MERRY GUNPLA CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

MERRY GUNPLA CHRISTMAS TO ALL! 

Pardon the caps as this is the happiest day of my 19 years as a professional artist.

I' am truly BACK this time. I had a couple of attempts to come back to Gunpla ( 2011 and 2015 I think ), but back then... my passion for plastic robots was fueled by Bandai sponsored competitions ( BAKUC / GBWC ) and I was not allowed to join the Open category from 2010 to 2012. Also as a father of 3 growing kids, I focused on my financials the past ( almost 3 ) years.


Blue Brick Art Gallery at Facebook

I was a full time illustrator ( I draw ) working at home for almost 3 years now. I think I illustrated around 56 books and a gazillion of fan art for people abroad ( I rarely do art for local clients ). And it was super fun!

Working at home made us convert the house into an ART studio ( facebook link ). We actually held art classes back in October already ( I actually miss our young art students ), and will resume this January ( 2020 ).

I also met awesome really talented and established illustrators ( and writer ) in the local comics industry a few months back, when I talked at MOA regarding fan art and illustrating for children's books abroad.

I met Paul Medina, Harvey Tolibao, Randy Valiente and Ian Velazquez thru our talk organized by Pop Hub! Awesome experience! I was not worthy to be lined up with those awesome people.


DC23 clothing at Facebook

We also released some DC23 clothing designs a couple of months back. Our shirt printer was awesome as he was able to repro my very detailed art into shirts. It's just that... due to the Christmas season, we were unable to meet some of our client demands... requests.

Requests like smaller... and bigger sizes and shirt colors ( red  and white ).

Moving forward, we are now working with another clothing company to better serve our clients ( but might still work with our old talented printer ). We might be exporting to Australia, Poland and potentially Singapore soon. Albeit we have shipped a few shirts to the US already.

I am designing ( drawing ) more Gunpla / Mecha Designs for our DC23 clothing for next year. DC23 clothing will also be sponsoring a big Mecha competition at Youtube soon.

So stay tuned guys!


Back to Gunpla

As I've said... I'm back. Albeit more as Don Suratos ( my real name ), than as DC23 ( my forums )

To be honest, I am not used to being active in Facebook pages. All of the admins are super cool and all. But I am not comfortable sharing my work to so many groups. I know I am flooding their Facebook groups too much ( My apologies ).

I am dubbed as an "Energizer Bunny" back in 2009 by my awesome friends from Zero G ( ZeroGunz ) forums. I was a hyper active member of that Malaysian based forums. Other than learning my Gunpla in 2008 from the super talented Michael Fichtenmayer ( Fichtenfoo ) and Kenny Lim ( ToyMaker ). I learned a million stuff at Zero G Malaysia ( won't mention names, as I might forget a few ).

Needless to say I learned only from the best.

These days, I am being inspired by other fellow Acrylicos Vallejo artists like Angel Giraldez, Tony Buendia and Chema Cabrero.

The pressure of leveling up my work, as these Vallejo artists are insanely good at what they do. Angel  Giraldez is a monster in the miniature world. Tony Buendia is a master in building scale model planes. My good friend Chema is the guru when it comes to tanks and armor.

And me... Hi I'm Don. LOL


My New Youtube Channel

This month ( December 2019 ) was me trying to get used to a process where I should video record and take photos of my work as I build Gunpla.

You build a little slower this way, as you have to pause and be very mindful of the camera while building Gunpla. I think I am a bit used to it now. It is actually fun.

I actually tried to cheat at Youtube.

I asked for a sort of shout out from a Youtuber ( Gunpla snap fitter and collector ) who asked my Gunpla Interview back in 2017 ( which I failed to reply to, as I was busy building up my Illustration portfolio ). The dude as I expected returned the favor. He ignored my messages at facebook. It's all good tho. Cheating is not good and I guess, Youtube does not work that way. Also, I guess he was building his channel back then... and he no longer does interviews these days. :)

Altho I have the support of my partners, I am now trying to fill my new Youtube channel with quality "modeling" content.

I literally effortlessly channeled my "Energizer Bunny" mode back in 2008 and been churning out quick videos this month.

