Ferns

garmenhord · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 12:34 pm

Anyone an idea for making ferns?
I was thinking about buying some from a model shop but they didn't had anything i liked. Might be cooler to make my own ones. But how? Got tips anyone?

Fëanor, the mighty elf · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 12:52 pm

Well, I've been thinking to use real ferns, dry them, cut them to size and paint them.

This is what I mean, see this image:

So, this is one fern leaf zoomed in. As you see, it has some smaller leaves and these again comprise of the smallest leaves.
Each of these so to say mid-size leaves already look a lot like a large leaf on a smaller (say 28mm) scale. If you get the mid-size leaves off this vertical 'spine', you got yourself some nice fern leaves on a 28mm scale. Collect a few of those into a group and I suppose you got your fern! I'm not sure how well this will work, because I haven't tried it yet, but I suppose it should.

garmenhord · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 1:00 pm

Wouldn't it be very fragile? I tried some dryed out plants before but they tend to break off rather quick.

Fëanor, the mighty elf · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 1:18 pm

Yes, they will likely be very fragile, but there might be ways to make them less so. Perhaps varnish could help, or diluted wood glue. This would also help it stay in the right shape in the first place.
But again, I've not tried this myself, so at this point I can't really help much more than share the idea.

Maybe experiment a bit with it to see if it works for you.
There are indeed plastic ferns available, but I find the ones that look good often far to expensive.

Coenus Scaldingus · **Joined:** Sat Aug 17, 2013 9:14 am **Posts:** 1121

Wouldn't dry the material, probably too brittle.

Instead, this may work for ferns as well: http://www.wampforum.com/VB4/content.ph ... ture-bases
Haven't had any experience with it, but am looking forward to trying it out!

Other than that, etched brass is available in all shapes and sizes: http://www.hfminis.co.uk/shop?category= ... foliage%29

garmenhord · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 2:21 pm

Might be worth trying.

Oldman Willow · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 3:12 pm

For terrain try plastic cake decorations and plastic plants. Model bases or dioramas small natural plants can be treated with glycerin.

Nevinsrip · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 9:23 pm

Go to Michaels or some other craft shop that sells plastic floral stuff. Plenty to choose from and they never dry out. Grab a 40% off coupon from the net and Bob's your uncle.

garmenhord · **Posted:** Mon Dec 23, 2013 9:35 pm

I did found some pastic plants for model building quite cheap some time ago in a store. But it was not good looking and oversized.
Maybe in a different store i might have some more luck. Or i should give that glycerin thing a shot.
Thanks for all the tips.

thefryer · **Joined:** Mon Dec 02, 2013 2:03 pm **Posts:** 21

http://www.hfminis.co.uk/shop?category= ... foliage%29
Just came across these not to expensive an might be of some use to you both?

garmenhord · **Posted:** Tue Jan 07, 2014 3:33 pm

I found some plastic plants for a cheap price. They look a bit jungle like, but they aren't to bad.

Ferns

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