Hooray, out they go to you all! This means that Ada Lovelace, Jeanne d’Arc, Audrey Hepburn and Mary Fields are now in the shop, available to order as standard, for those late to the party or prefer not to pre order. You can get them here. There are still collector’s versions of them all as well, so not too late for that!
You know you’ll get the special card if the listing says “Collector’s Edition”.
Look at them all! I hadn’t realised quite how many there were until I spent ALL OF SATURDAY packing them! Brilliant, thank you!
I’m really looking forward to the next part of this project!
Wave 3 will be after Salute. Salute is a massive trade show we…..trade at, on the 13th of April, so it’s currently full steam ahead preparing for it, and I’m taking a week off afterwards! THEN the designing of Mary Read, Anne Bonny and Olga of Kiev will begin.
Minis 1-10 will be available on the racks at Salute! Squeeee! And hopefully I’ll get some leaflets together to link to this blog and spread the good word!
We’ve made some huge progress on Wave 2 of the Community Miniatures! It’s been an exceptionally busy year so far, but I’m very glad we’ve been making some good strides – not as soon as I would have preferred, but still happy things are happening.
They’ve been painted! Yay! Thank you to John Morris (Mary, Audrey, Joan) and Jennie Ruskin (Ada) for these wonderful paint jobs.
These are not the final pics! I haven’t photographed them myself yet, these are the ones sent in by the painters, but I’ll have them all in hand tomorrow to do this.
I wanted to show you an update sooner rather than later though, as sometimes I blink and a strange amount of time has passed.
L-R: Audrey Hepburn, Jeanne d’Arc, Ada Lovelace, Mary Fields
Don’t they look so wonderful!
The deal with Jeanne’s flag
What’s the deal? Well, I don’t have a full photo yet, but I will soon! She comes with an open hand, a printed flag, and a wire spear. The flag will be mirrored, so you can wrap it around the pole and secure it with a glue stick, making it double-sided. It can then be bent a bit to show it wiggling in the wind.
Thank you to Martin Whitmore for this flag artwork! Also Marty has finished the artwork for the Collector Cards…squeee! They’re so nice! The Collector Cards only come with the first 100 sold and they’re very nice – all hand numbered too.
So what are we waiting for?
*looks around shiftily*…… MEEEEE! Ok so I now have all the elements, it’s all just down to me now (Annie!).
Here are my next tasks:
Figure the perfect size of Jeanne’s banner with printing and practical testing
Order Jeanne’s banner from the printers
Photograph each of the miniatures clearly
Write up the character summary for each of the four ladies
Design and proof the collector cards so they’re ready to be sent to the printers, including things like spellcheck and bleedcheck.
Send the collector card files to the printers
Edit the photographs of the miniatures and put together their packaging
Send the packaging files to the printers
Check the casts (most are here, the others won’t be long)
Pack the minis with their nice printed packaging
Collect the cards from the printers
Hand Number 400 cards
Pack all the pre orders
Await your glorious approval when they arrive around the world.
They won’t share a card, I just popped them on here to show them off, they won’t have a watermark either!
One of the reasons the Community Minis take longer than other releases is all these extra steps, but well worth it, I believe, to make it extra special and “collector-y” as it’s about the whole process and not just the end mini (which, of course, is beautiful). If this was ALL I had to do, it wouldn’t be so major, but of course, I have to run the day-to-day of Bad Squiddo Games as well as our other projects and releases, so sometimes bits have to be juggled around.
Something I really enjoy about this project is it forces me to do what I like the best – sitting back and researching and highly considering the figure design. When you’re busy all the time, doing just ONE THING can feel like a waste, even though it isn’t; it’s just how our brains work and the nature of the times we’re in. So sitting and reading a book can sometimes feel “un-optimised” which is, of course, ridiculous, but the Community Minis Project gives me the “excuse” to do it. For example, it’s Saturday right now and I really don’t mind that I’m sat working on this. This sort of work is different to the “work work”, like taxes and paperwork, navigating updated shipping regulations, marketing, budgeting, stats, all those extra tasks that aren’t the “core” of what we want to do.
