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 I've had a Japanese diorama in mind for some time , not just as a way to display my samurai and ninja figures but also as a venue to create some 1:6 scale shoji screens , which just look so neat . As a matter of fact , this whole diorama began simply enough with the construction of the two shoji screen door panels , and then I began to assemble the components around those . This will really end up being two set pieces , an interior and an exterior , I began with the exterior for the mere fact that I wanted to play around with exterior details at this point in time moreso than interior details . Why an exterior ? One reason is that it gives me the opportunity to utilize a lot of wood for the architectural construction , I like making things out of wood . Wood is an easy element to use in dioramas , all it requires is measuring , cutting , assembling and staining to achieve an end result . Once all these aspects have been achieved you can get a real sense of the overall final look for your diorama in a relatively short span of time . The shoji screen door panels which initiated work on this project only required a few hours of work and the set was well on its way . Once I had completed the doors , I then did a quick set up , playing around with the compositional elements that I had in mind , and added a few figures to get an idea of the size of this diorama . After a short photo shoot I then pulled out my Sketch Up ! architectural program on the computer and began work constructing a basic design for the exterior .    You may have already guessed this , but no one makes 1:6 scale sliding doors or tracks for same , which meant that I would have to build some . Fortunately the principle for a sliding door track is fairly simple and was actually a fairly simple construction project . The entire doorway will be contained within a simple frame , I just needed to construct a track for the top and bottom , which will then get two vertical posts attached at either side . The entire doorway will basically be a large rectangular frame that I can then inset into the wall .  The bottom track is really simple , three 1/4 inch wood slats with a 1/16 inch spacer at either end . I can now insert a 1/16 inch slat into the bottom framework of each door that will slip into the bottom track . The Double Track Configuration  Due to size constraints I decided to use a double track configuration , which gives me two sliding panels that slide either in front of or behind one another . Had i used a single track configuration I would have needed to increase the length of the wall in order to have the doors open .  For the upper track I chose to use 2 L-shaped basswood strips , which fortunately were pretty close to being the perfect width to inset the tops of the doors . I will need to go in and sand down the top 3/8 inches of the doors to allow some space for smooth sliding action but that's a relatively minor adjustment . The primary reason I used the L-shaped slats for the top rather than repeating the construction of the bottom track is that 1 : The L-Shaped track fully encases the tops of the door which gives it some structural strength and 2 : It eliminates the need to add a 1/16 slat insert on the top of the door to fit into the track path had I repeated the track design of the bottom track .    Building a shoji door panel is deceptively simple , and supplies are quite affordable . You can pick up everything you need to build it at the arts and crafts store , in either the doll house supply section or the model building section ; wherever they keep the basswood and balsa wood pieces . Most shoji doors are constructed of basswood in reality so being able to utilize basswood in your model just adds to the authenticity . Most of the individual wood pieces run anywhere from .49 cents per piece to $ 1.99 per piece so you're probably looking at a material expenditure of around 6 bucks per door ( cheap ! ) I will add that it pays to shop around also , I picked up two hanging sign frames to use as the base for my shoji door frames ( just had to remove the brass hangers and crack them apart ) and they cost just $ 2.99 which saved me around 6 dollars , plus gave me the two wood panels that I'm using to create the boardwalks . All that was required to build the frames was a ruler to measure the individual pieces , a razor saw to cut them to size and Elmer's wood glue to put them together .  The interior latticework for the shoji panels are also really easy to create . Made from 1/4 inch by 1/8 inch basswood slats once measured to size and cut , they are taped together , side by side , and the notches are measured out and cut using a razor saw . The horizontal slats are notched on the top and the vertical slats are notched on the bottom and then the pieces are slipped together much like puzzle pieces . You can glue them together or not . The finished latticework is then glued into the door frame . Both doors for my diorama were constructed in about an hour and half .  This was another section that was an easy build , the boardwalk itself is a single plank of pine that originally served as the backing board for the hanging sign from which I scavenged the frame for the shoji doors . I measured out individual plank widths on it and then scored the wood with a razor saw and the a metal punch to accentuate more scale wood grain effect since this single plank needs to look like four long planks once it has beeen stained . The beams and posts are simply cut to length and glued on , though I did drill some holes on the beams and posts in order to insert dowels just to punch up the strength of the boardwalk . Adding the pegs wasn't really necessary , but since I figured there will be a lot of action figure action on it it couldn't hurt . I did not concern myself overmuch with the lengths of the support posts or whether or not they were true and level since I will be adding terrain to the base and sinking the boardwalk into that , just enough to make the boardwalk fairly even keeled .  