A LITTLE LIGHT RELIEF ....

Quite a while ago I bought quite a few figurines from a car boot sale.  I stripped all the paint off and repainted them.  Then put them away and forgot about them.

Today I was musing in my chair (I muse a lot) and for some reason an image came into my mind of a Bear sunbathing (!) at the seaside.

Then I remembered that one of the little figurines was a bear lying on a beach .... I quickly drew a sketch of the scene I had conjured up then went to my den to see if I could bring it to life.

The following image is the bear bones (groan at the pun if you like) of the vignette with the promenade wall and the steps leading up from the beach.  The bear is nice and cosy and comfortable lying on the sand - or will be when it is finished :)

This is just a fairly quick and, to me, amusing little piece that will give me some relief from the seriousness of the Garden of Morr.

More images as it takes shape....

GARDEN OF MORR PERIMETER

The extra perimeter walls are now completed..

These were made by using the impress moulds with DAS air drying clay.  They have back and front sections each of 2mm width.  In between I have sandwiched 3mm Foamboard.  The spikes are painted a dirty silver made from cocktail sticks deliberatly clipped at varying sizes.  These are inserted into holes drilled into the wooden wall top.

The above is just a sample of the ones I have made.  They will all need highlighting and finishing with vegetation etc once the baseboard is done and ready to accept them.

Just the Tombs to paint now and then I can start to assemble the whole board.

CHECKING IN

Just checking in!

Been a little busy the last few days.  Needed a little more elbow room in my den as it was a little too chaotic and cramped for the projects I intend to do.

Moved my light tent setup to another room as the footprint for it is quite large for something that is only used for a few minutes at a time.  So I now have my woodlathe, associated tools and wood etc, plus the light tent setup, in a small box room and everything else in my daughters old room.  (Mind you - I would vacate it in a heartbeat if she had to return home for any reason).

Moving the photo setup gave me a good 6 feet (multiply that by 12 for inches if you don't use "feet") by 3 feet space.  That has given me another workspace on the right of my original workdesk that I will use for "clean" work (plans, marking out, pyrography etc) and the original desk will be used for painting, airbrushing gluing etc - all accessible by swinging my high back leather pedestal chair around - luxury!

My small wood working machines are on my left hand side and easily accessible with another, smaller, swivel chair.

I have also ordered, and received, some more impress moulds in 1/48 scale.  This is more like the Games Workshop 28mm models and also some 30mm models I will be doing later ... but that will be another Blog.

I bought the impress moulds from the following link.  This is the second order from Malcolm and the delivery and service is spot on ... recommended:-
http://www.malcolmsminiatures.co.uk/


So - now we are up-to-date and my next task is to build the extra walls for the perimeter fence using the impress moulds.

...DON'T FENCE ME IN ...

I have finished painting the boundary fences and walls for the time being.  Just like the Statue and Mausoleums there will be more to do after the design of the base etc is finalised.  For instance - observant viewers will have noted that the "footings" of the walls and fences have just been left grey and unadorned for the moment.  The finish of those will depend on the base.

I have only posted images of 2 fence/wall pieces as they are very alike.  Later pics will, of course, show more :)

I have not made the scratch wall pieces needed for the expansion of the footprint yet.  I want to get the GW bits painted first before I move on to the rougher brushes for the base etc.

Oh yes - and before the Undead move in weeds will be planted to make them feel at home (Thanks Jim
)


The next job will be the Tombs.  They could be placed under the Mausoleums and form their bases but I felt it would be a waste.  I am therefore treating them as stand alone tombs.

I haven't given much thought to the exact design yet.  I will probably follow my nose and instincts when all the pieces are ready.  However, I will most likely use the Bronze Statue as the centre and have the rest radiating out from it - we shall see.

So - onward and upward.

Go to bed with a smile ........ and wake up happy in the morning.

GARDEN OF MORR - GATE

Have finished painting another piece of the kit - the gate.

This is particularly gruesome being adorned with both real and stone skulls and dead and dying roses.

Enter here all who fear no evil - because there is plenty inside!

Gate - Front View

Rear View



Hope to get another couple of pieces done tomorrow.  It is Gym day tomorrow (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) but I reckon I can fit something in.

Nice to see a couple of Followers - feel free to comment and critique as I am learning as I go.

THREE MAUSOLEUMS

Have done the 3 Mausoleums and have tried for the darkish, part neglected and weather worn look - see what you think:-

3 Mausoleums

The Stench of the Old, Death and Decay

Whilst these are finished for the moment there are still jobs to do on them once I have built a base for the Diorama.

Some of the things are moss (I need to know which way the buildings face first of course), windblown leaves etc.

It should be noted that the actual shade of the spikes etc are not as bright as the images show - the lights I use for my light tent cause that.  It isnt such a big problem that the solution cannot wait a while though.

