i am getting ready to start building my layout. and i want to model new england in the fall. how can i get it to look like fall im talking about the dead grass leaves on the ground, the cold bitter look
modeling fall
- Thread starter Edavillenut
- Start date
i know there are a few co. like woodland scenics that make a type pf tree material that you can glue on to a tree (armature i beleave) then there is another that i cant remember. help me out here guys lol. but in all they would make a good leaf coverage.
the trees i am good with now. but i cant figure out how to make the ground look dead. what ever i try it comes out green and makes it look like late summer and not fall
Kalmbach recently published a book about scenery, and practically all you need to know about modeling the fall in New England is there. Lou Sassi Builds a meduim sized HO scale module, set in NE and I euggest you find that! (sorry if it sounds like an Ad! 
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)MilesWestern said:Kalmbach recently published a book about scenery, and practically all you need to know about modeling the fall in New England is there. Lou Sassi Builds a meduim sized HO scale module, set in NE and I euggest you find that! (sorry if it sounds like an Ad!
I bought that book. Its high dollar but there is a lot of good stuff in it. I think it was about $25.
I recall a modeler putting dried brown leaves in a blender and making his own scale scattered ground cover..... Maybe some material such as earth tone and brown dried flowers from a craft store would have a similar appearance when ground up?
Ralph
Ralph
Well this might sound silly but as a smoker (unfortunetlly) and one who roles his own cigarettes , I found that at the bottom of a bag of tabacco is more or less dust and small peices that when sprinkled over the ground give the look of fall leaves on the ground. Its a liitle dark at first but lightens up after a littlewhile .
Woodland Scenics makes different grades of suitably coloured foliage for ground cover. Try Burnt Grass and Yellow Grass, and apply it mixed with Earth Fine Turf. The Earth colour will help to make the other two foliage colours look sparse. The real leaves in a blender trick is also very effective, especially beneath the trees. Chop them up really fine so that they settle properly, as they don't have much weight. I've also seen dried roots of weeds, flowers, and bushes made into very nice bare trees and bushes. Probably best to rinse all of the dirt off before drying them.
Wayne
Wayne
Ok, this might not be exactly what you are looking for, but it is a pretty good job at an early winter scene. I really like the light dusting of snow, which is rarely modeled. Most of the time it's either blizzard or bust. But, since it does occasionally snow in NE in November and sometimes even in October, this is an accurate representation.
Regardless, I would use almost no green and heavy on the brown. The tobacco suggestion is a good idea. The bottom of the can or bags always have a pile of scale dead leaves. Not the pretty colorful ones, just the brown dead ones, but for a post peak leaf season they are perfect.
But, since it does occasionally snow in NE in November and sometimes even in October, this is an accurate representation. Regardless, I would use almost no green and heavy on the brown. The tobacco suggestion is a good idea. The bottom of the can or bags always have a pile of scale dead leaves. Not the pretty colorful ones, just the brown dead ones, but for a post peak leaf season they are perfect.
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Tea leaves also work well. A $3 box of tea bags will give you more dried brown leaves than you will ever know what to do with. I've also used the fall blend of "Fine Leaf Foliage" from Woodland Scenics. This is ground orange, red and yellow foam preglued to very fine sprues of wood. It takes a bit of playing around with to get right and is on the expensive side ($10 for enough foliage to do maybe 5 trees), but I had pretty good results on my Tower kitbash challenge last year. For ground cover, you might try blending Woodland Scenics "burnt grass" and "earth". I think the burnt grass is too green, but if mixed with the brown earth foam it looks pretty good (or at least close to what I'm accustomed to seeing in the northeast).
"Fall" look...
My rairoad is late Fall early Winter. Obviously you just want to keep strong greens out of your coloring. Dark greens for evergreens here and there is good.
Check your local fabric shop for a faux fur. I use a fabric that's beige in color about 1/2" deep. Makes a perfect dried field grass. I cut it to shape. White glue it down ("Tacky" glue is great) then edge the areas with beige or brown lichen from Woodland. Cut the fabric and glue some rocks in the field and you have very convincing Fall-like scenery.:thumb:
My rairoad is late Fall early Winter. Obviously you just want to keep strong greens out of your coloring. Dark greens for evergreens here and there is good.
Check your local fabric shop for a faux fur. I use a fabric that's beige in color about 1/2" deep. Makes a perfect dried field grass. I cut it to shape. White glue it down ("Tacky" glue is great) then edge the areas with beige or brown lichen from Woodland. Cut the fabric and glue some rocks in the field and you have very convincing Fall-like scenery.:thumb: