Matakishi's Tea House
A simple little site...
Part One
by Silent Invader
I want to make 24 stands of 5 trees, all based on CDs. These first two are my WIP 'tests' and I hit a snag.
I went for CDs after reading quite a few articles about them staying nice and level. Unfortunately though, mine have curled.
I did score the CDs on one side as a key for the epoxy putty (for the trees) and the Bostik (for the terrain mat), and on the other side so that they wouldn't slide about when on the table. I'm wondering if in scoring them I perhaps broke the surface tension. Or maybe it’s because I used solvent glue.
I think I can rectify these two by running a bead of epoxy putty under the gap but given the extra work I'd rather not do that on the other 22.
After some investigation I found that scoring the CDs is a prime cause of curling, that using solvent glue seems to make that worse, and a good coating of latex glue works best (though pva glue is a cheaper and cleaner but a little less effective alternative). Also, unless you have to, don't use really thin, cheap CDs!
I had a go at making tree trunks using epoxy putty with a wire core. Very time consuming. Then I saw this tree-making tutorial, which I adapted into the technique I use now.
I didn't take photos as I went along but here are some cross-section images showing how they were done.
I used a fair amount of epoxy putty, solvent glue and superglue so health considerations applied!!
1) CD base. Covered with grass-effect terrain paper fixed with latex glue (note holes in grass paper where trees will be fixed direct to the CD surface – I left sufficient space between them to accommodate my figure bases). I also cover the underneath of the CD with thick paper, which seems to go a long ways towards preventing the CD from curling and will also stop the CD from skidding across the table. (Though any curling isn’t the end of the world as it can be compensated for with a thin bead of epoxy putty.)
2) Basically the trunks are dried twigs secured to the CD with a blob of £1 store 30 minute epoxy putty. Basically pinch the putty around the twig as pushing rather than pinching will force the putty away and leave gaps around the twig. Before the putty has set I add the root and bark detail to it with a coffee stirrer and cocktail stick. After the putty has set I run some £1 store superglue down the trunk to seal and harden it and a bead around the edge of the CD to bind the two paper coverings and create a ‘toothy’ edge to grip the gaming table.
3) The crowns are made from dark green nylon post scrubbers (70p for 4 from my local supermarket). I tear the scrubber into pieces and secure them with Bostik (solvent glue) to achieve the shape of tree that I want. This drawing shows the layers of scrubber for one tree shape.
4) A different tree shape, this one achieved by making a ‘snowball’ of fragments of scrubber and glue – messy but ultimately quite effective.
5) A different technique to achieve the pendulous shaped crown of some birch. Bear in mind that the drawing is in cross-section but basically the approach was to affix horizontal pieces to which I then glued hanging sections. The epoxy stands apart from the grass matting so this drawing also shows how I improve blending by stacking up some beach sand that is secured with superglue.
6) Another tree shape. After painting – to be covered another time – this drawing shows where I add some flock to the sand to further improve the visual blending of the various parts. To obtain the right colour flock, I simply scrape some off of left-over scraps of the grass paper I use. After flocking I apply a coat of matt sealant spray.
I want to make 24 stands of 5 trees, all based on CDs. These first two are my WIP 'tests' and I hit a snag.
I went for CDs after reading quite a few articles about them staying nice and level. Unfortunately though, mine have curled.
I did score the CDs on one side as a key for the epoxy putty (for the trees) and the Bostik (for the terrain mat), and on the other side so that they wouldn't slide about when on the table. I'm wondering if in scoring them I perhaps broke the surface tension. Or maybe it’s because I used solvent glue.
I think I can rectify these two by running a bead of epoxy putty under the gap but given the extra work I'd rather not do that on the other 22.
After some investigation I found that scoring the CDs is a prime cause of curling, that using solvent glue seems to make that worse, and a good coating of latex glue works best (though pva glue is a cheaper and cleaner but a little less effective alternative). Also, unless you have to, don't use really thin, cheap CDs!
I had a go at making tree trunks using epoxy putty with a wire core. Very time consuming. Then I saw this tree-making tutorial, which I adapted into the technique I use now.
I didn't take photos as I went along but here are some cross-section images showing how they were done.
I used a fair amount of epoxy putty, solvent glue and superglue so health considerations applied!!
1) CD base. Covered with grass-effect terrain paper fixed with latex glue (note holes in grass paper where trees will be fixed direct to the CD surface – I left sufficient space between them to accommodate my figure bases). I also cover the underneath of the CD with thick paper, which seems to go a long ways towards preventing the CD from curling and will also stop the CD from skidding across the table. (Though any curling isn’t the end of the world as it can be compensated for with a thin bead of epoxy putty.)
2) Basically the trunks are dried twigs secured to the CD with a blob of £1 store 30 minute epoxy putty. Basically pinch the putty around the twig as pushing rather than pinching will force the putty away and leave gaps around the twig. Before the putty has set I add the root and bark detail to it with a coffee stirrer and cocktail stick. After the putty has set I run some £1 store superglue down the trunk to seal and harden it and a bead around the edge of the CD to bind the two paper coverings and create a ‘toothy’ edge to grip the gaming table.
3) The crowns are made from dark green nylon post scrubbers (70p for 4 from my local supermarket). I tear the scrubber into pieces and secure them with Bostik (solvent glue) to achieve the shape of tree that I want. This drawing shows the layers of scrubber for one tree shape.
4) A different tree shape, this one achieved by making a ‘snowball’ of fragments of scrubber and glue – messy but ultimately quite effective.
5) A different technique to achieve the pendulous shaped crown of some birch. Bear in mind that the drawing is in cross-section but basically the approach was to affix horizontal pieces to which I then glued hanging sections. The epoxy stands apart from the grass matting so this drawing also shows how I improve blending by stacking up some beach sand that is secured with superglue.
6) Another tree shape. After painting – to be covered another time – this drawing shows where I add some flock to the sand to further improve the visual blending of the various parts. To obtain the right colour flock, I simply scrape some off of left-over scraps of the grass paper I use. After flocking I apply a coat of matt sealant spray.
