my way darker and finally i might add light highlights with a slightly thicker consistancy of my paint by not thinning it out as much. But for background i usually go really thin and watery, almost watercolor style, it bleeds but in that "background" effect that actually helps with depth. When you paint this that thin leave about a 1/8th of an inch from where you place your wet paint brush to the edge of your forground image, you will watch it bleed to touch the edge, give it a few minutes before adding more paint, because it keeps bleeding once it gets down in there. I do take some art markers and go over very tiny details or shadows once its all dry, but i try to avoid sharpie in black because it leaves this weird "sheen" that reflects a little coppery tone and it fades really bad over time. (learned the hard way).
Finally when it's done, i spray it with the "modge podge" brand mat sealant about 3-4 light layers. Let each one dry for a few minutes before the next to avoid it getting to "stiff" we want ppl to be able to roll them and we don't want the paint or sealant so thick that the image causes the mat to stay curled up when trying to unroll it.
That's about all the help i can offer. If you have specific questions i'd be happy to help though!
http://kersmtgalters.deviantart.com/
To buy some of my alters check out my ebay page and add me to your favorites here:http://myworld.ebay.com/queen_gothica13?_trksid=p2047675.l2559
Trostani as Fluttershy
Alters for sale
Ritual into an Animate Dead original artworks by Anson Maddocks (The Master) and Sandra Everingham
Karn the Liberated! Original artwork by Jason Chan
My Etsy Page here!
Find me on FaceBook here!
Find me on eBay here!
Commission Status: Taking a few here and there
Liliana of the Veil Playmat:
(i couldn't decide which picture looked best since the flash made parts look a little weird, so just posted 4 of them pretty similar).
http://kersmtgalters.deviantart.com/
To buy some of my alters check out my ebay page and add me to your favorites here:http://myworld.ebay.com/queen_gothica13?_trksid=p2047675.l2559
My two newest mast headed out tomorrow:
An Infectious Army original artworks by: Ryan Pancoast, Eric Deschamps, and Chippy
Clopseize Original artworks by Aleksi Briclot, and Ranibow Dash based on this artwork
My Etsy Page here!
Find me on FaceBook here!
Find me on eBay here!
Commission Status: Taking a few here and there
Trostani as Fluttershy
Alters for sale
Anyway, the solution is to use less moisture so your surfaces dry faster and don't have unevenly wet areas that induce migration.
it sure has! and i'm lovin' this new technique, painting on cards is great don't get me wrong but oh how i've missed painting LARGE! lol. But i'm still so jelly at how amazing you are with markers... i just.. can't get them to work that way.
http://kersmtgalters.deviantart.com/
To buy some of my alters check out my ebay page and add me to your favorites here:http://myworld.ebay.com/queen_gothica13?_trksid=p2047675.l2559
Anyone know if there's anything I could put on the playmat I'm working on once it's done to protect the image? It's one of the mouse pad style mats and I'm using a sharpie on it. I really don't want the ink to get all smeared and crappy over time and I'd like the mat to stay clean overall if possible. I have one of those platic tubes to keep it in but that doesn't help me when I'm playing on it
most of us use some sort of sealant spray, i use modge podge brand clear matt sealant spray (about 6$ at walmarts). Just 3-4 light coats protect the image way more than using nothing but there isn't anything that will protect it 100% forever. Using sharpies might be the bigger issue though. On my very first mat i did the border of the mat in a black sharpie, it seems to sink into the fabric and even after 3 layers of black sharpie it gets a slight redish sheen to it that looks a little off, that's why i switched to acrylics. Others use professional markers that i'm assuming don't leave the odd tone issue and also tend to bleed less. However, back to protecting it, any time you have your skin/oils/dirt touching parts of a playmat repeatedly you will eventually see wear, that's why after so long the only thing you can do is "touch it up" by repaint/marking it in. Hope this helps
http://kersmtgalters.deviantart.com/
To buy some of my alters check out my ebay page and add me to your favorites here:http://myworld.ebay.com/queen_gothica13?_trksid=p2047675.l2559
This does help indeed! Thank you! This is my first playmat and I will not be using a sharpie for later ones, I'm having the same problem with values and I had to do multiple coats for moast of it to get it good and dark. Do you know what professional markers would be best to use in the future?
I'm not exactly sure when I'll have this thing done, I only work on it during my breaks at work, but I'll get a pic posted once it's done. So far my friends really like it.
Prisma Color and Copic brands are i think the most popular markers to use but they are really expensive, i use Faber Castell pitted markers/pens also expensive but i only use them for fine detail once i'm done with the acrylic paint, so i don't over use them. Copics do have refillable cartridges so i think in the long run those are the best but once again pricey to start. Glad it helps and can't wait to see ur finished product!
http://kersmtgalters.deviantart.com/
To buy some of my alters check out my ebay page and add me to your favorites here:http://myworld.ebay.com/queen_gothica13?_trksid=p2047675.l2559
Three-Eyed Raven Over The Weirwood an original by my me
My Etsy Page here!
Find me on FaceBook here!
Find me on eBay here!
Commission Status: Taking a few here and there
Ebay is where I got mine. I didn't have any luck at any of the local game shops.
Second, a gift - alter of the Wolf-Skull Playmat
not as great of a likeness as I had hoped
Thanks in advance
Alter Portfolio: http://mcomby.deviantart.com/gallery/39482179
Reference: Micheal Turners Superman Godfall and Superman Logo
360 Modern Cube
Cubetutor
EDH Decks
WGTrostaniWG
WURZedruuWUR
Twitter
trial and error, along with the rest of us. my big piece of advise is thus:
You will typically get better results with better materials.
Thanks for the advice. Reading some of the stuff I found on the Internet, I was a little confused with the whole Sharpie issue. Some people warn to stay away from them, but they seem to be one of the most popular mediums. Even with some of the bigger names in the industry.
I guess figuring out what works is part of the process.
Alter Portfolio: http://mcomby.deviantart.com/gallery/39482179
A mat for a VERY excited Hulk Hogan fan. He won a free custom mat at my LGS's Dragon's Maze pre-release.
Hulk riding Treva into Battle original artwork by: Jean-Sébastien Rossbach
And a Jace Book Promo orginal artwork by: Aleksi Briclot
My Etsy Page here!
Find me on FaceBook here!
Find me on eBay here!
Commission Status: Taking a few here and there
I buy mine from SCG when I alter at their events. $10 per mat and they don't have any logos plastered on them like the Ultra Pro "artist mats"
RG Xenagos, God of Revels
BG Meren of the Clan Nel Toth
GW Arahbo, Roar of the World