Hooray I have the things!
Yay the things! I started writing this on Friday and it’s Saturday now, so I DO have the painted minis, and as always – they’re even nicer in person. Excuse the DOUBLE ANNIE FACE, I am fighting against the algorithms more than ever and the maths robots seem to like my face, so if it helps the creations get seen by more, then so be it!
They’re beautiful, thank you so much Jennie and John. I was able to balance Jeanne’s spear in hand! You’ll see the bottom part is unpainted, that bit will be snipped off as the wire spears come in very long. Some strong clippers will do this, I don’t recommend standard hobby clippers as they can get dented by them!
I’m very happy with how the spear sits into her hand, and prefer this to a drilled hand option. I just have to be careful to not ruin John’s work when I put it all together! The glue may make the inside of her hand a bit shiny so I’ll put some matt varnish over that after.
Remember this mock-up of Danny Devito? I wasn’t [just] losing my mind! They are the real-life measurements of the pennant! Obviously Jeanne wasn’t the same shape and size as Danny Devito (though there is nothing to say she wasn’t…just sayin’) but its a good rough idea. I’m a visual person so just seeing the measurements didn’t make sense to me.
So, my next task is to print out a few different sizes of the pennant to find the one that works best. Based on this, I may tweak it up or down if it works better on the model. Once I decide on this, using my own printer and black-and-white paper, I’ll order the full-colour ones from the printing company. I’ll also muck about with different paper types and thickness too to get it just right.
You can pre order all of Wave 2 HERE and claim your free collector card!
These two are now ready, with Audrey Hepburn and Jeanne d’Arc currently on the sculpting bench (Audrey blog to come tomorrow!).
I met with Alan on Thursday at Leeds Armoury and he brought them along to pass over in person, a real treat! Firstly, here they are with the gang! The Gang makes me so happy, imagine the adventures they could have together!
“Stagecoach” Mary Fields
I’ve knocked up these little collages, and will try to for future minis! There’s very little change between sketch and sculpt. We made sure to get the right shotgun, whereas my scribble was generic, and changed Mary’s head angle slightly, but otherwise, we were right in sync. Even the tactical mound! I remain in awe of Mary and her achievements.
Ada Lovelace
I cannot WAIT to see this dress painted up in glorious purple fabric! Alan was really happy with my solution to drape the punch cards down the arm, so I am feeling like a nice smug minis designer now. Again, this needed barely any change, the cards going over the arm look better, and it’s altogether a beautiful mini and clearly recognisable as Ada.
Pre Order
You can pre order these now, the first 100 will get those lovely art cards
A sizeable chunk has already been allocated so don’t delay to ensure the lovely card! The art will be by Martin Whitmore and he’s got the task on his lap ready for the new year, then off to the printers next door to get them made up. Yay!
If you haven’t already read about my visit to see actual Ada Lovelace in person, then you should totally go and read that first.
As is now tradition with this project, I ended up way off track, spending a whole evening figuring out what the Analytical Engine WAS, and the purpose of punch cards. Some of you older folks (older, not old!) have helped to inform me on those, as it was a lost tech by my time!
Ada Lovelace by Alfred Edward Chalon circa 1840
Ada Lovelace (born Augusta Ada King 1815 and died 1852) is a very well-known mathematician, recognised as being the very first computer programmer. She worked with Charles Babbage on his Analytical Engine, which was, in basic terms, a massive calculator slash early computer. It was theoretical, so they did not build it, but Ada’s annotations and calculations became the foundation for much of the technology we use today. We can blame her for those danged algorithms, she published the first one in 1840.
The daughter of “mad, bad and dangerous to know” Lord Byron, she was kept away from her father and the arts by her concerned mother Anne Isabella Milbanke, Lady Byron. Fearing the arts would corrupt her into the debauchery of her lineage, Ada was given a very scientific and mathematical upbringing by some of the best tutors available.
Designing the Figure
Ada Lovelace, sculpted by Etienne and Mary Millner. Located on the 7th floor of Millbank Quarter (formerly Ergon House), London.
