"What 28-33mm female mini has the prettiest face?" Topic

In relation to this potential new range (not mine!) of 28mm 'Lace Wars' female soldiers ('Demoiselles en Dentelle' TMP link ):
TMP link
TMP link
TMP link
(see also TMP link
TMP link NSFW? )

Success will for the largest part rest on the talent of the sculptor,
- the femininity of the shapes (gaming minis are intended to be seen from a distance, so essential distinguishing features have to be…rather obvious link (Achtung! NSFW)

It would be useful to have readers of this thread post here links to what they judge to be the 'prettiest female faces' in 28 -35 mm.

For 'Real World™' inspirational examples of women in tricorne:

More generally, what manufacturer / range would you point as having the most beautiful women in (25 -35mm) miniatures?

I think a hooded and mostly robed women with a hint of leg (think Angelina Jolie) and a partially exposed chest with no visible weapons, could be used in almost any game.

Hasslefree

Some of Erueka's and Bronze Age's lady pirates, have great faces.

And their hooters are pretty nice too!

Have to agree – Hasselfree would be my choice

Freebooter's ladies faces are the best, IMO…
Has a slyvan feature that I like.

My favourites are sculpted by Werner Klocke, Tom Meier & Julie Guthrie.

I like the slightly elvish / feline features of this one:

link

Raging Heroes

and
Guild of Harmony

have some rather pretty female figurines.

Tom Meier – some of the best.

I think the Fenryll "Village Women" (I could have the name wrong.) are among the prettiest I have seen. I included them in pics 17, 18, and 20 of my Pirate Gallery at warin15mm.com/Pirates.html

I like the 'bubbles' elf's resemblance to Kylie!

Freebooter (Werner Klocke freebooterminiatures.de/en ) for me, as well as Werner's work for other companies, inlcuding Reaper ( link ) and Metal Magic.

Tom Meier and the late Dennis Mize a very close second.

Hydra Valkeeri very pretty , Hasslefree have some spiffy ones

I'll not discuss her dress, weapons or pose but this Ax faction Dragon Hunter is a really nice example:

axfaction.com/#!shop-window

I'm not sure I get to weigh in on this, being female, but I think Werner Klocke's women are very pretty, even if they usually are staring at their chests.

I like the Ladies Grymm, too. That they are short like me has *nothing* to do with it, really. (;

I have seen lots and lots of women… and lots and lots of miniatures.

Quality always beats quantity!

However – to make sure that this post has some gaming content, I have to say that I have always liked Kev of Hasslefree sculpts… I think it must be his life model that inspires him so much!

Some of the images above – do not look pretty to me – and alien faced pointed chin with very slanted eyes – no not for me.

Of course with my scanner and 3d printer I can scan a real head, and position that on a model and print it out… its getting Monica or whoever to come and pose over the scanner that is the problem.

If I win the lottery – then I will search out some very pretty girls and have full body scans of them, in each outfit and pose – but until then…

Don't forget the females from Tin Man Miniatures

"alien faced pointed chin with very slanted eyes – no not for me."
Not 'Alien' but 'Elfish / Melnibonean': even Liv Tyler YouTube link imho has the lower jaw too large, the whole (cute as it may be) face too round to fit the bill (?).

To my eyes Bridget Regan / Kahlan has a more feminine face than Tabrett Bethell / Cara YouTube link and it's not a side effect of the longer hair. In the same way both Morgause and Morgana have a feminine face.YouTube link / YouTube link -more so imho than Morgaine of 'The Mists of Avalon'; a matter pf cheekbones vs jaw?

.

Tin Man tinminis.com/TinManCatalog.htm? Yes, Livia seems to have a very pretty face

though for 'visibility' she would gain yo receive… some features from Delia link

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Now beauty is the eye of the beholder, that's why I started this poll in the hope to know what potential inhaber of Lace Wars female regiments would appreciate as a cute, feminine face.

I like a face to have individual character, not to always look like a cewpie doll. Real, beautiful women can have strong features without looking unfeminine.

The bottom right one is included for reference.

I think this one is the winner…

and she's only 15mm! 8D

Indeed a prettier face than many 28 – 30mm female figurines!

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"Real, beautiful women can have strong features without looking unfeminine."
Yes. But 'strong' features too easily pass to 'manly' ones.
Compare Ursula Andress' *face*

with that of BB

compare Demi Moore

with Angelina Jolie

(and you see I did not play on the hair length!)….

