Diorama product info required

[Shaun Symonds]

Hi
I try to use natural product if I can. Some I preserve with Glycerin Myself it takes a while to work out what dried best.
I've used Tree roots for Trunks of trees , filled out with the Sphagnum moss that Railway modellers use then covered with scatter material & sprayed what ever colour you want.
The Paper products from Kamizukuri are very nice ( not cheap). I have also used J'sWorks paper foliage. http://www.jsworkmodel.com/top/top.html
plus the usual Brass etch .

Shaun

[Ken Abrams]

One question pops into my mind straight away and that is regarding the 'live' materials found freely in the environment, surely it would dry out and become very fragile, much like a pressed flower? would it lose its colour and is there anyway to 'treat the items to reduce this occurrence?

Hi Vlad,

you've raised some great points, and as one of the guys behind the Armor Farm product line I can tell you that some of our items are indeed fragile. Our Bushes and Saplings can be damaged if handled in any manner other than gently but nothing I have ever used has ever broken down further on their own without some ham-fisted handling on my part.

Almost every product we sell is already dried out, in fact it's what gives the products that late fall/winter look, after all most items are harvested in late fall and further dried in the shop before sorting and packing. I have been using many of the items we sell for about twenty years, long before they became a product line and when I dig out some of the old vignettes for shows and displays, there has not been any further degradation of anything.

The one product we sell that is somewhat 'green' (color and condition) has also remained in good condition with only a bit of color loss/change. I don't recommend applying anything to them to help them 'keep' as it would probably be more damaging to add more moisture to them than simply leaving them in their dried out state. I have also seen some people clear coat them with matte varnish and others have even colored it with an airbrush and flocked it to make it better applicable to spring/summer. Personally, with so many other great products for spring/summer (some mentioned right in this thread) I don't use my stuff for anything other than fall/winter scenes.

Hope that helps, any other questions, feel free to ask.

[John Everett]

For some types of plants which become brittle as they dry out, try spraying them with a matte acrylic coat.

It's found in any craft store in spray can (rattle can) form and is meant to be used for protecting photographs. The acrylic soaks into the plant fibers and adds a small amount of strength and flexibility which helps to avoid breakage.

It doesn't generally smell very nice so use it outdoors when you can.