"Painting platinum blonde hair" Topic

I've got a 28mm figure I want to stand out, and wondered how you would go about painting platinum blonde hair--think Jean Harlow, or perhaps Elsa.

Grelber

The challenge is getting a pale blonde effect that doesn't appear lifeless, like an old person's gray hair. So I'd try yellow undercoat with a heavy cream highlight.

If the effect was too yellow I'd try to lighten the recesses with a cream stain (heavy wash).

If that didn't work I'd start over "the right way" from a light gray base. I'd still worry this would look lifeless so I'd try a gray with a little blue in it.

I use white with a little yellow as an undercoating then a light drybrush of silver.

I never use yellow for any shade of blonde. I don't know how this became a thing. And I used to do it myself until I took a critical eye to the output and found it most unsatisfactory.

I'd try a very light yellow brown base, do a very thin brown wash and then use a pale sand drybrush and finishing with a white highlight.

Flashman
So what colors do you use?

I usually use a yellow ochre base, followed with a light brown wash. Then dry brush with an off white like beige or parchment color.

I have a pale yellow (one of the old Floquil Railroad colors) that comes close to Patrick's photo.

However, most of my 'fair haired' Goths etc. are mouse blondes – i.e. a pale sandy brown.

As with myself (as an infant my hair was so light and fine that people joked that I was bald), the the nieces and nephews born with classic blonde hair have mostly darkened to a mouse blonde as they get older.

As to the OP, an off white with a hint of yellow – anything too white comes from a bottle (just like red heads, natural red heads I have seen are a reddish orange).

@Korvessa – I do a Dirt or "earth" blended up through khaki. Some quantity of bone is mixed in there for the final.

Some examples of that here: link

And here: link

I use a pale yellow(ish) w/lightly brown-wash for recesses, highlight with pale yellow(ish) again, and for the 'secret' color…

…final highlights with a metallic white or pearlescent white. :-)