From the start, I knew I wanted her to be wearing very fancy hair and dress as she was often portrayed wearing, most famously in the painting by Afred Edward Chalon. However, I don’t want her to be static.
Figuring out how to show someone “doing maths” can be quite the head-scratcher – which incidentally was a pose I pondered! But she was far more than any standard mathematician, and I wanted her to be more unique.
The “ah ha!” moment came with the punch cards from the Analytical Engine. Upon researching statues of Ada, I came to the conclusion that others had had the same idea and the same struggles! A fantastic piece by Etienne and Mary Millner, I can almost hear them going “argh just hang the punch cards up behind!”. I feel the struggle.
So let’s get to the Annie sketch. I feel she will work holding the cards up, perhaps quizzically, studying them. Regarding casting, they can almost cascade down her arm, something I am confident that the sculptor will figure out. They would need to be shorter at the very worst, but I think this is unlikely. I’ll get him to indent some holes into them, well – divots, so an ink wash will fill them in for you.
The veil in the painting will be harder to translate to a solid sculpt, as I have noticed from the more enormous public statues they have removed this, and we will too. It works beautifully in paint as it is translucent, but it would be quite a solid block in metal, especially at this scale.
I think this will make a lovely miniature to paint, and people can get really creative with the dress fabric, or if they are daunted, can paint it a solid colour with a wash and have it still look lovely.
Ada by Margaret Sarah Carpenter circa 1836
Regarding the dress, there is another painting which shows her front on. It is a different dress to the purple, but I intend to converge the design to make something which works well. Splay the bottom of the sleeves and add those delicate gloves.
That’s all there is really for the design of Ada Lovelace. Anything else to note? Oh, the weird hand in the sketch! I am very tired and figured I could wind myself up trying to figure out the hand for the rest of the evening, or just tell the sculptor what I meant, and he’ll do it fantastically! Wahey! That’s the process, folks!
I am very much looking forward to seeing a lady in a massive fancy Victorian dress figuring out complex maths thingies. Yes! Are you?
The cards were the last part to get sorted, and I am so glad I took a bit longer with them, same as Julie D’Aubigny’s face. I went with Print Co. in the end, my office neighbours! They kindly gave me a tour of all their facilities, and I was very excited by their mega corner punch. I even touched all the different types of paper like a connoisseur until I decided on what I deemed perfection. You’ll notice they are so nice and soft! On collecting, they will make a lovely deck.
REMEMBER the really cool Collector Cards are only included in the first 100 orders. There are still [at the time of writing] some left!
THANK YOU to everybody who has supported this project, primarily through all the slow bits when I’ve been juggling a bunch of other things. Now we have some momentum, I’m hoping it can really ramp up now, and the space between voting the figure and it being in your hands will be smaller.
I’m putting the following rambles in an FAQ form, enjoy!
Which minis have shipped?
The first six. Julie D’Aubigny, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Ching Shih, Black Agnes, Zenobia and Harriet Tubman. All shipped!
What about the next four?
Ada Lovelace, Audrey Hepburn, Joan D’Arc and Mary Fields are considered Wave 2. They were first aimed to be shipped in December, but it’s now looking like late January/February due to sculptor and caster timelines. As well as me, I still need to design the next three – but we have Alan Marsh booked in for December so I will have to have the designs ready by then! Eep!
Why has my Wave One pre-order not shipped?
It’s probably because you have Wave Two minis in it. If you’ve changed your mind and want the first wave before the second, pop me an email and we can sort it, you will need to pay a second load of shipping though (unless you pop a new order in and ask for them to be added into that)
I ordered from both waves at once, I’m happy to wait until Wave Two is shipped, but I am worried about the collector cards for my Wave One, will I still get them?
You will! You have a box in the office with your order number and I have picked your minis and cards.
How do I know when ordering if there are collector cards left?
I’ll make a note in the product description, so far we have cards left for all.
Nooo I missed the cards
It’s ok! The minis are still lovely and the full colour packaging with John Morris and Andrew Taylor’s painting on are also lovely. The cards are an extra bonus to help get the minis out there sooner.
