"static grass with flock added in? help for wargame mat" Topic

(don't know how my post got attached to Denis033…)

hey TMP

short version: if you had some tubs of woodland scenic static grass of medium green, light green, dark green, and harvest gold; what kind of turf would you mix with them (and in what portions if you know) to fill out the grass some and make the colors brighter? or would you not use turf but different static grass from another brand?

long version: next month i'm going to make my own wargame matt using the caulk and canvas method. in preparation of making the ground cover/ colors i ordered some woodland scenics static grass in those colors above, however, the colors are kinda muted and there's actually not a lot of deference between the shades. i experimented with some blends of the grasses but overall i'm not super happy with effect. it's all just kinda one shade of dull green. I'm starting to get some good variation but it doesn't really pop.

probably turns out i should of used another company like scenic express or something that has brighter flock.

but now i am stuck with the WS stuff so want to use it. also looking online i see that many people mix it with a flock. i had some WS fine turf laying around in the 'burnt grass' color and if definitely bulks out the static grass and takes on the color of the turf. so i think i have the problem solved. i want the colors of the wargame mat to be more vibrant than the ststic grass itself and while i don;t want super stark changes in colors i do want a larger difference in the variations. i also experimented with throwing in some Army painter summer grass and that helps, but i'll need a lot more than just that little tub.

but before i go out and get a bunch of WS turf blends i'd like some suggestions of those wiser than myself with working with this stuff. this is my first experiment (usually i just buy the small army painter tubes of grass for the miniatures).

i was thinking that since WS course turf also comes in light, medium, and dark green i could just get those and mix like with like ( such as light green turf with light green static grass) and maybe add in some yellow as well. what do you think? or maybe the WS blended turf. there's also a semi local model railroad store that i plan to check out, so i'll be able to get different brands of turf / flock to throw in.

any help would be appreciated. : )

-Stewart

Why do you want it to pop when the real world looks naturally harmonious. I'd find a few meadows or pictures of them at this time of year and then experiment to match them. I'd aim to keep it light if you want it to look natural. If you want it to pop then I think you have to do as you write and just buy some bright green materials.

When I made my grass mat I'd been studying the grass meadows around my village to get an understanding of how they change with the seasons. I went for a late August/September time but the grass is at it's brightest in the late spring.

I would neither go too lurid or too dark if you want it to look natural. If you make it pop will it out pop your figures? Assuming they pop and then how do you visually balance them so the whole looks harmonious?

Gaming is a visual medium – I'd like to see pictures of anything before I would venture on it.

A trick I've applied to static grass to get the colour I want is to carefully dry brush with acrylic paints of my choosing.

Timmo is spot on. The duller colors will look much more realistic. So, unless your goal is some sort of fantasy effect, you already have the right colors – although additional variety in similar tones won't hurt. Even a "monotone" natural environment is far, far from actual monotone.

The trick is to have layers of material, varying textures, and varying yet naturalistic colorization. When you go to that model railroad store, get one of the books on making scenery (probably from Kalmbach press, especially one by Dave Frary, you'll learn lots).

If you have an airbrush why not just spray the color you want?