Hi Everybody, here's what I've been working on the last few weeks, it's my first attempt at scratching a bigun... :-) I've used Mini Art's kit as a template to start scratching this. Still alot to do, I figure I'm 50 % done, with windows, pictures, stringers, mortar, and shingles and a door, along with some window ledges to go. I thought I had the angles measured out, but in cutting looks like I was off a little, and the roof will need some shims added before I lay the stringers (but it will be hidden when I'm done with it, and the 1st floor window is "slightly" off centre Oh well my excuse is that the bomb going off has jolted everything loose. ha ha Enjoy!



I used photo album scrap paper for the two different "wallpapers".

That looks as if it's gonna be BIG Kelly - get it finished and let's see it then!. What other items will be in the dio (apart fom rubble !LOL)

KellyZak:

The building is looking very nice. I assume the weathering is still to be done as the colors are a bit bright? Could you explain your building method and materials?

Keith

Hi Dave, yah I think it's gonna be big...I'm planning on adding a StuG III G, and the Krupp Protze into the scene with some figures poking inside the house. I think the rubble will be to a minimum, because the way I want to lay it out will have some on the sides with very little in the front, so not quite the mountains I usually do! LOL :-)

It`ll be an eye catcher when it`s done Kelly,the work put into this piece so far is outstanding(I saw it in person last night,I was very impressed.)!

I'll take two looks at this - one as modeler and one as a home builder.

As a modeler -NICE,eye catching yes, good looking yes, well done oh yes. It's a nice build, the narrowness makes it a bit more unique than I normally see. The color of the plaster is a bit light for my tastes, but this could be the photo and there is still weathering to go. If they aren't there I would add nail holes with a pin to the floor boards.

As a builder - the roof peak looks a bit off from my experience (which is modern so I may be off base). The roof joists (angled roof beams) should 'butt' up against the main roof peak beam. All three pieces should come to a nice triangle at the top (left joist, right joist and main beam).
The floor joists should run left to right not front to back. They should go perpendicular to the floor boards.

This will be a Great building when you're done.
Keep us posted.

WHEW, glad the site's up and running again! Yes gang, still have a bit to do, the weathering will be last to do once it's on it's base, so it'll look clean for a while LOL
Thanks for the tips Slodder, hopefully when all is said and done, my little errs will be hidden. I've been taking pics with my 35mm on the stages, so look for a write up when this dio's done (give me a couple months or so haha)

Looks very good, but it's all a bit too bright and shiny. The bricks are too red, the white is (way!) too white....
This will make you an e x c e l l e n t diorama if you weather it with black/grey/brown shades.
If you want to give this a whirl, try the following :

1) ffill a bottle cap with white spirit and add the tiniest bit of black to that. Mix into a very clear grey liquid, and liberally paint the whole building. When dry, do that again. Let dry. Paint again. Till it looks like you want it too. One warning : don't put too much black into the mixture. You may want to do that to "get there more quickly. Don't.
When drops run down making vertical stripes : let them. That's what rain does to a charred building. Black particles will creep into the crevices and cracks, giing it more depth.
2) try to figure out how much brickwork, rooftiles, wood are missing to complete the house. That's the amount you want to see laying around this house. Make small bricks, pieces of plumbing, boarding, electric wires, furniture, heating, broken windows, rooftiles... Paint them in the desired colours and sprinkle them around. This should be a huge pile of rubble !
3) Next, you need dust. Dust is the colour of cement. Why not try real cement ? Make sure the diorama is dry, then thinly sprinkle DRY cement over it all. Tap the diorama base slightly a few times, so the cement falls off the large surfaces and piles up a bit in the corners. Then spray water thinly with a plant sprayer. Let dry. You can repeat this if you think it deserves more, or put some cement into specific areas. Note : rooftiles are not cemented. You can use a bit of shaved brick or shavings of a terracotta flower pot over your rooftiles.
4) Did the place burn down ? So where's the ashes ? Again, you want to use the real stuff. Fine gray ashes like you find in the bottom of your fireplace.

The house you built is an excellent starting point. This will be a GREAT lillte dio !

Hi Kelly
I like much your building , It´s depics accurately central european house. This ruin adds character a your diorama.
best regards
Carlos