With the majority of the elements constructed , now comes the time to set up the basework and finalize the footprint of the diorama . As with most of my dioramas , I like to keep them as lightweight as possible since through the course of work and later in their final completion they'll be moved around a lot . To this end the base is an inexpensive picture frame with a piece of 1/4 inch foamcore as the floor . The wood picture frame provides the strength and stability and the foamcore provides a sturdy enough flooring while keeping weight down . The final dimensions of this vignette is a 16 inch by 20 inch footprint and a height of around 20 inches . The walls will also be constructed of foamcore to which basswood planks will be glued to form the architectural details . I wanted to include portions of a japanese garden within this scene , and to that end I stopped by the local PetCo to see what types of small pebbles might be available to include in the ground cover , the trip turned out quite a bit more fruitful than I anticipated . I found some great river pebbles to use within my terrain work as well as a small bonsai tree model and a yukimi lantern ( also known as a snow-viewing lantern ) . Both the tree and the lantern will require repainting , but at least I don't have to make these items myself . A small aside concerning the pet supply store : the accessories available for providing shelter and visual drama for your pet lizards , snakes and fish offer some really exciting diorama possibilities for 1:6 scale applications . If you ever need some quality base structures for 1:6 scale trees then visit the pet supply store , they have resin casts as well as driftwood available that is perfect .  The door frame is built using two vertical columns on either side that are topped off with an E-shaped cap . The vertical columns have gotten two 1/16 inch slats inserted into the bottom that slips into the bottom track bar . At this stage only the crowning E-shaped bar has been glued to the side columns , once I have completed the sanding work on the doors and columns and have fitted the door frame to the foamcore wall then I will complete the process of gluing together the doors and frame .  As I mentioned , the exterior vignette is part one of a two part diorama , so I have tried to keep the shoji doors framework as simple as possible so that I can utilize this wall also as the backdrop for the interior scene as well .  Up to this point I've only assumed that my design on the tracks for the door frame would work , now with the major points glued and secondary points well anchored I can test the sliding doors in real time , and thankfully the design works well and both doors slide open with ease .   Building the wall structures is a straightforward process , foamcore boards being the base material . The backwall is measured and cut to sit flat within the frame with about a 3/4 inch overlap on either side that extends over the lip of the outer frame . With the boardwalk in place , I drew in a guideline in pencil that demarks the bottom of what will be the bottom for the door frame . The back wall is then removed and laid flat , and the door frame unit is placed along the bottom guideline and a pencil is used to trace around it . The door unit is removed , and using a straightedge and an X-Acto knife the opening for the door is cut from the foamcore . It's then a rather simple process of slipping the door frame into the wall . Because of the thickness of the door frame , 1/2 inch foamcore is used for the back wall . The left side wall is 1/4 inch foamcore .  With the walls in place , the primary elements of the vignette are placed , this is pretty much how the diorama is going to look in its final form , and it is at this stage that I am now ready to begin the finishing design detail work . The left wall is the weakest part at this stage , since there are no structural interest points to it , so one of the things I'll be concentrating on is working out some design ideas to make it a bit more dynamic . Since the back wall is going to be incorporated into the interior diorama scene as well I need to retain modularity so neither of the walls will be permanently attached to the base frame . In order to lock the walls together I will construct a one piece L-shaped roofing overhang that will connect both walls together .  An overview showing the size footprint of the diorama , 16 x 20 x 20 , large enough to accomodate several figures comfortably and still small enough to allow easy relocation and not monopolizing a great deal of space in my small apartment . Since it is entirely modular , if needed I'll be able to break the whole thing down into its component parts - walls and base for storage .  