I will still draw ( Gunpla break so not to burn out ). Mostly drawings for our DC23 clothing and some fan art commissions. But I am focused like an art knife in Gunpla in 2020.

I was just an employee ( at a network ) back in 2008 to 2016. So I just do Gunpla when I get home and during weekends ( like everyone else ). But moving forward, I will now be working full time as a professional Gunpla modeler.

At home... at my own Studio.

I cannot imagine how much Gunpla work I can put out this coming year.

Thus, I need to share a bit less in Facebook groups. Will just share major posts and updates. I tend to post updates a lot, as this is my way of resting from actual Gunpla or miniature work. I promise to NOT flood other Fb groups next year anymore. :)


GBWC 2020

My 16 year old daughter ( @verashley05 at IG ) will be joining GBWC 2020.

So that's that. So I am torn. I envy those people that are determined to join. But should I compete with my 16 year old daughter? Also I will be super busy building and painting for my youtube channel. I doubt I will have the time to modify a single kit til I drop late nights.

Besides, I have a sweet duel / build off with my good friend and master ( in the hobby ) in Kenny Lim aka Toymaker!

That TOYMAKER versus DC23 build off ( link to Youtube ) should be FUN!



FORUMS are DEAD, BLOG is still ALIVE

I am sad as I am a hardcore Gunpla forum guy ( Zero G Malaysia and Fichtenfoo Forums ) back in the day. Thus the code name DC23.

11 years ago, during my most active Gunpla years. It was all forums. There are local ( Philippines ) forums, and a ton of good international forums. I was most active at Zero G, as a friend I met at HK World BAKUC Championship, in Reiloke ( 2008 Malaysia Champion ) invited me there.

Awesome experience!

We also eventually had our own MAC FORUMS, where I met more awesome people here and abroad.

Anyways, needless to say... I am not used to this Facebook group thing. I feel I cannot share too much updates unlike in the forums. So my apologies again for flooding other people's groups. I will try to post the more significant update only moving forward. I was just used to posting everything at Zero G and MAC forums back in those days.

Well at least, a few people still like to read. So I still blog. I am my most talkative here. I like sharing my stuff and even my thoughts here. This blog is getting good traffic again.

I am being penalized by Photobucket for my current blog traffic tho. I do not want to pay for something that should be free. Arrrgh.

Anyways, thanks for people who still like to read blogs. This small blog is alive again.


MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

I get a ton of inquiries and messages on Gunpla and how to paint with Vallejos the past couple of weeks. I am actually happy that some people will be shifting to Vallejos ( they said ).

Vallejos are awesome ( I am bias ), and you have a plethora of resources and tutorials all over the net. I am focus on the Vallejo Mecha Color line tho. The other Vallejo paints are used ( and mastered ) by other Vallejo Artists.

Feel free to message me at IG, Twitter, Facebook or even Youtube regarding anything Gunpla and Vallejo Mecha Color paints. I will answer all of them during my Gunpla coffee breaks. Mabait ako... I am most fluent conversationally in Flipino ( Mahirap lang sya kasi i-type ). So message me for inquiries anytime.

Again I am happy to answer them, Also I am NOT charging a dime. LIBRE po. lol


LASTLY

I made a mistake for leaving the Paint Chipping medium to dry for 30 minutes. As I suspected, thus I sprayed a thick amount of chipping medium ( which was cracking during the painting of the white and pink colors, as it was too thick ).

The Grey, White and Pink Vallejo Mecha Colors are too strong and hard!

Again, I left the chipping medium to dry for 30 minutes ( as usual ) and it was super difficult to chip off the paints. I had to take a coffee break ( thus my photo on top ), as I was getting irritated. The paint chipping was supposedly easy ( it is easier with Vallejo Model Color ).

But the extra resistant properties of the Mecha Color line, was a DISADVANTAGE for the paint chipping technique.

Next time, I WON'T let the Paint Chipping Medium dry too long ( maybe just 5 to 10 minutes ) then will chip away the Mecha Color immediately.

I will share this shorter Paint Chipping Medium drying time experiment soon.

Hope this helps fellow Vallejo Mecha Color painters out there.

So that's it! This was a long post. Now off to spending time with the fam.

again...

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

Saludos!

