I’m no expert, @bikequeen, but for wood I usually start with Flat Earth then mix in other colours such as red and yellow to try and get the effect I’m after. As for flesh colours there are many experts on this site who should be able to help.

@chinesegeorge thanks George its a caricature so its not critical

Hi Cricket (@bikequeen): For generic wood, I usually use some tan or light brown acrylic for the base layer, and then use some dark brown artist oils. After the tan is dry, paint the pattern you want using the oils. Let the oils dry for 20-30 minutes and use thinner to lightly blend the pattern. Be sure to use acrylic for the base layer, or it will react with the thinner for the oils.

I have never been good creating flesh colors. Vallejo, along with several other manufacturers, make several flesh colors that you might use.

Cheers

Hi my friend @cricket!
I usually use two colors, one of lighter brown shade, which I first apply all over the "wood" area, then do the "streaks" wth the darker brown shade and a fine brush, not being too even in my application

@johnb @fiveten @gblair thanks everyone! Thats kind of the approach I was thinking of using! I got a surprise kit coming Friday…..it should be fun 🙂

I’ve only done wood grain a couple of times but basically the same as @fiveten except I use three colors. Base color painted solid. Use a fan brush to “streak” the light and dark. It’s very easy to overwork so practice on sheet styrene to get the feel.

@bikequeen - Here's my basic process quick and dirty... Base color, thin lines with darker color, thin lines with base color, back and forth until it's good and the lines 'feel' thin enough. Then wash with a tone to get everything to work together. The sample image is quick, no real back and forth to clean up the lines, just to show the idea... hopefully.

1 attached image. Click to enlarge.