Modelling with non-modelling tools ...

[AlanG]

Alan - not used a baby scoop, I mix paints in old plastic cat food containers - we have only one cat but she goes through a lot of cat food so I have a nice stock of them.

When i was painting the oak leaf camo for my figures for the Bocage dio i had a couple of different colours on the go at any one time. So i used/still use the egg holder that came with my old fridge. It can utilise 6 colours/spaces at one time. Excellent for mixing colours and real easy clean up

[Tim Marlow]

I use a paper clip with one leg bent at right angles to clean out the nozzle in my Vallejo paints. It’s just the right size.
Like everyone i have an old toothbrush to scrub models. Mine is at least twenty years old now.
Blue tack is a given, I’m sure more is used for modelling than for anything else….not sure that counts though as I use it as designed, to stick things to surfaces.
I have a small pair of flat jawed eyebrow tweezers I use to remove stray hairs from my paintbrushes. Not paintbrush bristles, I hasten to add, just the occasional cat hair or clothing fibre that tends to gravitate to wet paint.

[Waspie]

When i was painting the oak leaf camo for my figures for the Bocage dio i had a couple of different colours on the go at any one time. So i used/still use the egg holder that came with my old fridge. It can utilise 6 colours/spaces at one time. Excellent for mixing colours and real easy clean up

I've just thought of a good use for my ice cube doo dah from the freezer!!! Thanks for the prompt!!!!
Now to get it past SWMBO!!!!!

[Flip]

Another one to add to the list...

This is my patented ping preventer (specially designed to defeat the carpet monster).
In reality it was the bag that my new pillow came in :smiling5:
Open the zip wide to put stuff in then close up as far as you want, leaving a comfortable gap to get your hands and wrists in. Due to the material, you can see what you are doing and any "pings" are caught in a defined volume.

[Andy T]

I've just thought of a good use for my ice cube doo dah from the freezer!!! Thanks for the prompt!!!!
Now to get it past SWMBO!!!!!

Further to that, the trays from M&S garlic dough balls are great for larger amounts of paint (diorama etc). Very sturdy & easy to clean.

I also use a Ferrero Rocher container for my oil paints. It lets the oil leach out onto the cardboard without the surface getting too crusty after a day or two:

[Waspie]

Further to that, the trays from M&S garlic dough balls are great for larger amounts of paint (diorama etc). Very sturdy & easy to clean.

I also use a Ferrero Rocher container for my oil paints. It lets the oil leach out onto the cardboard without the surface getting too crusty after a day or two:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1220018[/ATTACH]

Still waiting for the boss to finish the FR’s!!!

[stillp]

Further to that, the trays from M&S garlic dough balls are great for larger amounts of paint (diorama etc). Very sturdy & easy to clean.

I also use a Ferrero Rocher container for my oil paints. It lets the oil leach out onto the cardboard without the surface getting too crusty after a day or two:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1220018[/ATTACH]

I use the empty foil from blister packs of indigestion tablets as disposable palettes. I'd add a photo but my PC and phone won't play nicely together.
Pete

[Flip]

I'd add a photo but my PC and phone won't play nicely together

:tears-of-joy:

[Peter Gillson]

I use the empty foil from blister packs of indigestion tablets as disposable palettes. I'd add a photo but my PC and phone won't play nicely together.
Pete

I use the empty foil from blister packs of indigestion tablets as disposable palettes. I'd add a photo but my PC and phone won't play nicely together.
Pete

I also use the plastic blister packs from pills as small palettes when I only need a small amount of paint - such as when painting 54mm figures.

Peter

[Peter Gillson]

Here's one I almost forgot: the first photo shows a 'Heath Robinson' contraption which can hold two plastic bottles of paint - Vallejo or similar...



the back metal bar, a jigsaw blade, fits into my jigsaw like this:


It is a bit of a beast but with it I can shake 2 bottles of paint at a time; 10-15 seconds an the paint is well and truly mixed. I mainly use it for paint that I have not used for a while; usually before I start painting a project I will blitz all of the paints using this and for subsequent, ongoing paint-shaking I have a paint shaker designed for tattoo inks.

Peter

[colin m]

Good heavens, the old brain didn't fail me.
This link if for Tony' unconventional bits and pieces.

https://www.scale-models.co.uk/threads/unconventional-modelling-materials-list.6491/

[Mickc1440]

Aren’t we a resourceful bunch I like many get through loads of cocktail sticks and coffee stirrers and like Andy have a nice collection of makeup sponges and brushes

[Jim R]

One thing I find very helpful which is not specific to the hobby is the command of a variety of expletives. Depending on the seriousness of the c***-*p they can be strung together so as to be more appropriate to the situation. For example a slight wobble when brush painting may only require one simple word. Whereas half a bottle of Tamiya Extra Thin over the wing of your latest, almost complete, masterpiece will certainly need a string of said expletives. The volume of the required profanity can also vary. It can range from under the breath and barely audible to shocking the people in the house next door but one.
I strongly advise those new to the hobby to acquire a sizeable vocabulary of appropriate oaths. They will become an important part of your modelling essentials and will ensure you achieve full enjoyment from this wonderful hobby.

[Mark1]

Thought about using one of these a few times.

[Waspie]

One thing I find very helpful which is not specific to the hobby is the command of a variety of expletives. Depending on the seriousness of the c***-*p they can be strung together so as to be more appropriate to the situation. For example a slight wobble when brush painting may only require one simple word. Whereas half a bottle of Tamiya Extra Thin over the wing of your latest, almost complete, masterpiece will certainly need a string of said expletives. The volume of the required profanity can also vary. It can range from under the breath and barely audible to shocking the people in the house next door but one.
I strongly advise those new to the hobby to acquire a sizeable vocabulary of appropriate oaths. They will become an important part of your modelling essentials and will ensure you achieve full enjoyment from this wonderful hobby.

Coming as I do from a nautical background I am pre loaded with a plethora of naughty words and phrases depending upon the occasion.
Eg - ‘seduce my old maritime footwear’.