The Op Session that Wasn't

For months I have been scheduled to host an op session on 11 June. Alas, the layout wasn't ready and I had to cancel the session. There have been too many other commitments that have kept me from working on the layout. But, I have made some progress on the layout in that I added a base layer of scenery to the terrain extension near Brooke.  If you recall I added about 4 inches between the track and the fascia as I described here. 

The first step was that I painted the fascia. The textured paint I used in the past that was produced under the Ralph Lauren brand is not longer available. So I had Home Depot color match it as best they could with flat paint. The good news is the color match is nearly perfect. Furthermore, the missing texture is not really that obvious. I was going to make my own texture by mixing in some sand, but this looks good enough to leave as is.

Next I added the base scenery. I used dirt, ground foam, and static grass. I find that static grass looks better when it is clumpy as opposed to being applied in a large uniform patch. You can buy static grass clumps from commercial sources, but they tend to be expensive. Fortunately, it isn't hard to make your own. I use a cookie sheet as the base. I put dots of matte mod-podge on the pan. Then I apply the static grass with my Grasstech machine. I use a mix of lengths and colors. Once the clumps dry overnight they can embellish the static grass applied in the larger areas. 

I did not add static grass across from the storage warehouse as I plan to install a structure there. But that won't happen for a few more months.  

I have been working on some other projects which I will describe at a later date. Meanwhile, we are off to the North Carolina mountains for brief vacation.