Read more >>

WHY I Love Vallejo Colors and Where I Get Them

Quick Neutral Grounds Video Tour

I've been using Vallejos ( mostly Vallejo Premium, Vallejo Game Colors and Vallejo Game Airs ) for years now. I started using them on my LOTR action figures ( Vallejo Model Color back in 2001 ). Frodo looks better dirty with washes and grime than the bare plastic after all.

I love Vallejos coz they are the best in hand painting. The paints adhere well to primed or varnished ( Vallejo varnish ) surfaces. And they self level. Vallejo Colors will never reactivate the previous layers ( like other paints do ), so building up of thin coats is super easy. Also the high pigment and finer ( microscopic ) pigments makes better coverage than others.

They are also great with airbrushing as they are non-toxic.

Also the paints are reasonably priced. The high pigment count and the shelf life ( I have Vallejos that are more than 10 years old ) makes the paints worth it! These paints ( like other well established paints ) are investments in themselves.

Lastly, Vallejos are now very accessible to everyone. you may now purchase Vallejo Model Color, Vallejo Model Air, Vallejo Game Color, Vallejo Game Air and Vallejo Mecha Colors ( The whole shebang ) at all Neutral Grounds everywhere!

I get my stock at Neutral Grounds Centris.

So happy that Neutral Grounds started importing these awesome paints!

Anyways, thanks as always for dropping by! Until next post guys! Just enjoy the hobby!



Notable blog articles to guide you with Vallejo Colors.

• Vallejo Paints EXPLAINED
• Vallejo Mecha Color EXPLAINED
• Vallejo Airbrush Flow Improver EXPLAINED
• Vallejo Mediums EXPLAINED

Saludos!

Read more >>

My Partners

I had a handful of inquiries the past week regarding paints, what I use, airbrush set up and where I get my tools and supplies. I am always happy to answer them.

I had a very brief time of painting with some Japanese brand paints ( I like branded paints as I like using only quality paints and tools ). I also have a few other Japanese and USA airbrushes way back ( again, I like quality tools only ) and a precious ( gift ) generic airbrush from my dear friend Kriz.

But I am now exclusively using Vallejos, Harder&Steenbeck and certain tools moving forward.

I am only painting with Vallejo Colors ( Spain ) and airbrushing with Harder&Steenbeck airbrushes from Germany ( once again, I only like quality paints and tools ).

I also get my paints locally ( and a few tools and supplies ) from Neutral Grounds. I also get my tools and supplies from HobbyMate Singapore ( the best hobby shop at Sing ).

Just wanted to make this clear.

Cheers!



DAILY BLOG POST

I am also thinking of posting "daily" blog posts like this, as I am a full time Professional Illustrator and Professional Sci Fi Modeler ( moving forward ). Most artists ( at least here in the Philippines ) are employees. Scale modeling, much more Gunpla ( Mecha / Sci Fi ) modeling is just a weekend hobby for the majority.

But, I literally draw and paint robots and monsters for a living.

Daily posts that I won't really share in other facebook groups or anything. Just some daily logs, a sort of a diary of a full time professional artist working at his home studio. How I start my day or something. I like blogging when I am about to sleep anyways.

Also, these kinds of posts could be inspiring for aspiring or even frustrated artists.

So let's talk shop!



WORK

Woke up, ate breakfast and drank coffee.

Drove my kids to school...went home and then I started work.

I did a bit of snap fitting of my commissioned MG Gunner Zaku Warrior.

Had an email meeting with one of my Gunpla partners for a few minutes, then...

I thought of suddenly recording a quick Vallejo Mecha Color weathering tutorial for my Youtube channel during the middle of my snap fitting. So I pulled out a figure to paint and started painting, errr... started weathering.



END OF WORK

I got hungry during the middle of weathering the figure. Thought of fetching the kids and get some groceries. Fetched the kids, went to the grocery and stayed there for a couple of hours. Drove back home and ... Voila!

The traffic here in the Philippines is one of the worst in the world. Specially during the Christmas season. Got home in time for dinner, ate dinner, then took a quick nap after dinner.



DC23 CLOTHING 

Our DC23 clothing will be merging ( sort of ) with another clothing brand next year. Our partners came late night and we had a nice meeting here at our Home Studio. We are excited to launch a handful of new Mecha Designs with the new collaboration.

