Funny things, these "how to" articles. Folks who read them are often expecting something profound. Those who write them sometimes try to break new ground and go where no others have gone before. Personally, I don't care for all the clutter. I prefer to present a procedure in its simplest form. I see some disappointed looks at my seminars when I show something as a very simple method, when they were expecting a procedure bordering on slight of hand. This stuff really isn't all that complicated.

Take finishing a whitetail shoulder mount, for instance. I could give you advice in one or two sentences that would help you make deer eyes look natural, as opposed to an article devoted to paint applications, but an article reads better when it is at least a few paragraphs long, so I'll go through the paint applications and throw in that advice, too.

Years ago, I started out coloring the noses and eyes of deer with any kind of paint that was handy. I can remember using acrylic paints and an old artist brush, just smearing it around, often right over the hair and whiskers. I guess using lifelike pigmentation just wasn't a priority back then.

I read the same articles as everyone did, showing how to apply thinned oil paints, as well as pastels and makeup, from artists like Joe Coombs and Sallie Dahmes. If my memory serves me right, I learned how to use a double-action airbrush in 1989, shortly before my first Piedmont show. Brad Eppley of Buckeye Mannikins showed me how, and we used lacquer paints. After going over different color choices with Sallie Dahmes from WASCO, I'm now using Polytranspar lacquers from her company. These paints are very thin and go through an airbrush without the need for additional straining. If this is starting to sound like a commercial, let me say this: if anything, this is a plug for state and regional taxidermy conventions, where I have met these people and saw and used these products.

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