discussion First new toy

[Guest]

Hi peps
So today is pay day and I’m wanna buy myself a little something no more than £30 so my question is what should I buy I’ve got foam I’ve got paint I’ve got tools I DONT have mod podge or plaster of Paris or any grass or resin or anything to make detail really so looking for stuff to make an impact to give me something to get started I’m looking at making a woodland with maybe a waterfall see how it goes

 

[AlanG]

Keep as much of your £30 as you can. For making things for dioramas then look no further then what @spanner570 (Ron) can do with everyday items. Choice is yours but there are plenty of things nature provides that will help you along the way and save the pennies

 

[Guest]

Keep as much of your £30 as you can. For making things for dioramas then look no further then what @spanner570 (Ron) can do with everyday items. Choice is yours but there are plenty of things nature provides that will help you along the way and save the pennies

I did think this like hand full of dried leaves would go far and top soil it’s mainly like the plaster Paris or mod podge or is there a way of making these products from pva or gorilla glue?

 

[AlanG]

Dry some of the mud in the microwave then mix it with pva. And there you go. A natural coloured plaster to use for a base. As for scatter. I'm sure you can use leaves as long as they are totally dried. But honestly Ron would be the best to offer advice about natural materials

 

[Guest]

Keep as much of your £30 as you can. For making things for dioramas then look no further then what @spanner570 (Ron) can do with everyday items. Choice is yours but there are plenty of things nature provides that will help you along the way and save the pennies

Spanner has soooooooo many posts I just can’t get to where I need to be lol

 

[minitnkr]

I use natural dirt/soil/rocks exclusively, after microwaving and sifting through different size screens. I grind cigarette butt tobacco (being somewhat toxic it keeps away insects) in coffee grinder for dead fall along w/broken up roots. These are for last layer. I use "found items", usually packing foam, for topography on base. Elmers white glue direct on big stuff, diluted w/alcohol & some dish soap in varying degrees for ground foam turf & bushes & aforementioned material. Winter is a great time for searching out dead/dormant plants for bush/tree armatures. PaulE

 

[Gern]

Sounds daft I know, but if you want cheap ready-made plants and trees, it's worth looking at the stuff folks buy for their tropical fish tanks. DON'T go to your local pet shop though. Look them up on ebay and check out the suppliers from China etc. That's where most of them are made and you can get them dirt cheap if you shop around. Many of these are made from smaller sections which can be pulled apart and re-assembled as mixtures to give you variety.

Cheapest of all are the bits you can find in your garden. There are lots of tiny plants around and many can be used directly on your dio. Some can be preserved with a simple spray of matt varnish, you can also preserve them with glycerine - check out this site as an example:

Obviously if you don't need/want to keep your dios for any length of time, preservation isn't required, just stick on what looks right.

You could also have a look at these things from John at the forum shop:

https://www.scalemodelshop.co.uk/product/birch-leaf-maker-in-4-sizes-rp-toolz-rp-bir

If you get a selection of green leaves from your garden, preserve them with glycerine while still in one piece, then use the leaf cutter you'll end up with a nice selection of varied leaves for your ground scatter for very little cost.

 

[Guest]

cigarette butt tobacco (being somewhat toxic

Yes, nicotine is only a little toxic

 

[Guest]

This is two pieces of foam is it an idea to save the bottom sheet and just put mdf at base? This stuff looked so easy to cut on YouTube lol and they say the camera don’t lie ‍

 

[Gern]

By Jove, I think he's got it! That's a good start David, but I'd definitely recommend fixing pieces that size to a wooden base of some sort (I can't tell from your picture if you've already done that. If you have, just ignore my ramblings!). I mentioned MDF earlier, but really just about any sort of sheet wood would work.

 

[Guest]

Don’t use a sawn, one-piece wooded plank, though — MDF, chipboard or plywood are good because they don’t usually warp, but “real” wood might just do that after you’ve built your diorama on it.

 

[colin m]

MDF, chipboard or plywood are good because they don’t usually warp

I've found anything that once lived, can warp. No problem, just coat your choice of material in a coat or two of varnish, job done.

 

[Guest]

Working on site today and managed to get a lot of different types on gravel along with kiln dried sand a few packs of toilet roll some foam I shouldn’t have to really buy anything as I’m on site every day
appy daze

 

[AlanG]

See i told you to save that £30

 

[Guest]

I've found anything that once lived, can warp.

I’m mainly trying to say: don’t use unseasoned wood for your bases. I must still have a diorama somewhere that started out flat but sometime after I built it, the base took on a noticeable curve — luckily upward so the base didn’t rock.

 

[Guest]

Loving this forum thanks guys very helpful

So next question what do I use to dye resin? Ink? Or paint?

 

[AlanG]

Acrylic paint, food colouring, ink. Your choice

 

[Guest]

Acrylic paint, food colouring, ink. Your choice

What is the really thin foam called that you can just scribe to make a wall etc?

 

[AlanG]

You mean like the foam that you stick flowers into?

 

[Ian M]

What is the really thin foam called that you can just scribe to make a wall etc?

Ron aka spanner uses the base/tray from frozen pizza. The firm foam sheets used under laminate flooring is also good.
If you have a garden there are loads of things out there you can use. The dead flower spikes from a butterfly bush (budlia), make surprisingly good pine trees . A well clipped hedge is full of mini trees, keep your eyes open next time you are in the garden. Small pebbles become stones, stones become rocks....
And those long seed things that you find on birch trees, dry them and rub them apart and you have a heap of mini leafs. Tea time. Don't forget to save the tea leafs.