Frame Arms Girl Hresvelgr Ater – 01
I finally decided to tackle the HresVelgr Ater “Frame Arms Girl” kit from Kotobukiya that’s been sitting in my stash for years. Like most Gundam and anime kits, it comes pre-coloured and features snap-fit assembly, making the build straightforward and beginner-friendly. One standout feature of this kit is the stunning pearl coating on the transparent blue parts, these really catch the light and shift colour as you move them, adding a dynamic touch to the finished model.
The hair comes moulded in a solid, bright yellow. While it’s vibrant, I felt it lacked the natural shading seen in anime illustrations or high-end builds. The well trusted method is to use at least three tones: a base colour, a shadow (darker), and a highlight (lighter).
The first stage was to remove some of the very bright and shiny tone to her hair, and after some searching online found a colour called Babe Blonde from “The Army Painter Warpaints” range that would fit the bill.
To help the paint stick to the plastic I have got some transparent one shot primer by “Ammo By MIG” and all the hair pieces had a couple of coats of this before 3 light coats of the Babe Blond.
To add depth, I started by applying a highly thinned coat of Humbrol Brown Tan enamel over the hair. After about ten minutes, I gently wiped away the excess with a lint-free cloth dampened with enamel thinner, leaving the colour only in the recessed areas.
Once the first layer was fully dry (I gave it a couple of days), I went in with a thinned darker brown enamel, focusing on the deeper curls to enhance the shadows. For the final highlight, I dry-brushed the top sections with a lighter shade, which was a mixed blend of 3 parts Babe Blonde, and one part matt White from the same “The Army Painter Warpaints” range.
From bitter experience over the years, and luckily before I started doing blogs, I do not mix paints from different manufacturers even if they still say acrylic paint, as each company sometimes uses different chemicals to blend the acrylic pigment.
To do dry brushing I use the method I learnt for armour and aircraft kits where I lightly load a flat brush with a lighter shade then rub it on a piece of paper till is barely any paint left on the brush and gently brush over raised areas and tips. This technique catches the edges and creates a soft highlight. This gave me a four-layer effect that mimics natural hair variation with the original yellow, a tan base, shadow and highlighting effects.
The visor and hair parts snap into place easily, and those clear blue pieces really pop thanks to the pearl coating.
I used one of the pre-painted faces included in the kit before fitting the front hair section and visor. The end result gives Hresvelgr’s head much more character and depth compared to the original single-colour look.
A little extra effort with shading and highlighting can make a huge difference, even on pre-coloured kits. For me, these small tweaks brought out the personality in HresVelgr Ater and made the build more rewarding. If you’re into anime building, don’t be afraid to experiment with paints and techniques on some scrap parts, as when you try on your chosen kit even subtle changes can elevate your model to the next level!