I am enjoying building and painting this set.  There are quite a few ways to approach it which makes it interesting for me.

The next job is the fence/gates pieces.  Then the 3 Tombs which will NOT be covered by the Mausoleums.  Then I will need to add scratch stone walling to the fences and design and build the Diorama baseboard.  Lots to do yet :)

A woman's mind is cleaner than a man's - That's because she changes it more often.








GARDEN PROGRESS

Didnt do much today.  It was weekly shop day and by the time we got back I wasnt really up for painting detail.  Therefore I just did the base coats and drybrushing to get the overall Dirty look on all the objects.  Pics tomorrow.


I dont really do much in my Den at weekends as dont like leaving wifey sitting on her own too long.  Weekdays are better for me as she works part time and I have the house to myself (well it beats doing the housework!)



Imagine how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges....

 

"REST DAY" FOR GARDEN OF MORR

Not much done today.  I usually work on my models whilst my wife is away at work.  However today was one of my Gym days and wifey comes with me so, as I dont like leaving her alone whilst I am in my Den, it was a Rest Day.  I did manage to build and paint a base coat on the mausoleums and  gave them a black wash but nothing else.  I did that between 6am and going to the Gym at 8am.

I have decided to treat the tombs that form the base of the mausoleums as separate from them.  That way I can make the diorama quite a bit bigger and I will probably link the present railings with sections of scratch built stone walls so that they will stretch around the enlargement.

There will therefore be the statue and plinth, 3 mausoleums, 3 tombs and the combined railings and scratch walls.

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I played a bit more with Anno 2070 and, despite the forums still being down, I now feel as though I am "getting it".  In fact a light bulb suddenly turned on and I can  see the light at the end of the tunnel.


I am hoping that the forum, when/if it appears next week, will host a decent Tree of Technology - that would help a lot.

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Children brighten a home - they never turn the lights out....

NEW PAINTS

Hurray!! my new paints arrived today.  I have used Vellajo paints in the past and have a fondness for them. I therefore decided to use them from the start this time.
I ordered a set of 40 from DRUM AND FLAG on Ebay and was very pleased with the service.  I will most certainly buy from there again.

Had to redo my Desk Tidy to fit the paints:-

The pots on the top shelf are fixed with woodscrews.  The next shelf carries small measuring tools, cocktail sticks, cotton buds, a couple of paint washes and a small measuring cup.
The paints sit in their own round depression in the shelf for stability.  There are a few spare spaces but it will be easy to extend the shelving if needed.
Under the bottom shelf are a few fine grade sandpaper blocks.
The block at the front of the Desk Tidy I use for gluing and painting.  It saves getting the self healing cutting mats soiled.

So that was todays work .... tomorrow it is Gym day but I should get a little painting done.  I have primed the pieces already.

STATUE STARTED

Decided to paint the statue itself as a Bronze figure.  Used a black wash for the shadows and then a slightly stickier green wash to represent verdigris.  That doesnt appear via the camera very well but does in the "flesh".  Quite pleased with that.

Mixed a kind of bleached and weathered bone shade and did the skulls.

Then I did the dead and dying roses bushes (or whatever they are) and then gave a few "dirty" washes over all the statue and plinth.
Not too sure about any highlighting - the bronze of the statue shows ok - so will have a think about that for tomorrow.  Any hints are welcome :)

Clicking on an image will enlarge it :)

Statue and Plinth

Statue and Verigris

Bit sad that my new paints didnt arrive but I will tuck into a Curly Wurly and cheer myself up!

Havent used any gravel/grass etc on the base itself yet.  That will be done when ALL the Garden is completed and I add a base for it all.

More tomorrow....

GARDENS OF MORR - START

Materials needed for the House arrived yesterday.  I am now able to complete the roof parts.

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I de-sprued and cleaned up the parts of the "Gardens of Morr".  To my great surprise there was no "flash" at all - a great improvement in the moulds since I last touched Warhammer models.  All that was need was a smoothing of the areas where the mouldings had been attached to the sprue.  That was accomplished with a Mora wood carving knife (razor sharp) and a small wood rasp.

There are 5 distinct parts to the Model and I placed the parts for them into separate boxes to avoid mistooks and errors ..... (translation - I dont want any Senior Moments!).

As the Crypts and Chapel have windows and doors that can be seen through it will be necessary to paint the insides of them - including the detailing on the floors and tombs.

I have decided to paint one part at a time.  I never did like "batch" painting and this way I get some fruits of my labours sooner.

Have started with the Statue and Plinth as that will be the quickest to do and will reward me faster.  I first primed it with a mid grey from my airbrush.  Using the airbrush gives me a thinner coat and helps retain the deeper details.  The reason for mid grey is that, although the model overall will not be bright, there are vines and roseheads on the Plinth.  I will use a dark green and dark red for those and then a dark wash.

