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Rocky start

The garden diorama is still work in progress, but I have finished some of the things I want to use for it.

Today I made some boulders. They are not dry yet, so the final color will look a bit different. They are made of plaster bandages wrapped around wire mesh. I don’t know if I will use all the rocks, but they make for nice props. They were my rocky start into the public holiday today.
Fake boulders
Also finished is the basic construction of the rustic stone wall, the small terrace and the basic layout of the garden. The steps are part of the terrace, but the walls are actually two pieces I can store away separately. I thought about making the terrace larger, but if I want to take pictures with the dolls and parts of the garden the dolls would look really small if I wanted to show all of it. And I would probably have even more difficulties in finding a place to store it.
The first picture shows the pieces of colored plaster glued to the walls, and  in the second picture the gaps are already filled with fake mortar. It’s papier mâché, really.
BJD Diorama Garden – ResinRapture
BJD Diorama Garden – ResinRapture

Still missing are the flower beds, but I already have some artificial flowers I am going to take apart. More flowers in different colors are hopefully arriving within the next weeks.

 

BJD Diorama Garden – ResinRapture

 

But I did finish the trellis with a climbing rose. I am not entirely satisfied with the size of the leaves, but I already cut those to a smaller size. They look nice enough, though. At least I hope they will.

 

BJD Diorama Garden – ResinRapture

 

And since the bench is for the porch I made chairs and a table.

 

BJD Diorama Garden – ResinRapture

There’s still a lot of work to do before I have my garden finished, but the creation is what I love about making dioramas.

9 thoughts on “Rocky start”

  1. Hi Mia!
    This is really coming along nicely and I am so enjoying seeing it all develop. You are very talented at making things and such an inspiration. My dioramas are not so detailed as yours, but they serve the purpose. I showed my hubby your last post and it was very impressed that you had made everything yourself.
    Big hugs,
    X

  2. Thank you so much :). I love making things, if only I had more time and space to store them all. And your dioramas are always so stylish and there's enough detail to create a style or color theme to go with the doll – and after all it's the fun that counts.

  3. My first impression of the first photo was that you were using real rocks. Plaster bandages over wire mesh? I never would have thought of using either but the results are amazingly lifelike. I would have collected real rocks outside and then fretted because they weren't exactly the right size/shape and/or I couldn't get them completely clean. I wish I had the patience and the know-how to make dioramas. I bought a kit to make a tiny cafe for my Realpukis–six months later the box has been opened but nothing is put together. Maybe I'm not invested in it because all the parts are in the box. If I had to create everything from scratch, like you do, I'd be more motivated. I look forward to more photos as this diorama comes together. I like everything I see so far!

  4. Thank you :). They are very light, which was what I wanted. I have used plaster bandages on wire mesh before for sculpting, so that was the first thing that came to mind. But I am very happy with the way they look. Oh pleeeeaze put your room together! Now that you made me so curious how it looks you have to do it ;-). Speaking of room boxes: I know Musume did an interview a while ago with a girl who makes them, is your's one of her kits? I am sure you would do a lovely job creating rooms by adding individual touches to a kit with self made props and crochet items like cushions and rugs.

  5. I don't remember that interview so I'm not sure. I'll have to go back to her blog and look. My kit came from a shop that sells jigsaw puzzles and related items. They have other rooms which tempt me but I want to put one together before I buy another. One reason I don't assemble it is because I don't know where I would put it. At least the box takes up minimal space. D:

  6. I love to watch your work in progress – this is really amazing. Everything is so beautifully finished. Your care about every detail is incredible.
    I really look forward to see the final effect. 🙂

  7. Honestly, if I didn't read those were fake boulders, I would have thought they were real!! :O I don't know how you do it, but everything looks so neat, perfectly in scale, so detailed and appropriate for the scene you want to create. I truly admire your work and your skills!

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