Painted Perspectives is a series where we talk to miniature hobbyists from across the community about how they paint, what inspires them, and how they found their place in the hobby. There’s no single right way to approach miniature painting, and this series celebrates the many different paths people take to get there.
“It’s a fantasy world! I don’t care if it’s ‘right’ — I just want it to be cool!” - Lou Miniatures
For our first instalment, we’re chatting with Lou Miniatures, a fantasy-focused painter who discovered the hobby during pandemic-era RPG sessions and never looked back. Since picking up a brush in 2021, Lou has embraced bold creativity, community, and a love of metallic shine — especially NMM gold — while exploring larger scale fantasy figures like elves, knights, and merfolk.
How and when did you first get into miniature painting? What was painting your first mini like?
Lou: I started painting miniatures in 2021. During the lockdowns, a group of friends and I were playing Warhammer Fantasy RPG to pass the time, and the idea came up to buy some miniatures for our characters and give them a quick paint job. Nothing serious — just a fun, different way to spend an evening.
My first miniature was a complete mess! Miniature painting was my very first approach to traditional art; I had never drawn or painted before. I struggled even with basic basecoating, and I couldn’t imagine the idea of going beyond that at all.
Since you started miniature painting, what's kept you engaged in the hobby?
Lou: I started this hobby together with my husband, and very quickly we found small communities full of people passionate about painting, fantasy, and RPGs. Having a new hobby is great, but making friends through it is even better. Honestly, without the community aspect, I don’t think I would have had the motivation to push myself so hard with painting.
What sort of miniatures/models do you most enjoy painting?
Lou: I’m much more into fantasy than sci-fi. My all-time favourites are elves, knights, and merfolk. In recent years, I’ve focused more on larger-scale models like 75mm figures or busts, because they give me more space for creativity and interpretation.
Are there techniques or colours you keep coming back to regardless of how your work evolves?
Lou: Definitely NMM. It’s something that gives me a lot of satisfaction, so I often choose models with metallic parts — and sometimes I even invent some just to paint them!
What mistakes have taught you the most and is there anything you still struggle with?
Lou: At the beginning, I used to approach every part of the model separately, finishing one section completely before moving on to the next, while the rest stayed in primer. The problem is that your perception changes once you add more colours nearby — but after spending so much time on one area, I didn’t want to go back and adjust it. I learned that it’s much better to do a quick painting sketch over the whole model first, and only then start refining each part.
There are many things I could still improve, but right now my main struggle is focus and endurance during the final steps. Sometimes I get bored during refinement and don’t push the model as far as I know I could. I also tend to switch between different parts too often and end up a bit confused. The downside of not working on one part at a time, I guess!
What do you wish you'd known about miniature painting when you started?
Lou: That I could do it! That it’s not too difficult, and that I don’t need any artistic background to achieve the results I want.
Favourite colour to paint
Lou: NMM gold
What do you listen to while painting?
Lou: All kinds of metal 🤘
Brush you can't live without
Lou: Round point size 2 and size 0
Fav The Army Painter product
Lou: Warpaints Fanatic Plate Mail Metal (Did I already say METAL?)
👉 Keep up with Lou’s work at Instagram!
👉 Learn how to paint Non-Metallic Gold