This is specially critical for wargaming miniatures: not display case pieces to be scrutinized individually possibly under a magnifying glass, but tiny sculpts the femininity of which has to be obvious when they are seen from a distance on the gaming table.

Off-topic, a 'reasonable' (almost subdued, when you remember it would be 28mm high and to be see from 3 feet) body:

TMP link

'strong' features too easily pass to 'manly' ones.

Well, I'd take Andress or Moore over Bardot or Jolie any day, particularly Jolie who I don't think attractive at all.

has to be obvious when they are seen from a distance on the gaming table.

You must have good eyes, no face of any sort less than 5mm high has ever been clearly visible to me from four feet away ever. The faces on figures are something you admire when you pick them up and look at them.

a 'reasonable' body:

I don't know if it's foreshortening from the perspective but check the length of the lower legs, they seem short. The length from hip joint to knee should be approximately the same as from knee to ankle.

Example of women's legs extremely long to short:

As I wrote, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, hence this attempt of poll.

I should examine more attentively the legs of Adriana Karembeu (1.26 m of legs out of a total height of 1.83 m, reportedly). On photos, of course, I'm not an obscenely paid football player.

"You must have good eyes, no face of any sort less than 5mm high has ever been clearly visible to me from four feet away ever." Most Elves had always looked androgynous to me, even seen on the table, and not because of long hair (though it helps when you try to 'feminize' then with strategically placed putty).

1.26 m of legs out of a total height of 1.83 m, reportedly

Certainly Ms Karembeu's legs are extremely long, I make them 55% of her height from hip joint to heel. As you seem to expect from the qualifier 'reportedly' that is somewhat less than the 69% of the proportions given but substantially higher than the 48% which is average for European women.

Her ratio of length of upper to lower leg is a normal approximately 1:1.

To reach a larger panel I posted a reference to this poll on the Lounge TMP link
Since only a minority of TMP readers have access to it, I repeat here the examples mentioned to far.
Ebob's Princess of Wales

Hasselfree's Gina

Sana

Rae

Black Scorpion's Alexis

(btw I'm not convinced by the lower body anatomy of this last: her skinny thighs gave her a '2 matchlocks in a chestnut' silhouette)

Trying to understand what I like in feminine faces such as that of Tin Man's Lisa (some 8 posts above), it seems that what marks a face as feminine even for a 30mm mini seen for 3 feet is the 'feline' feature, high cheekbones vs narrow chin? To me it what makes most male Elves look androgynous.

To quote AnneOleary TMP link : "I prefer the Hasslefree over the Foundry for these kind of figures because they look more feminine. When dealing with Foundry females I file the jaw lines down to taper into the chin and soften up the heavy brow bone."

Back to the subject of Ms Karembeu's legs, I think this:

Demonstrates something interesting. Ms Karembeu's legs are, as I said, very long about the same as the model on the left of the lineup when you consider the picture of Ms Karembeu appears to have been taken at knee level (to make her legs look longer) where the other pictures were taken at about the level of the navel for minimal distortion.

What is clear however, even when you account for the camera angle distortion, is Ms Karembeu has an extremely small head (though in the normal range). This makes all her other proportions appear different just as the very large heads sported by most figures change their aspect.

"The male Mask varies from the female Mask in the following ways:
1] prominent supra-orbital (brow) ridges (frontal bossing) resulting in deep set appearing eyes
2] flatter and narrower eyebrows
3] slightly narrower eyes
4] eyes less "wide open" (eye lids slightly closed)
5] slightly longer and/or wider nose  
6] more obtuse nose-lip (nasio-labial) angle
7] slightly thinner lips (especially upper lip)
8] square/angled and or larger jaws."

More detailed:
"Overall Shape An attractive female face tends to be heart shaped. It has rounded corners from the hairline down to a single point at the chin. Male faces have a more square appearance and an "M" shaped hairline coming down to a wide, square cornered jaw at the bottom. The lower third of the male face is usually longer because of a long top lip and tall chin. In profile, the female face tends to be flat while the male forehead slopes backwards, with the lower half of the face protruding forward.

Hairline The male hairline is usually higher than the female's and tends to have an "M" shape that recedes at the temples.

Forehead *This is one of the more apparent gender markers*. The bone ridge running across the forehead above the eyes, known as brow bossing, is more pronounced in males. Females have almost no discernable brow bossing because their foreheads are more rounded with a fairly flat front. In profile, female foreheads are more vertical instead of backward sloping.

