In the meantime I have made some progress (and totally forgot to share it here!).
The hull and deck is textured with the base layer.
Then I added the stairs and railings to the upper deck. The stairs are 1" wide for mini bases but I also made an option for a narrow more realistic looking version.
And finally I have tackled the bow section. I got much feedback on my first little prototype and tried to incorporate that here. Basically the feedback was that on a smaller brig like this there wasn't such a long extension like I made in the test. That was more for larger ships like galleons.
Here I put it all together with some deck structures. I also added the first parts of the masts, so you get a feeling how it will look with the sails.
Next up is the weathering and the sailing rig. So here is a pic with the final sloop build for comparison.
I think this will be a really nice paper model once I am finished and I am getting excited to work on the final touches like the weathering. I hope the new sails will work similar to the previous ones. Not sure how I will attach the square ones yet.
Chris