GERMAN UNIFORM ITALIAN PATTERN

Captured Italian cloth on German uniforms

After the Italian surrender in the autumn of 1943 the Germans took over, among other things, stocks of camouflage cloth with its characteristic pattern of large soft blotches. Smocks, helmet covers and shelter quarters were then made from it, worn above all by airborne and selected field units. The pattern is unmistakable and, on a figure, it is among the more striking things that can be painted.

The set gives it three color families, each in two tones. Green in a base and a lightened variant, ocher likewise as a pair, and a reddish brown with its lighter counterpart. The pairs are not accidental: the darker tone forms the shape of the blotch, the lighter one is laid inside it where light falls on the cloth, and the pattern gains a depth that a single-color blotch never has.

Procedure on a figure

The paints are acrylic, they thin with water, and each bottle holds 17 ml. First lay down the base of whichever color dominates on the garment, then place the blotches of the remaining two families, and finally lay the lighter tone inside each of them. The blotches should have a soft edge and should not repeat in a regular rhythm, otherwise the pattern gives away that it was made to a template.

The shades suit figures in 1:35 scale and busts; in the smaller scales it is advisable to reduce the number of blotches and to rely on a pair of tones instead of six. They can also be used on shelter quarters and tarpaulins built from foil or from modeling fabric.

The paint left over will also do for painted engine covers and for parts of captured Italian equipment in German service.