Custom LEGO Mardier officer

Well, this is something new, my very first ever customised LEGO torso.

And it is one for the nation of Mardier, in the Brethren of the Broken Seas.

With my skills in graphic software being limited, making decals no option, a PAD Printer being way out of my (willing to spend) budget and going to my regular printers every for one or two torsos (whom I can`t design... so that`s a bit tricky) I was looking for a solution.
And then it hit me... my old paints from my wargaming days!  I had no idea if the good old Vallejo`s would "catch" on LEGO ABS plastic.... but they do without any problem.

I wanted to base the Mardier officer on the spaniards as their nations main colour is yellow, so after some research I found this old template of a spanish Dragoon from the Napoleonic era. 

I tried my best with my now 5 year rusty painting skills to recreate the red and white detailing on the torso, and some glossy varnish later I was happy with the result.

The biggest thing perhaps is that LEGO prints are single colour, so I had to refrain from using the what is known in wargaming as "3 tone system", providing shade and highlighting to every colour.  But the torso works really well under the "2 metres rule", which is the average distance a wargame figure of 25mm (about the size of a LEGO minifigure) is "seen at" when on a table.

I`m defintily going to do more of these, and the Napoleonic Italian forces sure have my eye to make a unit with for Brick Wars in november.

The downside?  I`m really considering cutting strongly in my LEGO time and budget and rebuild and patch up my 28mm ACW army once again, and spend more time again at my old club.