As with any work of artifice , the secret is not so much as recreating actuality as creating an illusion of reality , so when initiating the exterior beamwork of this samurai household I am not creating structural architecture , just the facade of it . As with most of the woodwork for this diorama , basswood sheets and planks are used and these are readily available at arts and crafts stores . Again the main tools used are the ruler and the X-acto knife and razor saw along with Elmers Wood Glue . The first bit of beamwork to be constructed was the crowning L-shaped wall connector . At this point I have just built the crowning cap connector top and front and still need to add the back pieces that will make it a U-shaped cap and make it a tightly fitting connector for the two separate walls .  While I am not replicating a specific japanese building , I am creating this diorama utilizing a variety of reference pictures to recreate the beamwork . Most of the basswood planking I am using is 1/8 inch thick , I have doubled the 1/8 inch plank for the beam that spans the horizontal line across the top of the doorway , the bottom layer being 1 and 1/4 inch wide and the top layer being 5/8 inch wide . The two vertical beams on either side of the door use 1/4 inch thick basswood . For the sake of simplicity , I will measure and cut the two vertical beams where they intersect the horizontal beam . The center slat at the top of the wall above the door is a piece of 1/8 inch basswood . I will need to create all the exterior beamwork , stain and apply the faux plaster work over the walls before I can permanently attach the woodwork . At this point I have realized that it will not be necessary for me to create any roofing overhang , though that does not mean that I intend to eliminate that aspect . There is a certain appeal to create a portion of the roofing in order to add more visual interest to the diorama , and in the end the final decision as to whether or not to do so will really be one of aesthetic visual appeal for the finished piece .  Due to the root structure of the model pine tree I needed to raise the ground level on that section of the base where it will be placed . Additionally , since this is kind of " the backyard " of my little samurai household the yard itself would not necessarily be flat and level so by adding some uneveness to the terrain makes the diorama a bit more naturalistic and interesting . There are a variety of different ways that this can be accomplished and I've chosen an easy way of contouring the ground - gluing on some styrofoam risers .  The three pieces of foam terrain bases came from a single rectangular piece of styrofoam , which was just snapped off at the general size of the piece needed and then carved and sanded to shape and contour . There's no defined way of accomplishing this , you basically just start carving out chunks , hitting it with a rasp or file , and smoothing out the surface with sandpaper until it conforms to a shape and ground contour that gives you the look and appearance you want .  With the styrofoam terrain contours glued onto the base , it's time to begin applying the grass and dirt . This is the fun part , because you can get messy ! To begin I first masked off the wood frame so that I don't get ground cover on the finished surface of the frame . To prep the styrofoam and the foamcore base I layed on with a brush a basecoating of textured acrylic paint ; not really necessary but since I will be painting some of the styrofoam as stone , it provides some additional textural relief and a suitable underpainting for wash and drybrushing that will work better than the raw foam . The ground cover itself is applied in layers , in no particular order using " scenic cement " , a white glue thinned down with water to make it liquid . When dry , scenic cement is transparent and matte which is important since dirt is rarly glossy ( except when wet and muddy ! ) There is a lot of room at this stage for experimentation .  This is much easier than you might think , and you don't really need to use reference material at all . The key is to apply your ground cover haphazardly and in layers . I tend to start the whole thing off with a quick brush on of the glue over which I drizzle an initial layer of " dirt " . After that , it's basically just a casual " drip and drizzle " method of adding the ground cover . There are different things you can do during this process , such as turning the base upside down and giving it a good shake to knock off layers of the groundcover that have not yet dried ( which gives the effect of eroded ground ) , piling up a mound of " dirt " and then soaking it with gentle pour of the glue which will give you a nice rolling mound of dirt . Varying the texture and size of the ground ballast used so that your "earth " has a natural appearing uneveness . Applying your " dirt " in a " dry on wet " , " wet on wet " and " wet on dry " method gives different texture to the ground layers . Applying foilage foam chunks and foilage foam netting for grass is done in the very same manner , and by varying layers of " grass " and " dirt " and then " grass " again makes your terrain more realistic . Feel free to loosen up and have fun at this point , it ' s a lot like fingerpainting . | Diorama Accessories | The Dark Mausoleum | New Dioramas | darkmausoleum_part2 | diorama_technique | LeopardGirl_Diorama | shoji diorama | Shoji Groundwork | Mayan Triarama | Diorama Technique2 | | Mail-O-Rama | Geeb's How To | Head Sculpts Using Polymer Clay | Customizing The Batcycle | 1/6 scale diorama | terrain diorama | 1/6 Scale Boots | Re-Rooting Hair | BimBott | Read_A_Book | WorksInProgress | Aki Ross Repaint | Gun-Bashing | painting heads | | Return Home | Updates | The Archive | Gorby Site Map | Geeb-O-Rama's Model Workshop | Geeb's Toy Box | Geeb-O-Rama Goodies | Movie Madness | World Of The Bizarre | Cool Beans | |
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