Season's Greetings and One Year On....

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Wow! it did not occur that this blog has been going on for a year now. It has been really fun and encouraging to receive many positive responses and queries about my works and techniques (especially the one about the Fimo Deko Gel). So just to kick up a notch from the small clump of undergrowth from base of the SS Deutschland figure I though why not make a hedgerow during this festive lull based on the techniques described HERE .

Dried sea-foam weed was used as a base to construct the hedge. The texture of the stem is re-created with a thick coating of Gesso primer(type used by artists to prime their canvases)

The sea-foam weed is undercoated with flat black applied with an airbrush.

The individual leaves are carefully attached on to the sea-foam with superglue (yes I know, it's crazy)

Got a little cross-eyed when I took this picture.

Three days old and there's still a lot of bald spots to cover. Thought it does not look like a Christmas tree but it will have to do for me. So here's wishing everyone and all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Calvin

Moving on to Autumn...

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The current set-up at my workbench. Picked up a small piece of sponge to make the dabbing process quicker. As you can see, it's pretty addictive.
SS Deutschland figure is still untouched; surrounded with the newly "grown" undergrowth. I will probably have to resume work on it this weekend.

Calvin

Lets Kick It Up A Notch.

I managed to haul out my collection of photo-etched vegetation to make more varieties of plant life with the Fimo Deco Gel. Did not get anything done on the SS Deutschland figure but rather spent the greather part of the afternoon attaching individual Fimo Deco Gel leaves onto a dried weed root stiffen with Fimo Deco Gel thinned with cellulose thinner. I'm guessing this will come pretty handy in any future Normandy hedgerow scenes.

Close-up of the bush.

 

Calvin

Making Leafs with Fimo Deco Gel

Fimo Deco Gel is dyed with an oil paint mix of Ivory Black, Yellow Ochre and Prussian Blue.

The gel is painted over the photo-etched leaves. Surface tension of the gel helps to contain the shape of the leafs.

The gel is baked with a heat gun to cure to a rubbery hard finish. It's then peeled off from the photo-etched fret with a scalpel blade.

Close-up of the reproduced leaf.

..and now the clones are ready!

Attach the leafs to a dried weed root with super glue. You may apply some heat from the heat gun to curl the corners of the cured polymer gel and after that it is ready for paint.


Calvin