A Step by Step Guide to Make Handmade Awards for Amtgard (At Least How I Do It)
I enjoy making awards for Amtgard, and I’ve been doing it since I started playing back in 2001. Here is a few awards that I’ve made over the years, after doing a cursory glance at my facebook photos.
(Warlord Title, gouache on cold press watercolor paper)
(Master Rose, gouache on cold press watercolor paper)
(Master Dragon, mixed media, leather and gouche on watercolor paper)
(Time Lord Title, digital and watercolor on cold press watercolor paper, run through a printer and hand painted, and a circlet, leather with metal, and drawn on designs with a sharpie)
(Walker in the Middle, gouache on hot press watercolor paper)
(Winter’s Edge Kingdom Elevation Scroll, gouache on hot press watercolor paper, plastic clay kingdom seals in a shadow box)
Lord Title, digital and acrylic, on cold press watercolor paper run through a printer)
(Lady Title, gouache on cold press watercolor paper)
(Defender Title, acrylic on wood, designed to resemble a shield, I erased those lines later)
(Flame Knighthood Triptych, it opens and closes)
(Yes, this last one is an award itself, for a Paragon Barbarian, the text is cut into the leather along the edges.)
(Earl Title, gouache on watercolor paper, leather and brass circlet)
(9th garber, a sewing basket with a leather inset scroll in eco flow waterstain dye and acrylic)
(Serpent Knighting Scroll, gouache on cold press watercolor paper)
I like to try new techniques, from paper to leather to metal to wood.I also have designed countless digital awards, but that is for another post.
I’d like to teach you how to make awesome handmade awards to help your corner of amtgard be more awesome in recognition of so many amtgarders who have dedicated so much to the game, that deserve to be recognized. You too can do this, and cheaply. The following is a step by step guide in how I do it for paper awards.
Preface: My Personal Goal for Awards
I’ve been doing this a long time. And for me, as an artisan and scribe, the ultimate goal is this:
To make them cry.
I want everyone who receives an award I make them to cry. Ugly cry, in front of everyone in court. It’s how I show my love. So if I make you cry, I love you! And think you deserve an awesome handmade award gift, made by me, TO MAKE YOU CRY.
Its how I stay young.
Step One: The Commission
The first step in designing awards is finding out if there are awards that need to be made. Contact your local park or kingdom monarchy and offer your services, at whatever level you are comfortable with. Personally, I like to make 8+ level awards, titles, masterhoods, knighthoods and kingdom elevation scrolls. I feel like those are the things that should be special and handmade. However, your mileage may vary, depending where you are, I happen to live close to my kingdom, and how comfortable you are making awards. If this is a new thing for you, start small if you want to.
Talk to your monarchy, see if they need anything made, and try to ask them as quick as you can, so they are thinking about it. Because nothing sucks more than an award that was commissioned three days before an event.
This is where you want to start thinking about the specifics of the award. Do you want to give them a hand painted award? A part digital, part handmade award? Something outside the normal means of what you would consider an award, like the shield defender title, or the armor/sash of the paragon barbarian, or the sewing basket 9th garber I’ve made? Think outside the box, and try something new, if you’ve done this before. This award should be special to the person receiving it, if it can be.
Sometimes I don’t really know the person I’m making the award for. When that happens, the first place you should go is the amtwiki and find things about that person, if they have heraldry, what park they belong to, and the park’s heraldry, what kingdom they belong to, and that kingdom’s heraldry. What kind of persona they play, if they do play one. It would be awkward to make a ninja based award when they play a pirate, is what I’m saying. Find out what they like, and build from there.
Step Two: The Materials and Tools
What are you going to make this award out of? What tools do you need? Here is some examples of things that you want to think about, a quick rundown for paper awards, but really, if you can manipulate it, you can probably make an award out of it
Material:
(When working with watercolor, watercolor pencils, or gouache)
I prefer hot press watercolor paper if I am working in gouache. This paper is very similar to cold press, except it is much smoother, harder to source locally, and more expensive. But it is, for me, hands down the best paper I can find locally. I haven’t seen pads of it at stores like Michaels or Joanns, but you can find it in single large sheets at hobby lobby. Or if you are lucky like me and live in an art school city. Amazon always has everything, as well. Arches is a good brand.
Cold press watercolor paper is a rougher feel, but much more affordable and readily available.
You can also cut down either of these papers and run them through your printer, if you prefer to design your award digitally, and then have your calligraphy be done by the computer, and you can simply let it dry, then color in your design in whatever paint/colored pencil, etc, you choose.
Leather:
I admit I love working in leather for awards, I love how Eco Flow Waterstain flows though a dip pen onto leather. It just...feels good. You can work with leather dyes and acrylics in leather, and experiment with tooling and pyrography and layering, as I did with the Master Dragon, above, as well.
Wood:
Wood is good if you want to do something more structural, like the triptych and the shield I have done above. Ideal for pyropraphy (woodburning) and acrylic. Make sure you sand and clean the piece before you paint.
