Workbench EXPERT MODELLERS SHOW YOU HOW
PART TWO
Having created the harbour wall and landscape, Peter Marriott turns his attention to the waters of the River Fowey, as his Cornish china clay-themed layout takes shape.
Water features are great when they go to plan, but when the water refuses to set or turns cloudy, then frustration sets in. On this project, I was determined to learn from past mistakes and, although it took me some time to get it right, the finished water was as good as I hoped it would be.
This small area of water was created over a period of seven days, working in bursts of between 30 minutes and an hour per day. Water projects are never quick, and experience has taught me that rushing drastically reduces the chances of ending up with satisfactory results.
Getting the base fully sealed and level, ensuring there’s nothing that will react adversely with the water fluid, are vitally important. So too is pouring the water fluid correctly, to ensure that it settles into all the right areas.
For this project, I made use of Woodland Scenics Realistic Water, which is one of the simplest water products to use. There’s no need to mix a resin and hardener in the correct ratio, as it comes ready for use and is self-levelling and water ‐soluble. It will not crack over time and has minimal shrinkage.
I’ve obtained good results when using this fluid to create still or slow-moving water, such as ponds, rivers, lakes and more. The surface dries firm and clear in approximately 24 hours, depending on humidity conditions. Like any water effect fluid, it will follow gravity, so we need to ensure that the baseboard was mounted onto a flat surface, using a spirit level to check and adding shims underneath where necessary. As the River Fowey forms the foreground of my baseboard, I would also have to create a temporary ‘dam’ to prevent the water running off the front edge. A couple of layers of heavy-duty masking tape proved sufficient for what would turn out to be a relatively shallow pour.
Indeed, after the initial layer of Realistic Water fluid, I left it to cure overnight. Looking at it the next morning, I was more than happy with its appearance, so decided against any further layers. Instead, I added a few ripples and crashing waves along the harbour wall using Deluxe Materials’ Making Waves. When this too had dried, a little dry-brushing created a hint of foaming white water to the crests of the waves for the finishing touch.
