Thursday, November 12, 2015

Give Your Funko Pops Extra OOMPH: Easy Aging! (BioShock's Big Daddy & Songbird )

I picked up two big Funko Pops at ThinkGeek the other day: the Big Daddy and Songbird. They're already surprisingly well painted, but even so, I knew a little aging would really make them shine.

It's always fun to age existing vinyl figures and toys, since all you need is black or brown craft paint, a brush, and a wet rag. Paint on, wipe off, VOILÁ. Instant age & extra detailing!

Here's Songbird straight out of the box:


And after aging:

It's a subtle difference since he's already so dark, but see how the stitching on his head really stands out now?

I also painted the stitching on his body suit tan before aging, to give it a little highlight. Then I added metallic silver on his arm grommets & orange and yellow to his eyes. 

That's optional, though; as you can see, the aging does most of the work!


You can see my eye paint is pretty rough, and since I didn't prime it, it will come off the slick plastic if scratched or scrubbed. He's just for display, though, so this is fine for me.

I'm still debating adding a crack to the eye.


Now for the more dramatic transformation: Big Daddy.


 Here he is straight out of the box.


Now, I DID start by just aging him down with black paint, but then, well... I got a little carried away.

BUT LOOK HOW FUN:

WHEEEEE

Before and After:


I used three different color washes on Big Daddy: first black, then a rusty reddish-brown, and then bright teal on the copper sections.


Next I used silver liquid leaf to paint all the screw heads & pipe joints.

And finally, for the finishing touches, I added bright orange rust spots on his tanks and a darker red (either rust or blood, depending on your interpretation) to his drill arm and shoes. 

I'm especially happy with the tanks:


 
I used a combination of dry stippling & watered down drips of the orange paint to get that rusty finish. Cheap craft paint dries dead flat, which helps sell the look.




Both figures only took me a few hours to paint - with Big Daddy taking most of that time, of course.


Hope you guys enjoyed the eye candy! 

Now, who's ready to grunge up their Pop collection? :D

20 comments:

  1. Wow, they were cool before, but now they are works of art!! It's amazing how much of a difference those small details make. Thanks for sharing!

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  2. You're so talented! I wish I had those sorts of artistic abilities; between this and the custom ones you've made using bits from several other Funkos, I've *wanted* to make some of the characters from Chuck (mine and hubby's favorite show), but I know I don't have the talent for it. Don't suppose you and John are for hire for that sort of project? :)

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  3. Ooh I think I just found my friends Christmas present!! Big Daddy won't look as good as yours of course (it's like his first day on the job versus when you turn up in Rapture!)

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  4. Jen, you give the term "Playing with your toys" a whole new meaning. :)

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  5. I love the aging, and I looove Songbird in general, but your before and after images of the Big Daddy are actually after and before. Although, I'd love a tutorial on how to de-age something; paint thinner would just melt everything away, wouldn't it?

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    1. Ha! Whoops. Blogger is funny with side-by-side pics; I guess it swapped them. Really, I'm just keeping you guys on your toes.

      And yes, if you ever want to take paint OFF, try a little acetone/nail polish remover on a Q-tip. Works like a charm on vinyl toys.

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  6. Oooooh! Big Daddy came out so pretty!!

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  7. These are so cool! I just made a custom Pop of my husband for our anniversary, and I used a lot of your tips from the Crowley custom. Thanks so much for sharing all your geeky crafting :)

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  8. That is beyond fabulous, it's amazing. I really thought you were showing me screen shots!

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  9. Hey Jen, have you ever thought about selling your custom painted Pop's for people on your etsy store?

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    1. Eh, not seriously; I don't think I could charge very much, and there's always some NEW project I want to try. ;)

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  10. Gorgeous transformations, Jen!! I didn't know I needed a Big Daddy figurine until now! Those rusty tanks and copper patina are downright drool worthy. Great job!

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  11. They look like real leather and metal now!

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  12. You need to get some resin kits and build/paint from scratch. I think you'd be brilliant at it!

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  13. Whoa what a cool idea! That looks great.

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  14. Wow! Adds so much more visual depth, Jen...!

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  15. These look amazing! I've yet to try altering any Funkos, but I definitely want to give it a shot sometime!

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