Other:
I haven’t used these materials for awards, but I’ve had ideas to build on them, maybe this list will inspire you: Plasterboard, you can carve into it to create a relief sculpture. Tile, I’m sort of in love with the geometric tessellation of arabic design, and would love to create something with this in mind, especially in tile...if I had a tile saw handy.
(Epcot, Morocco Pavilion)
Stone, I would love to have the tools to work in stone, something like this, perhaps:
(Epcot, Norway Pavilion)
Felt, I have played with the idea of wet felting and needle felting, combined with embroidery to create a wearable scroll. One day.
The Medium:
You can work in almost anything. Pencil, watercolor pencil, pastel, oil pastel, fabric paint, acrylic, watercolor, oil paint, gouache, tempura, pyrography, really, the mediums are endless.
Right now, I like gouache. It has the best qualities of both watercolor and acrylics. You can paint light on top of dark, which is, just a miracle, really.
I love using gold in my work, or any metalics, really. I have some special ways to create that effect, from special paints to a calligraphy pen, to mini-fig paints.
Tools:
Brushes by the bunch. I just keep buying them when I inevitably leave one in acrylic too long, or don’t wash it well enough.
Dip pen, which is my favorite. Especially with gouache. Like all things here, practice first. You can get a variety of different nibs.
For paper awards I tend to use a big drawing board that I use painters tape to secure my paper to, and block out the space around the design so I don’t smudge pencil, or paint, in that area.
Step Three: Layout
You have your commission, you have your materials and tools gathered, now to put it all together in a cohesive way. I do a quick drawing of the layout, so I know what I am doing for the next step. Need ideas on how to arrange your award?
Here is Linden’s awards.
Here is about 90 ideas on my pinterest board.
Here is an example of a layout from an award I made:
This is the first draft, the basic idea of how the award should be set up. You don’t need specifics yet. Just an idea. Don’t use good paper at this point, just some scratch to work out the details.
Step Four: The Text
This is the part that is hardest for me. I tend to find text by doing a google image search of sca and amtgard awards, and using that as a base. Sometimes its just easier to ask a friend for help with this part.
Now is also when you want to figure out your “hand” or what font you want to use. Practice! I use a dip pen and, lets be honest here, my calligraphy sucks, I tend to find a good font on my computer and emulate that. There are some good books you can use if you want to go more historical.
A good award will have the basics:
Who is giving the award, Who is getting the award, WHY they are getting the award, The date the award is to be given, A signature for the person giving the award.
Fancy it up to your flavor level.
Here is also a neat thing to add into your award:
http://www.electricsamurai.com/ad/ the date of the award given in amtgard dates.
Step Five: The Cartoon
Here is where you work out the details. I spend my work life as a graphic artist, so I am much more comfortable scanning and manipulating my artwork on the computer, and it all depends on the piece, if I use photoshop, illustrator, or indesign. Here is that same image above scanned in and text added, and designed. This was done in illustrator. You can use whatever tools you prefer, digital or not. This should be your second draft, not on good paper.
This is my cartoon, and it’s ready to be printed out to size, and transferred to my good paper. If using digital means to create your cartoon, and the finished piece is going to be larger than your printer can handle, I highly recommend this website:
http://www.blockposters.com/
You can upload your design and have it print in however large you want, in 8.5 x 11 in pieces of paper. All you have to do is tape them together.
Step Six: Transferring to the Good Paper
Now is the time to get cracking. You have your good paper, you have your cartoon, you have your text. Now to transfer it. You can do it it many ways, from as simple as taping your cartoon to a sunny window and taping your good paper over it, and tracing lightly with a pencil, to using a lightbox (I prefer this) to taping your cartoon over your good paper and sandwiching in a piece of graphite paper in between and tracing. You can even use a projector to help you trace your design.
(I like the lightbox best)
Get your image onto your good paper.
Step Seven: Painting
So, despite being a graphic artist, I was not trained to paint. Airbrush, sure, but not painting. I left that to my friends who liked to smoke in the oil painting classroom in college. I just use whatever paint I am working in, and color in the lines with either a paintbrush or dip pen, and then fill it out. It’s very much like paint by numbers for me. I try to do multiple layers, with my mediums, then darks, then highlights. Whatever works best for you.
Step Eight: Calligraphy
Practice this. Over and over and over. Or....cheat, and fill it in with paint, outlining and then filling in the blanks.
Step Nine: Sign it!
I sign every piece on the back of the frame or paper, with a <3 Alona TwoTrees, but I also tend to use my signet, usually done in gold, on the front right bottom corner.
I think they are neat.
Also, if it is difficult to have the giver of this award sign it, ask for a copy of their signature, and fake it for them. Makes it easier at court.
Step Ten: Finishing Touches
Frame your pieces. Seriously. It’s a cheap and easy way to make your award pop. You can get frames at any dollar store that are 8.5 x 11 in. It’s a dollar, and it makes it so much cooler. OR head to your local thrift store and buy a frame in the art section.
Step Eleven: Give it Away and Drink in the Tears
Make them cry. Stay young.