Steady, wait 'til he's right on the bridge!" A 1/72 diorama

[Guest]

it's all these little things that combine to make a great diorama, this little monument is a brilliant idea and well and truely looks the part (even if it is just plonked on the base).

The lavoir was normally attached to the side of a building wasn't it? or am i thinking of the semicircular fountain things???

in any case i seem to remember reading somewhere thats where our word "lather" originated (just to throw a random geeky comment in)

Anyway i'll stop wafflin' and await the next thriiling installment

[Guest]

oh my flippin goodness what an awesome built of scratching,10/10 for that

mobear

[spanner570]

Thanks for the great comments everyone, it's great to get such nice posts. I hope you are getting as much fun out of the build as I am, and also getting a few ideas to use in your own future projects.......

Colin, I think you mean those ornate half circle stone water troughs with the water coming out of the wall, whatever, at the back....or indeed those circular fountain thingys.

Lavoirs are small, rectangular open plan buildings, usually on their own where a water course is available. This is channelled through the middle of the structure and the washerupers would kneel either side of this moving water and do the washing.

Some are really ornate and some disgusting, but all have a character. I've seen them wedged between houses and also in very atractive settings, such as village squares. I would imagine they were the focal point for all the gossip!

There are some fine examples of these gorgeous little buildings on Google Images and wikapedia.....makes the start of my paltry effort look very second rate....

Cheers,

Ron

[saguy]

hi there Ron ... i must say u r really pulling out all the stops on this one - it is looking magnificent

Where do u park all of your dio's once completed and have u a got a picture of all them in their present "display" area.

rgds

lindsey

[spanner570]

Nice to read your great comments Lindsey, thank you....

Someone posted a general question about diorama storage a while back. For my part, no one in my family is the slightest bit interested in my 'Hobby'. My friends get that blank 'Ron's a weirdo' look when I mention how I spend my spare time, so....

Once I've finished a diorama, I take a few pictures of it, show my good buddies on here, then it's usually scrapped or recycled, if I can....Not much point keeping it for the above reasons. Sad, but there you go. Better than just slinging it in the loft, never to be seen again!lol

I would have dearly loved to get anyone in my family interested and show them how, but to no avail.

Anyway, enough of my prattle, any news on your projected 'Street dio'?

Cheers,

Ron

[Guest]

right I had a look on t'interweb and I now know what these big wash basins look like

get to it young man!!

also .... how about selling your finished stuff on evilbay or summot ... people would buy it I'm sure. I mean at the end of the day it ain't that bad

other people do it and make enough off their sales to subsidise the purchase of new kits.

[yak face]

Brilliant stuff going on here matey , loving the monument and the buildings . Cant wait to see the water appear , this is going to be a show stopper. You ought to try putting one on e-bay , im sure there would be plenty of people willing to pay for quality stuff like this. cheers tony

[Guest]

I`m with you Tony,make a few pounds for the next models lol

mobear

[Guest]

Brillant work Ron!

You are doing an exceptional diorama my friend (like always). You are an inspiration for most of us!!

Can't wait to see it finished.

Polux

[Guest]

Excellent work Ron. Cant wait to see that lock full, keep it coming mate.

Andy

[mossiepilot]

Sat here thinking what to write to say how great your dio is and I'm lost for words.

Can't wait to see more.

Tony.

[Andy2035]

Sat here thinking what to write to say how great your dio is and I'm lost for words.Can't wait to see more.

Tony.

I was thinking the same thing Tony, I'm just stunned, it wasn't until I saw the 50p coin that I realised just how small scale this is...

Mr Ron Sir, you are a Master...:respect1::respect1::respect1::respect1:

[spanner570]

Thanks for the brilliant posts boys, I'm well chuffed you approve of the progress so far!

Just finished it, so here for the jury is one lavoir. These communal wash houses are, or were, apart from washing clothes, the meeting point to discuss the 'Goings on' around the village. As I wrote earlier, I've seen these in various states of repair, but lately the villagers are taking pride in their lavoirs and doing them up. Great places to sit and have a butty and good bolt holes when it rains!!

After scribbling some sketches and scaled next to our 1/72 airman friend, here is my stab at a bit of a simple, but tatty lavoir which has not been used for a while.....

The walls are the usual polystyrene engraved with the stone work, mitred at the two corners. Note the return scribed stone work at the end of the wall. I usually forget this important bit....So don't you!

I've left the inside untouched as I wanted a rough render finish.

The wooden frame is about 1/16" square, cut from coffee stirrers. (still got some left Dave!)

A piece of stiff card is used for the roof tiles to go on. I cut almost through the card on the ridge line, this makes it easy to bend the card nice and straight down the centre. Then it's tiled as described earlier in the build.....The apex boarding is done with thin plastic card, simply marked with vertical boards and painted.

The inside kneeling slabs are scrap styrene and the water in the central trough is a piece of plastic shirt stiffener glued to the underside. This is a great, easy way to obtain reflections in a small area, and costs 'nowt!

Might yet mess with it, but I'm happy with the overall outcome. I hope you boys are too!

I've also dug out a small stream, a bit of which I will divert through the lavoir.

One thing that has struck me, is now I've changed the roof colours to slate, the general stone work is too beige and I reckon could do with darkening down by quite some to blend in better with the darker roofs. This is what I find fascinating about dios.... It starts off with a basic idea, then as it progresses new ideas come along. Then when it starts to really come together, the obvious comes along and clouts you with a sweaty sock!...

Onwards and upward!!!

Here's the pictures of my diddy wash'ouse and thanks again for all your great comments during this build..

Ron

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[Guest]

spot on me auld mucker

[Guest]

okay now i`m seriously jealous,thats some of the best scratch building ever,what a way to end the year

mobear