We needed a partner that could help us deliver the demand of our clients from as simple as shirt sizes, shirt color, material and the request of potential resellers abroad.

2020 will be bigger, better and more fun!


SUPER LATE NIGHT

After the meeting, I thought of resuming my weathering session. Will reveal this quick weathering project tomorrow.

That's it! That's my day. Not too productive today as a huge chunk of my day was spent on groceries with the kids and the traffic. This was still a productive day tho.

Anyways, thanks a ton for dropping by! Until next post guys! Just enjoy the hobby!

Saludos!

Read more >>

I Draw and Paint Monsters and Robots for a Living

People who follow me or been friends with me since I started this blog back in 2009, might be surprised a bit as I am coming back to Gunpla and Miniature painting again.

I previously tried to come back to the hobby a couple of times before ( 2012 and 2015 ), but ended up focusing on my career ( employed artist in 2012, freelance illustrator in 2016 ). 

I was focused in being a professional illustrator ( I do not use the term artist, as anything you do with a computer is art these days ). 

I professionally do both digital illustrations and traditional ink art and watercolors on paper. In fact, I became the first Filipino commissioned by Paramount Pictures to do an alternate poster for the movie, Pet Sematary this year. 

I have illustrated more than 50 published children's books in less than 3 years already. I have also drawn a ton of ink illustrations from Star Wars, Wargaming characters to Gundam. 90% ( maybe 98% ) of my illustration clients are from abroad tho. My wife ships traditional art, rolled inside a plastic tube through our local post office. Here is the link to my ART portfolio. 

Drawing monsters and robots at home, for a living is so fulfilling, You do not have a ( insert expletives here ) boss after all. It won't get you rich like crazy, but you will have enough to put 3 kids to school and slowly ( really slowly ) build a house / home studio - Blue Brick,  at the same time. 

FAST FORWARD

I'm really back as a Gunpla, Miniature Painter, Scale Modeler this time! 

NO, I do not think I will be joining GBWC ever again ( I am conflicted ). I used to join Bandai Gunpla competitions in 2008 to 2010. 

My Kampfer luckily won as World Champion in Hong Kong back in 2008 ( it's not even in the Bandai site anymore ) I met so many awesome people there. Back in 2010, Bandai created the expert category for multi time champions.

 I think mostly to prevent us from joining the Open category. My Gilgamesh Project won as Expert Champion. There are only 3 multi champion participants including me, in the expert category tho. A ton of LOL!

The old "Expert Category" of Bandai's competition back then, is one of the reason I stopped doing Gunpla. I shifted a bit to painting miniatures. Miniatures take less prep work, but are harder to paint. But it was also fun stuff!

I AM REALLY BACK THIS TIME

I am really back this time. Promise. LOL

I am actually waiting for a shipping of my model kits ( from the Gunpla Distributor from Singapore ).  Yes I do not even get my kits locally these days ( lol ). I am so excited, but afraid of the custom taxes at the same time. haha

I will also have a ton of personal Gunpla and Miniature projects. I like to do some restoration work of my older dioramas and vignettes and do some quick painting of smaller kits and minis.

I am expecting a whole year's ( 2020 ) amount of kits. Not sure if they are sending the whole lot I listed tho. But never the less, I am sooo excited! 

I have my Harder & SteenBeck airbrush to shoot with, I have my Vallejos to paint with, I have tools from HobbyMate and miniatures from Neutral Grounds to hand paint in the coming year! 

This is going to be so much fun! 

Join me as I try to build up my new Youtube channel, posts a ton in my Instagram, Twitter and Facebook accounts. 

Again, this semi transition back to the hobby should be a ton of fun! 

Thanks as always for dropping by! Until next update guys! Just enjoy the hobby! 

Cheers! 

Read more >>

DC23 Clothing Designs Revelation on December 10!

Our first 3 Samurai Gundam inspired limited custom shirts SOLD well. 

But as a young clothing company, we are looking to grow and meet all the demands of our clients next year ( 2020 ). We plan to release 3 custom designs ( hand drawn by yours truly ) every 2 months this 2020. 

