Two Thin Coats Paints Reviewed for Historical Miniatures

Quick answer

Two Thin Coats is a sensible buy for 28mm historical figures when you want a paint range that separates shadow, midtone, highlight and wash instead of relying on one pot to do everything. For ancients and Napoleonics, start with a midtone for the bulk of the uniform, a shadow for folds and recesses, and a highlight for edges. Royal Cloak is a shadow colour, so treat it as a shading and depth paint rather than a basecoat for red tunics.

What Two Thin Coats actually gives you on 28mm figures

The range is organised around shadow, midtone, highlight and wash, which matters more on 28mm historical figures than on larger display models. At this scale, a face is a few millimetres wide and a musket stock is thinner than a matchstick, so you cannot blend your way out of a poor base colour. A shadow, midtone and highlight in the same hue let you block in the uniform, darken the folds and pick out the edges without mixing every step by hand. That structure is the real reason to choose the range, not any single pot.

Two Thin Coats is a hobby paint line from Duncan Rhodes Painting Academy and comes in 15ml (0.5fl oz) dropper bottles. The supplied catalogue lists an age rating of 14+, so it is not a children's craft paint. Treat the dropper bottle as a working tool: shake it, decant a little onto a palette, and thin it on the palette rather than in the pot. The name is also the method. Two thin layers give you a flatter, more controlled finish than one thick layer, which is exactly what you want on small historical figures where a single heavy coat can bury detail.

Choosing colours for ancients and Napoleonics

Historical painting is less forgiving than fantasy because the viewer often knows what a uniform should look like. Work from the midtone outward: base the tunic, trousers or shield in the midtone, use the shadow in the folds and under equipment, then use the highlight on the raised edges. If you are painting Napoleonic miniatures, keep the palette tight and let the shadow and highlight do the work instead of adding a new colour for every panel. For ancients, the same logic applies to tunics, cloaks and shields, where a shadow colour can also serve as a lining behind a transfer.

Royal Cloak sits in the Shadow category. That is useful information before you buy: it is a depth and shading colour, not a bright top-layer red. Use it to deepen folds on red or purple cloaks, to line the recesses of a shield, or to knock back a midtone that is reading too flat. If you want a red tunic to look red, you still need a midtone and a highlight in that family. Buying a shadow pot and expecting it to cover a whole cloak in one pass is the most common way to be disappointed with this range.

Where transfers do the heavy lifting

On 28mm historical figures, flags and shield designs are often the part that sells the unit, and freehand painting them is slow and inconsistent. Transfers let you get a clean, repeatable result across a whole unit. The trade-off is preparation: the supplied records state that all transfers come un-cut, so you will need to cut each design from the sheet yourself. Budget time for that, and use a fresh blade rather than scissors so the edge stays clean.

The catalogue also notes that images may not show the actual size of the transfer. That is a real limitation when you are matching a design to a 28mm shield or standard, so check the sheet before committing to a whole unit. Cut, soak and apply over a gloss or satin surface, then seal with varnish so the carrier film disappears. A shadow paint like Royal Cloak is a good partner here: paint the shield in the midtone, run the shadow into the recess, apply the transfer, then varnish. The transfer sits on a surface that already has depth.

Decision rules for buying Two Thin Coats

• Buy a midtone first, shadow second: The midtone covers the largest area of a 28mm figure, so it runs out first. Add the shadow once you know which folds and recesses you actually need to darken. If you only buy one pot, make it a midtone in the colour you paint most.
• Treat Royal Cloak as a shading tool: It is listed in the Shadow category, so it deepens folds and lines recesses. It will not replace a red midtone for a tunic or cloak. Pair it with a midtone and highlight in the same colour family.
• Buy transfers before you start the unit: All transfers in the catalogue come un-cut, and the images may not show actual size. Check the design against your shields and banners first, then paint the unit around what the sheet can cover. One sheet per unit is a safer starting point than buying after the figures are painted.

Product facts

• Royal Cloak - Two Thin Coats: Royal Cloak is part of the Two Thin Coats range and sits in the Shadow category, supplied in a 15ml (0.5fl oz) bottle with a 14+ age rating. Buy it as a shading and depth colour for folds and recesses, not as a basecoat for a bright red cloak.
• MAC(C)2: This transfer sheet is supplied un-cut, and the catalogue notes that images may not show the actual size of the transfer. Plan to cut each design yourself with a fresh blade and check the sheet against your shield or banner size before buying multiple sheets.
• KS PM MIX 5: This sheet combines all the shield shapes from a Perry pack of mounted knights, and like the other transfers it comes un-cut. Useful if you are painting a mounted knight unit and want consistent shield designs across several figures rather than freehand painting each one.

Who should buy this range

Best for

• Painters working through 28mm historical armies who want a shadow, midtone and highlight system rather than mixing every step.
• Anyone painting Napoleonic or ancient units who wants consistent uniform colours across many figures.
• Hobbyists who already use transfers and want a paint range that supports clean shield and banner work.

Not for

• Painters who want a single pot to basecoat, shade and highlight in one step.
• Anyone expecting a shadow paint like Royal Cloak to work as a bright top-layer colour.
• Beginners under 14, since the supplied catalogue lists an age rating of 14+.