Can I get these from retailers?
Yes! It’ll be a bit longer than other usual releases, and they won’t have the cards, but they will have the Community Minis. It’s taken a while to figure out the best way to do this as I want to support the retailers but not make it EVEN MORE confusing, so them having the “standard” version works best, as the cards won’t be all over the world like a Willy Wonka quest. So the first 100 sold DIRECT will be the only way to get the cards.
When are we voting for minis 11, 12 and 13?
Maybe over Christmas! The designs for 7, 8, 9 and 10 will be ready then, so we can use the Christmas break to think about the next bunch. I’m gonna change the voting AGAIN as well. I haven’t 100% decided yet but one aspect I am considering is limiting each person to ONE nomination.
Can I give you money for future minis?
I can’t stop you, but I am advising against it until the new year, as I want to be caught up so we can “relaunch” the project more streamlined and less confusing… I hope. If you have a subscription and are happy to keep it going, that’s super cool, but it’s also ok if you want to pause it. I hope this makes sense, it may feel counterintuitive but I want it to get back to being vote, then pay, rather than pay, then vote. It makes sense to me! I want us to vote for only one or two minis at a time too. TLDR: Wait and all will be clear!
I want some of these minis but haven’t contributed to any voting or pre-payment or anything, can I…. have some?
You can! They are for everyone! You can buy them through the shop as you would any other mini. I am hoping with the “relaunch” it will be less confusing. This has been very much a project of figuring it out as we go along, hence why I am extra chuffed you’ve been so supportive.
Magnifique! Church of St Mary Magdalene, photo by Annie Norman
A while back (though I dare not look at the date, I feel it was a few weeks ago, but it was more likely into the months), I decided to visit Ada Lovelace. It would have been rude not to!
“But Annie, didn’t Ada die in 1852?” I hear you cry. She did indeed, but her remains….remain. So I went to say hi.
She is buried in the Byron family vault in Hucknall, along with her father, Lord Byron, and family members going back 200 years. Hucknall is super easy to reach from Nottingham, where Bad Squiddo Games is based, so one very straightforward tram journey later, we were walking up to the Church of St Mary Magdalene. It really is history on your doorstep!
The church dates back to the 12th century, with it being expanded over the years, notably significantly in the 19th Century. The Norman element is very clear on entry and was my favourite part of the building (don’t tell Ada). Who doesn’t love old wood and big stone blocks?
Ada Lovelace – 1843 or 1850 a rare daguerreotype by Antoine Claudet.
Upon entry, we were greeted by a lovely chap whose name escapes me – I shall get it on my next visit and write it down! I’m going to call him George for now. It might have been George. He welcomed us in and gave us a tour of the church, which really was fascinating. I had no idea there had been so much history here all along, and the church has many ties to Newstead Abbey, somewhere else I have yet to visit – though that will be fixed soon! I just about resisted signing up for their volunteer gardener program… this time.
While fascinating, I’ll refrain from going too much into the details of the church as a whole, as this is about Ada Lovelace, remember, but it was superb, with lots of original Norman fixtures and fittings, including a big lead font.
With Indiana Jones fresh in my mind, I think part of me thought we would go down some steps into the vault itself, but of course not. ABOVE the vault, in the sanctuary of the church (I think that is the term, behind where the vicar stands) is where you can access. I asked George if he’d take me down the vault if I slipped him a fiver, but he informed me it was last opened in 1938. I’ll try again on the next visit, though, I might have put the idea in his mind. Maybe a fiver and a cup of tea this time?
A bad scribble showing roughly where the vault is, scribbles and photo by Annie NormanInside the Vault in 1938, Ada is in the centre there.The Proper plans of the Byron Vault
Here, I have attempted to show roughly where the vault lies in relation to the church and where you can get to. So you’re really standing on top of it all. Above are various memorials to Ada and her father, some very recent (he was big in Greece!)
It’s a weird feeling being so close to somebody you have been researching, even though she is long gone ( though apparently, in 1938, Byron was still very well preserved, even the erm…member). A feeling of, is this cool, Ada? I had a quiet word and told her it would be very cool and lots more people would hear her story.
