More trees

Ground Cover

Here is some dark green foam as ground cover on a diorama hillside.

(That's a scratch built utility pole, and the tail end of my galloping goose just in the picture.)

Andrew
 

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Chris -

It was not difficult, but it is a bit time consuming.

I found that cutting the foam into small chuncks first helped quite a bit. Also, when you think the foam is ground enough, let the blender go for a few more minutes. Then it will actually be ok - small, fine pieces.

The thing that takes the longest is letting it dry. After that, it only takes about 5 minutes to make the tree.

I am at a bit of a loss on how to colour the red and orange sponges - maybe I need a fall scene...! I don't know what to do with the blue ones though...;)

Andrew


Andrew
 
Originally posted by MasonJar
Chris -

It was not difficult, but it is a bit time consuming.

I found that cutting the foam into small chuncks first helped quite a bit. Also, when you think the foam is ground enough, let the blender go for a few more minutes. Then it will actually be ok - small, fine pieces.

The thing that takes the longest is letting it dry. After that, it only takes about 5 minutes to make the tree.

I am at a bit of a loss on how to colour the red and orange sponges - maybe I need a fall scene...! I don't know what to do with the blue ones though...;)

Andrew

Andrew
Click to expand...

You might try ginding up the blue ones and using green to see if you get a blue-green color kind of like a blue spruce. You could also use the red, orange, and blue ones to make flowers. Out here in Ca. the Jacaranda trees are gorgeous. When they are in bloom they are solid blue, then the flowers start to fall and are replaced by leaves until the tree is all green. Beautiful but very messy! I like to look at them as long as they are in someone else's yard! The red and orange could be used for Bouganvilla.
If you are modeling the Northeast or Northwest, or a forrest scene, then Jacaranda and Bouganvilla are probably out. If modeling a forrest, do you have Dogwood? They have nice red flowers. You could also spread some color over meadow grass to simulate wild flowers. If you model a town with houses or plantings, you could do all sorts of flowers, or flowering shrubs.
 
Originally posted by interurben
Thats a good idea Russ.
Would it not be better to just use white foam??
Click to expand...

It would probably be much better to start with white foam, but he was asking what could be done with red, orange, and blue foam so I was throwing out ideas. The problem is that as soon as I posted, I'd think of another idea, so I've edited that post three or four times as fast as I can type, then re-edited to get rid of typos.
I like the idea of having flowers somewhere around a layout. I think we think of scenery too often as being brown dirt, green grass and trees, and maybe some earthtones for rock. I think sometimes our model railroads would be helped with a little color in the scenery. If modeling a logging road, throw in some wild flowers. In the city, put in flower gardens, and don't be afraid to model flowering trees, or shrubs. I don't think modelers are so much afraid to try flowers as they just haven't noticed them in the prototype.
 
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