Foamcore Ruins, Part 2

The Next Step:

Now that our basic design is complete and taped together, now its time to mix up a little compound to give the model texture and give it strength. This is not an exact science, and I do not use precise amounts of the ingredients. It helps lend individuality to each piece. If you want pieces to conform with each other, then it is best to make multiple pieces at the same time.

Start with your patching plaster powder (hereafter referred to as 'p3'), and add a little into a mixing container you don't plan on eating out of any time soon. On top of this, I sneak a pinch of potting soil out of my wife's plants. This is to add texture to the wall that the plaster alone does not achieve. The potting soil is optional, however, as it does not much else.

To this dry mixture, I add some black paint, and a huge gob of PVA glue. The glue and the paint are the only liquids added to the dry mixture, and this combination makes for a solid product once dry. If you find the consistency too dry and crumbly, then just add more paint or glue until you get a consistency of a thick paste. Think thin mayonnaise, but without the side-effects that incurs such as vomiting and nausea. If the potting soil makes it more like crunchy peanut-butter, then you are on the right track, just add more glue and paint.

Alternatively, if you find that your mixture is runny like thick milk, add some more plaster and soil to dry it up a bit. You want a creamy paste as your end result, such as pictured above.

In the Third Step, we'll cover the application of this gooey concoction.