Eyebrows Male eyebrows are fairly straight and thick and sit on or just under the orbital rims. Female eyebrows generally sit higher and are more arched.

Nose The female nose is smaller, shorter. It has a narrower bridge and nostrils, often has a more concave profile, and tends to be blunter at the tip. Also it has a greater angulation between the lip and the tip of the nose (points upwards more).

Cheeks The cheekbone itself tends to stand a little bit higher and further forward. The effect can be emphasised by the fact that the male upper jaw often protrudes forward more than in females.

Top lip length The distance between the top lip and the base of the nose is usually longer in males (sometimes a lot longer). When a woman's mouth is relaxed and slightly open she usually shows 2 – 4 mm of her upper teeth. This is considered attractive and also lends a youthful appearance to the face. In females the whole section of skin between the top lip and nose often has a more backward slope and inwards curve.

Lips The distance between the nose's base and lip's top is usually longer in males When a female mouth is relaxed and slightly open, it usually shows a bit of her top teeth, which lends a youthful appearance to the face. The area between the top lip and nose often has a more backward slope in females.

Lip shape Female lips are often fuller than male ones and therefore tend to be bigger in proportion to the rest of the face. Female mouths also tend to be narrower.

Chin Female chins are rounded. Male chins are wider, have a flat base and have two corners that form a square shape. Male chins are taller and heavier and are more likely to have a vertical cleft in the middle.

Jaw The male jawbone is usually heavier built and tends to be wider, because the muscles attached to the corners of the jawbone are much bigger. Female jaw lines run in a gentle curve from the earlobe to the chin. In males it tends to drop down straight from the ear and then turn at a sharp angle towards the chin giving a square appearance.

Adam's Apple The Adam's apple is usually visible and very prominent in males, but rarely visible in females.

Eyes The eyes in a woman appear larger. This is in part because of the shape of the bony rim above and the forehead, and partly because of the cheek bones. The combination of bone shapes create relatively larger eyes which is considered both feminine and attractive."

The distinguishing female / "anti-male" features have to be emphasized, even slightly exaggerated for the face of a mini to look obviously feminine even on the gaming table top. It does NOT matter if the face appears s little caricatural when the head is photographically enlarged 5 or 10 folds: what really counts is the impression when the figurine is seen in its real size on the gaming table.

The distinguishing female / "anti-male" features have to be emphasized, even slightly exaggerated for the face of a mini to look obviously feminine even on the gaming table top.

I'm not an expert on optics but it seems to me looking at a 1/56 figure from three feet is the same for visual acuity as looking at a life size figure at 168 feet.

There is no perceptual need to distort figures at all, HO railroad layouts with realistically proportioned figures look just fine. Distortion was originally introduced for durability and ease of manufacture and due to lack of care or skill in the sculptor. It has since become a convention, a fashion like Marvel comic book illustration. The preference for distortion is justified only by taste.

Well, I think these women must be recruited for their looks! Much like Guards Regiments recruiting for height! Me I'd rather have ladies who can heft a backpack, musket and fire 4 rounds a minute!

regarding the face, it ca, be added that (mandibular) prognathism (progenism) makes the face more 'manly'. In descriptions of *male* faces in novels traditionally a 'strong' lower jaw / mandibula marks a strong will, an 'unassuming' lower jaw / chin a mark of indecision and weakness. probably in relation with the 'challenging mimic' of male anthropoids (we still share most of the non-verbal language of our cousins) and more generally with the act that in most higher mammals female heads *remain more juvenile* with shorter faces / snouts.

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*Why* couls they not be very pretty AND be able to 'heft a backpack, musket and fire 4 rounds a minute'? If fantasy could not offer more than The Real World™ where would be its point?

If fantasy could not offer more than The Real World™ where would be its point?

That's an excellent idea for a thread, 'what is the point of fantasy?'

I can think of at least three points other than "offering more", if by that you mean presenting something desirable but not possible or so unlikely as to be effectively impossible.

Wow -where does the 15mm Lara come from??

Mithril's Eowyn looks nice in this picture, but I can't find any good pictures of just her:

Reaper's Nienna

RBG's Aelfar Kyrie

BTW, does anyone know why so many items are missing from Red Box's site? Is Tre moving to a new one?

Red Box had their massive KS a few months ago to retool many lines and sculpt new ones for Trollcast; Tre is launching a second KS soon to fun the retooling of the others lines and new sculpts. Metal is all discontinued.