The use of static grass is one of those things most of us do, but few of us put any real thought into. I add static grass to my models all the time, but I don't think I do it well enough. Sure, I can get it on there, but am I getting the best effect with how I apply it to the base?
Going through the blog rolls this week, I stopped by this post by The Weekend Painter talking about his Legion of Damned model. As soon as I saw the model, I was drawn to the base more than anything else. There's nothing wrong with the model, but it's the use of the static grass on the base that really caught my eye.
The static grass is there, but it's not in huge clumps that might seem out of place, it's a few TINY patches of it that would fit perfectly into the environment portrayed by the rest of the the basing material.
For me, that's perfect. It adds to the base overall, but doesn't stand out or seem out of place there. It's just enough that it provides some variety in texture and color.
As much as I try, I seem to fall into the "big pile of grass" category. I'm a bit heavy handed with the glue which translates into lots of grass. That and I use the bright greens stuff. I need to stop that or blend it with some dead grass to get a more natural look.
I did pick up some "dead grass" recently that I may use on my Heroes of Armageddon model. You can be sure that I'm going to be careful how much glue I use too. Like most other details, you want it to emphasize your model, not detract from it.
Related Links and Additional Content from comments:
Silflor Scenery Products
Woodland Scenics Ground Cover materials
1. Mix a tiny amount of green grass into the dead stuff for realism.
2. Lightly drybrush yellow over green grass for effect.
3. Some Dire Wolves by Wojna w miniaturze
4. How it looks between rock outcroppings by Mordian 7th Reg.
5. Use an empty shaker bottle to spread your material.
6. Apply glue with a toothpick to get tiny dots of glue.
Make sure to check out the other Hobby Focus Articles too!
