Blog 5 – The 27^th Annual Creatin Contest - The Scenery of Dragon Cottage

Probably the hardest and most time-consuming part of the build was the scenery.  I’ve never tried any of this before and so a lot of trial and error went on during the creating.  I used a thick rigid foam product as the base – lightweight but very strong and stable.  I used a hot wire cutter to create the basic step shape and the gentle slopes around the cottage from a spare sheet of foam. 

While carving the basic landscape I decided I’d quite like a water feature so I added in a stream that runs along the front edge.  While it looks idyllic now, it took 3 attempts and a month to create the end product.  Twice I had to pull everything out from that area – including all the rocks, and start from scratch because there was a problem with the resin.  The resin almost broke me – I was so grateful to have the support of my mini friends at that point.  I have used resin many times previously however always in molds.  I hadn’t anticipated that my stream at only 1cm at the deepest would be considered a ‘deep pour’.  

The first attempt I used a resin that I already had.  It started to cure so quickly and with so much heat that it turned from clear to white.  Before it set I pulled as much as I could out – an extremely messy and disheartening job.  It was astounding just how hot it became!

I then did some phoning around and discussed what I was trying to do with a company that creates and sells various resin products.  They told me my stream was a ‘deep pour’ and so I required a resin that would cure at a much slower rate.  While waiting for it to arrive I pulled out everything from the stream and discarded it, starting again.

After setting up everything and creating another fluid-proof barrier around the pour site, I poured a second attempt.  Turns out that it wasn’t completely sealed and my joy at seeing a stream working soon turned to dismay as I noted it all flowing out and away.  Fortunately, I had a plastic sheet under the project so there is only a small half-moon shape of resin still left on the dining table.

Again I pulled it all out – lengthening the stream as I went.  Again I created a heap more rocks and made two eels out of polymer clay that peek out from under the rocks.  Painted it all, added sand etc….and left it to COMPLETELY dry before trying the resin once again.  This time instead of making a fussy barrier, I just used brown packing tape.  Because the resin needed to cure at a high room temperature and we were in the middle of winter, I bought a couple of small heaters into the room and a drying rack with blankets over the top.  I set everything up and then poured the resin.  I covered it all up – continually checking that the heaters weren’t going to cause a fire!  The room with the heat pump on as well was like a sauna and we had to hunt out summer clothes for the day.

Fortunately, it worked and worked well.  After about 8 hours there no leaks, the resin had set hard and clear and I finally had a stream.

While the resin was a challenge, I enjoyed making the rocks.  I used a paper mache type product called Sculptamold to create them – some cast in Woodland Scenics molds and others freestyle.  I loved the Sculptamold – will absolutely be using that more in the future.  The painting however was the fun part – so gratifying to see a dry grey lump become rock before your very eyes!

I made three trees but the first was a bust.  I had hoped to use dried Candytuft for the leaves and had ordered some from the US.  Unfortunately it was stopped at the border and given that I didn’t want to pay $50 to return it, it was destroyed.  Suffice to say it was extremely frustrating and I am now growing Candytuft in the garden!

I had fun with the little details here are there which are mostly missed at first glance.  There are old broken bones in various places under the long grass and moss.  There’s a collar with a cow bell still attached to the side of the house by chain – but only a few bones remain of the family cow. 

It was fun using static grass for the first time.  For the strips in between the paving stones I put a line of glue on baking paper and then using the static grass applicator, spread the grass on top.  When dry I could pull off the lines of grass and cut to push in between the stones.

I mostly used Woodlands Scenics products for the mosses and grass.  I found a fantastic green paint which matched perfectly for under the greenery.  The flowers are dried flowers from Aliexpress (not sure what the difference between those and the candytuft was).  I did try to dry my own real tiny flowers using silica gel but apparently I didn’t do it properly as while they looked fantastic when they first went on, they very quickly drooped.

And that is pretty much that!!

Through the whole scene I have tried to show a life suddenly halted when the dragon came crashing through the cottage roof.  Whether the family fled to safety or fell beneath the dragon, one thing is for certain – they’re not coming back.

Meanwhile Thistle is sound asleep in the dry cellar, surrounded by his gleaming hoard.  Sacks and barrels that once contained the family’s food are now empty or spoiled.  The mice have moved in – they’re too small for a dragon to mind, but few other animals venture near.  For now peace reigns but beware, Hic Sunt Dracones – Here be Dragons.