Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5 (pictures)
We left off after blending the sand on both Board One and Board Two. Here is another shot from a different angle.
I began to paint the ground. I always go for muddy earth tones with richer warmer tone on rocks for contrast. After finishing the highlights I re-blacken the bridge and the river rocks.
I started the base color of the bridge.
The texture of the planks comes out after the final highlights.
Sometimes when I work on something for so long I stop seeing the colors and shapes of everything and this is when I know I need to change gears and work on something else for awhile. I started working on whittling the dozens of spikes I’m going to need for the three boards. My absolute favorite type of wood is something that grows abundantly here in Arizona. Mesquite has a knobby and very fine textured bark that makes for dynamic logs and trees that maintain a good sense of scale. The wood is easy enough to carve into even if it is dry.
I leave some of the spikes bare but I also do a variety of things such as gluing a band of plasticard strip and then riveting it to make it look like a metal band. I also wrapped couple with nylon twine for a look of rope.
After carving a few dozen or so it was time to prime and then paint. I then use my wood carving chisel with the round blade and choose the spot I wanted my spikes in and secure each one with PVA glue.
The picture seen here has a hint of PVA which I wasn’t too concerned about. These spikes will be blended in by using the appropriate grade of sand.
Here is another angle showing the finished bridge. The river rocks will be painted last and all the other accessories will be added later.
The hundredth time this piece has been brushed. Not really but every board will go through plenty of brushing to ensure that nothing is loose and any debris is off of it.
I don’t even know how to explain this one but it is real and it did happen. Scorpions are the bane of my existence. Ever since I moved here from CA I have been stung about a dozen times. I kid you not. These things seek me out. I don’t even bat an eye anymore when I see these things. Welcome to the Southwest the home of the nastiest critters. (No scorpions were harmed during this project. This lil fellow was captured by Runt and freed back to the desert.)
With most of the work done on the first board I now begin casting the pieces I will need for the second board. Here you can see the various sizes of tusks, ogre shields, some runes and different human and animal skulls. I also started cutting out shapes that look like animal pelts. All the resin parts will be scrubbed and cleaned before priming.
The main feature that will go on the second board is the hut. I’ve decided to carve the form out of florist ball foam. These things are great for making a form, they collapse with a little bit of pressure applied to it and it will retain the shape. I constructed the frame of the tent using the ridges from the concave shapes I carved and pressed into the foam. The concave shape will make it so that when I drape the wet paper onto the form it will mimic the effects of gravity. (Full step-by-step DIY on this in the future.)
After draping the last of the pieces it’s time to dry. PVA takes a bit of a long time to dry. A stint in front of the fan helps but it’s best to do something else while it’s drying.
Here I am doing some stitching. Runt at this point starts to hover behind me making tsk tsk sounds. He thought I was kidding when I said I would be doing some real stitching. I am using hemp twine available for purchase at any crafting stores. If you noticed I also primed the resin tusks since I am not painting the roof it is best to prime the resin separately.
Little touches such as the animal pelt on top adds to the realism.
More stitches.
To be continued [part 4]
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