My name is Mike Vavosa. I’m from a little town just north of Boston, Massachusetts called Swampscott. Trust me you’ve never heard of it… though you might have heard of the town right next to it : Salem, Massachusetts… Yep, the famous Salem from the “Witch Trials”.

I’ve been artistic and creative all my life. From the silly cartoons and comic strips I drew as a child, to the immensely elaborate and weird LEGO inventions of my youth. Once I reached high school, I found my calling, and from there on decided that fine arts was my passion.

I attended Massachusetts College of Art in Boston, as an Art Education Major. After finishing College, I taught art in public schools for a very brief while, realized that teaching in public schools is kind of like of like being committed to a mental institution (especially when you’re 21 teaching high school kids!).

Now, to bring miniatures into the picture, I’ve been painting “toy soldiers” since I was about 15.  Was given my first Games Workshop model when I was 17, and since then, I’ve been painting and playing ever since.

After deciding teaching wasn’t for me, I moved from Boston down to Maryland, where the Games Workshop USA HQ was located, and worked for a year as a Mail Order TROLL. It was there that the “addiction” really set in, and I channelled my artistic background into the hobby.

After working at GW USA for a year, I left, and went into Sales. My background since then has been auto sales… a career that not only brought in the income necessary to keep my “addiction” going, but also to support my family.

I was married in May of 2003, and though my wife hates to admit it, am still very much a hobbyist and miniature “nut”.

Since 2002, for various reasons, as my ability to play wargames faded, I’ve been selling painted (and converted) miniatures on EBAY. At first it began with simply weeding out old stuff, and since then it’s grown into a paint for profit part-time job/hobby. Currently, I have very little time to play wargames, however I am still an avid fan of the hobby. I do most of my modelling work for commissions and to sell on EBAY.

Thanks for checking my work out. If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to email me at vavosas@lycos.com

Thanks,

Mike