Now straight off the bat I must admit that I should have done a test base or two before jumping head long into it as this project has already experienced several problems just getting this far. First was just trying to get the materials, the second being the actual construction of the base (which was by far the hardest part) and finally the painting.
First off, I want to link the actual video that inspired this project:
How to make wood plank miniature bases by Doctor Faust's Painting Clinic was the main inspiration and it was through this video that I decided to give it a shot (Given that mine is also for a Colette crew). For my plastic strips I used Evergreen Scale Models strip styrene 1.0mm x 3.2mm which had ten strips in the pack. This made one 50mm, two 40mm and two 30mm. Actually, it could have made more then two of the 30mm, but I was testing a few ideas, such as glue. The best glue to use is probably plastic glue as it melts the plastic and sticks better, though a brush option is better for evening it out (if a little excess goes over the sides it can ruin it).
I unfortunately used super glue, which ment when I got to the cutting out phase, the plastic planks kept snapping off. The worse part is the sanding. I left too much around the circle and sanding them back has been a nightmare.
As for the painting, my problems started the moment I added colour. Having used a black ink pen to draw the circle, the circle line kept coming through the colour, even with a black undercoat and a dark brown base colour. Speaking of which, I don't have any of the colours Doctor Faust used and only have Citadel paints (which I'm slowly expanding to other companies). Instead I used a base colour of Dryad Bark and went to look up similar colours. Thanks to one online site, I was able pin the closest colours to those of Tau Light Ochre and Zamesi Desert (there was a third, but I didn't have much money and decided I could skip that one). The problem is that it doesn't come out as well in colour compared to Doc Faust and needed a light touch of Bleached Bone to help. I also added Vallejo Model Air Madera Wood to it, but I can't remember if that was the first or second paint over. Finally, I don't have the inks, only Citadel washes, which are weaker in comparison. So yeah, didn't go as planned. Also had to repaint the black of the base, so you can see where that didn't go so well.
That said, it does look a lot like I just cut up some paddle pop sticks and just glued them to the base, so it does still look like wood, which I can't complain about. My only fear is that the other bases I'll eventually make won't match with this one, but we'll see how that goes further down the track.
A big problem I found is that the Coryphee that is leaning down is not actually flat on the ground. In trying to ensure there were no obvious gaps in the model, I forgot to check if it was flat standing on the surface. I found this out after I had already cleaned and glued the dance floor to the base. Yep, had to add a second layer while it was still on the base and if you look just under that second floor you can see how poor a job I did in blending it in (also, those Coryphee haven't been glued on, want to paint them up first). At least with the single bases, the second layer was added before I got to the cutting stage, so I won't make that mistake again.
Overall, as much as I'd love things to go perfectly, it's clear that will never be the case. Of course, it could have been far worse and the fact it still looks like a lighter wooded floor is still good. Looks more like a Saloon then a Stage Show, but hey, perhaps their on tour?