We are now in the talks with another clothing company, that could potentially help us grow and meet all the demands of our clients. Demands like shirt color variations and sizing ( Our apologies we did not have small, medium and xxxl last time ). 

We hope to deliver a more diverse line of custom designed shirts soon. 

We are also to release our Darth Vader inspired custom shirt this month. Again our apologies for the delay. 

We cannot thank all of our clients enough, who bought our first 3 designs. We look forward to delivering you the best Gundam / Gunpla / Mecha inspired designed shirts in the near future. 

DC23 clothing at Facebook

Cheers! 

SHOUTOUT as usual!

I only use Vallejo Acrylic paints in all my builds - Acrylicos Vallejo

I get some of my tools from HOBBYMATE Singapore - HobbyMate at Facebook

And get my Vallejo paints from Neutral Grounds Philippines - Neutral Grounds Philippines

I only use Harder & Steenbeck for airbrushing - Harder & Steenbeck Airbrush

Read more >>

Just Some DC23 logo Variations

I did some DC23 logo variations to start my day ( woke up later than usual ). I am starting to confuse our different social media accounts and I wanted to unify all the accounts at the same time. So voila! Same logo in different variants. 

These are just quick and rough variants. I did not do them in Ai or something. No plans ( as of this writing ) of printing them on shirts or whatever. So these will do. They look good as profile pic / avatars. I am still getting used to them at the moment. 

I used the logo with the youtube icon for all the DC23_mecharts accounts ( IG, Twitter and Facebook ). Albeit DC23_mecharts at Twitter and the Fb page is now named Don Suratos ART. I want to promote my new Youtube channel with the logo. I am still building up the channel tho. Building up your channel is hard work, but is so fun. 

The DC23 logo with the rising sun background is for our DC23 clothing brand. Our first set of 3 designs are Samurai / Gundam inspired. Also I love anything Japanese ( obviously ). 

We are shipping another batch of DC23 clothing custom shirts today. We really never thought these custom shirts will sell this well. I personally hand drawn the shirt designs / illustrations with a Japanese brush on paper. Scanned it and had my art printed on shirts. Awesome stuff! 

There are only TWO more extra large Sazabi inspired shirts. And a handful of the Zaku and RX inspired shirts. We might re-print these Samurai line again. People like them. Thank You! 

That's it! Thanks a ton as always for dropping by! Until next update guys! 

Cheers! 

Read more >>

Blogging versus Facebook

BLOGGING VERSUS FACEBOOK! 

Nahhhh! I just wanted to give this blog entry a cool title. Blogging versus Facebook sounds so thought provoking.

Seriously tho, I have been active here the past few days ( maybe a week ), and I am enjoying blogging again. Most, almost all of my fellow bloggers 10 years ago has moved on to Facebook. Obviously, forums are also dead. Facebook ( also twitter and Instagram ) are generally great for everyone. It  kinda gives a more accessible platform in comparison to the old forums. Social Media also feels more interactive ( or engaging ) than blogs and websites. 

Everyone is at Facebook these days. Everyone is at Twitter and Instagram too. 

Also, Youtube these days is bigger than Youtube years ago. Everyone watches Youtube. 

Do check out my new Youtube channel... Please subscribe even if my channel is still just filling up. 

Anyways, back to blogging...

I do interact at Facebook like everyone else. We've just started our art gallery / art studio of sorts, that we call Blue Brick. We also just launched the first 3 designs of our DC23 clothing. I have always been active at my old Facebook page ( they call it fan page way back ) DC23 mecharts, albeit I renamed it to Don Suratos ART last year. All of these are all at Facebook ( and IG and Twitter ). 

However, I am my most talkative self here at my blog. I feel like sharing everything here unlike anywhere else. I actually share too much here. This old blog... is like my public diary of sorts. 

This old blog used to get 100k visitors per month back in 2010 ( it is getting 5k per month during the past inactive 2 years ). I know that even if I become active in Gunpla / Gundam again, blog all of my updates and projects, post a gazillion tutorials here... page views here will never be the same. People like scrolling at Facebook or Twitter or Youtube or Instagram, than click links to a blog or website. 

Don't get me wrong, I love all of the Social Media platforms... these are just ramblings of a dude that is about to sleep. lol. 