The Statue itself will probably be painted an aged bronze.  I will practice on a sprue piece first to see if I can get the effect I want.

I tend to keep some sprue pieces as they can be made into battlefield wreckage, building adornments etc by carving and warming/bending.

So that was it for yesterday.  Today I need to get some Acrylic paints (I gave my old Citadel ones to my daughter).  I will NOT be getting the Citadel ones as the coverage they give is not really good enough for the scratch Buildings etc that I usually do.  I also prefer the Dropper Top bottles such as Vallejo as precise colour mixing is easier to do.  For example: 3 drops of white to 1 drop of red gives a certain shade of pink.  If I want that shade again then I mix it the same.

The paint I mix doesnt dry out as I use a Wet Palette.  You can buy them but they are easy enough to make and I have several small containers to use as wet palletes.  I used to put 3 or 4 mixes into one long box but found that they intermingled too easily so now will do one mix per container.  If you fancy making one then there is a tute here:-

http://forums.brushthralls.com/index.php?showtopic=4806

Right - Off to build a new desk tidy, then to the shops, then start painting the Statue, then...... ??  Retirement life is a busy one .....





  

RIDING TANDEM!

OK back again after a day off playing games :)

My daughter expressed an interest in the piece of Warhammer Scenery "Gardens of Morr".  I had a look at bits and pieces on the 'net and decided to buy it and have a go.

I like making my own buildings etc but I really like the detail on this product and it lends itself to modification possibilities by adding my own scratch built objects to it for a large Diorama.

I walked up to my local Games Workshop (just 10 minutes away) and was lucky to get the last one in the shop!  Buying it involved a process of refusing paints, glues, brushes etc as I already have a large stock of such items - even after gifting my daughter a few items .... but it has always been "hard sell" at GWs.

Surprised to find that they no longer do rule books etc for games such as "En Garde" that I used to play through the University Zines in the '80s.  Maybe the students today spend more time in the Nightclubs than playing such games (?).  A shame really as it would be much easier now to play such "play by mail" games via todays electronic means.

I digress.....

Walked back home and opened the box.  I was pleasently surprised to find it filled with 4 sprues and no padding!  Also surprised by the level of detail on the mouldings and lack of the many moulding marks I was used to in my old "Games Workshop" days

I am looking forward to painting this Piece and will do so in tandem (hence the title) with the House.  That will help prevent me getting "browned off" with doing just one thing.  I am the same with quite a few things.  For example I always have 3 or 4 books on the go at a time

Just a couple of Images:-

The Box

Just One of the Sprues

Stick to the task - not the glue!

TIME OFF

Took some time off to have a go at the PC game Anno 2070.  I like it as it gets quite deep gradually without being impossible to play.
Unfortunately the official forums are down for the moment and wont be back up until after the 9th January.  They are also German forums apparently but I can understand written German quite well due to having being stationed 3 years in Munster, Westfahlen, in the early '70s.
Having Fun! with Anno 2070 anyway - it eats time.....!

BUTTERFLY DAUGHTER

http://imaginarycolour.blogspot.com/

I have mentioned my daughter a few times here and she is the reason I am working on the building and have this blog.

The above link will take you to her blog where she is busy assembling and painting undead figures that will eventually occupy this house and surrounding area.

She is a beginner at painting figures but have a look at her video and I am sure you will agree that she has talent in that area....

I am looking forward towards how this project will turn out - but we must work slowly and keep the quality as high as we can given our little combined experience.

We both treasure constructive criticism so dont be afraid to comment :)

EDIT

Just noticed I had Comment set to registered users only - have changed the setting and will see how that goes.

HALF THE ROOF

Have now got half of the roof done.
I have decided to go with having the front half of the roof flat to accommodate the Warhammer figures that my daughter is so nicely painting.
The rear half will probably be host to a small building with a tiled roof.
The railings are made from 3mm dowel and I found a better way of mass producing those in a more accurate way.

As I may have mentioned before - the rear of the house backs onto a graveyard, hence the lack of windows and the large cross and wall intended to keep the spirits at bay!
The graveyard will be another opportunity for Warhammer skeletons etc ....

WORKSHOP IMAGES

Here are a couple of images of the part built Haunted House:-

Left Side

Right Side

Back

... and a few of my machines:-

Proxxon

From the right - Proxxon table saw and a small Proxxon router table (Shaper).  The other machine on the left is a Scrollsaw.

Disc and Belt Sander

The machine to the left is a Dremel Workstation and serves as a miniature drill press for 1.5mm and less drill bits.

Drill Press

Cheap but does the job - and that is what matters!

Wood Lathe

I also have various other small machines such as a Pyrography burner from Peter Childs, a Dremel with 2 Flex cables one fitted for drilling and one for carving and a few others.

As I have stated before - Jack of all trades but Master of none!

Keep eating - but for sustenance not just enjoyment.......