Memorial plaque to Ada Lovelace, photo by Annie Norman
George kindly offered us some tea and cake, and I know to never down church cake, for it’s always especially good. This gave us a chance to chat with some of the ladies who volunteered there and had some enlightening chats about Byron and Ada, as well as the history of the church. I told them about the project and that I would return, tiny Ada Lovelace in hand, to show them all. I hope to get an extra one painted too so I can give it to them as a neat little present. It will be the ultimate test of whether we’ve got the mini right, as these people spend a lot of time around her, they’re basically family at this point!
L-R Lil, George and Annie (me!) Erm, standing on Ada Lovelace.
Who is the “we” I refer to throughout this? My mum, Lil! Yay, Lil! Here we all are in the church; I will make sure to get George’s actual name next time, but he was a brilliant host, full of information and a great sense of humour.
While on the face of it, the visit is not imperative to the figure design, it is for my sense of completion and research, as I like to get out where I can and not just be in books, and hey – it’s an excuse to visit somewhere new! I feel like I have more of a connection to Ada now, and I am looking forward to returning and seeing the lovely people again. It just feels more… rounded, you know? History is out there, in the streets! Or under the floor!
Next up is the design concept for the Ada Lovelace miniature, I’ll save it for the next entry. What do you think of this trip, are you tempted?
Thank you to everybody who voted! 790 votes in total, which is impressive for sure. Third and forth were shimmying back and forth a bit while the poll was open but first and second were pretty much winning from the get-go. I am surprised by some results, yet not by others.
Over a quarter (29%) voted for the first four, so winning by a good margin. Special mention to Jeanne Hatchet who was SO CLOSE.
So the winners are….. ADA LOVELACE, MARY FIELDS, AUDREY HEPBURN AND JEANNE D’ARC
The next stage will be figuring out how these miniatures will look. I’ll make threads one at a time for each, but feel free to post (Facebook group, comments here, or any other of the social media or email) any information or wishes you have for any of these four – ie if there’s a certain way you’d like to see them as a mini or some common misconception you need to scream.
You can’t please all the people all of the time.
Apologies if who you really wanted to see as a miniature wasn’t voted for, it is the nature of the beast. She isn’t gone forever though! You can nominate her in the next round, and the next round, and the next round….! They won’t automatically be added to future polls, but so long as you nominate them, they will be there.
This means you have more chances to convince everybody why your suggestion is excellent. You can keep posting about them, maybe sharing other information and pictures and things. The joy of the project is it’s a neat trick way we can all educate each other. What’s the worst that can happen – oh no we all know a bit more about interesting women from history oh no!
An embarrassing amendment
When I was catching up after the hiatus, I miscounted the totals and therefore how many we unlocked. It said we are currently unlocking number 14, but it is actually 12. So 11 are currently unlocked. I wasn’t going to say anything so as to not look silly/unprofessional but in fact, covering it up and funding those extra two myself would be THE silly/unprofessional way! The totals raised don’t cover the whole miniature in terms of sculpting, moulding and production, but it’s enough for us to subsidise the rest after each total – ie you do X amount and we do the rest. SO it’s not a “free” project for me, if that makes sense. So adding two more wouldn’t have been a good thing for the project – ie massively overstretching myself/Bad Squiddo!
So hopefully you can understand my humble apology, again for the teething of this as a project. It means there is currently just one more to unlock, but well on the way to the next after that.
Contrary to this though, I do have one extra miniature that will be free to anybody who added to the ko fi before a certain date. I need to sort the date, but pretty much up to now-ish. She will be available as an extra purchase for everyone after this too. More information soon!
Thank you for supporting this, and I appreciate it can be confusing as I keep sending you all across the internet, but we will get there. I’m super happy to be able to bring these next four to life, and have you all help me with the deep, dark research!
SPOILER: I actually already made a start on Ada Lovelace and Audrey Hepburn while the poll was still live, NERD!
As always, any questions, let me know, and this blog is the best way for a concise “what is happening.”
Community Miniatures Project 