Anyways, I fully embrace that blogging ( or at least my blog ) will never get the same traffic per month again. But I still really love blogging. Imho, Blogging feels more permanent. Facebook is too fast pace for me. I love to chill. I like chilling here. 

I love the "label" system, I love that all my posts are properly archived, and I love talking here a lot. 

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Woot, I am sleepy now. Photo dumps here are all the photos I used to edit for the edit of my Youtube video intro. I also use this design as banner to my Twitter and Facebook accounts. 

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Okay... I am really sleepy now. Thanks as always for wasting your time here! Until next update guys! 

Cheers! 

SHOUTOUT as usual!

I only use Vallejo Acrylic paints in all my builds - Acrylicos Vallejo

I get some of my tools from HOBBYMATE Singapore - HobbyMate at Facebook

And get my Vallejo paints from Neutral Grounds Philippines - Neutral Grounds Philippines

I only use Harder & Steenbeck for airbrushing - Harder & Steenbeck Airbrush

Read more >>

WHY Keep On BLOGGING???

Have you ever tried Googling yourself?

I don't google myself often ( LMAO )... But other people might, other people do ( I think ). I am an artist since birth. And artists love showing their works to people. I guess this is the nature why I love blogging since 2009. I am not a writer, grammar is... okay I guess. But, blogging is always a nice venue to share your craft.

A ton of my old ( old time ) friends from my previous hobby ( Gundam / Gunpla ) are no longer blogging as much as before. Some have totally stopped. A ton of people now stay at Facebook. I only have a little more than 5K followers at my FB Page. Main reason would be my switching of hobbies as the years go by. I used to be very active in Gunpla, then Bikes, then Miniature Painting and now drawing and painting. I guess my hobby switching made my follower count stagnant at FB.

This blog also used to get more than 100K visits per month during my Gunpla days. Now I get an average of 20K visits per month. Still pretty good numbers tho.

I still prefer Blogging over Facebook. I have nothing against Facebook. Heck I get 75% of my commissioned drawings these days through Facebook. But, Blogging or having websites is still the best way to keep your "online presence" stable ( in my humble opinion ).

Notice how Google prioritized my Blog and Google+, before showing IMDB, Facebook and other online platforms. I do not have proof of this "prioritization" of Google, but most of the images of myself ( on top ), are mostly from this blog... and other websites ( or blog )... not Facebook.

Again, I have nothing against Facebook, I just like to talk to myself a lot... That is why I still love to Blog! hehehe

Anyways, thanks a ton for dropping by! Until my next rambling guys! CIAO!

Read more >>

Custom Made Drawing Table!

I just woke up, I figured I'd blog a bit before resuming work on some drawings today.

My dad crafted 30 Drawing Tables for a school a while back. He loves accepting projects in carpentry, metal stuff and whatever craft you could think of. Dad also cooks! He celebrated his 68th Birthday a couple of days ago. The old man is still rocking at his age. There were a couple of unfinished drawing tables at his cave. Figured I'd asked for one of them.

These are photos of my old man working on my custom made drawing table. It's huge! Made of solid "kiln dry" high quality wood. This table should serve me well for the rest of my drawing life.

The drawing table measures 42 inches x 31 inches. The glass area at the middle of the table measures 32 inches by 21 inches. It is huge stuff! Huge specially for the usual size of the drawings that I do. This table is perfect for one of the drawing / illustration project, that I will be doing next month! Stay tuned guys! Will work on an epic sized ART soon!

Anyways, Thanks as always for dropping by! Until next post! CIAO!

Read more >>

DC23MechArts Weekend Photo Dump 060215

The past week was so eventful for me! I got my box full of Vallejo paints, a couple of models from Privateer Press, my wife's birthday, a handful of WarmaHordes models to add to my army, painted a lot of commissioned models and got some tools from my younger brother who went to Japan for research work. Cool week!

Lazy to write today as I need to go home early to paint some more models! So I hope you enjoy my photos as much as I enjoy them ( lol )! Some people love taking selfies ( photos of themselves ), I love taking some workbenchies ( photos of my work bench )... so pardon the loads of photos of my workbench every week.

Anyways, thanks for wasting your time here. Until next post, just enjoy the hobby! :)

Read more >>