Snow basing tutorial

[Creamywynch]

Howdy everyone. Just wrote this snow basing tutorial for my blog but thought it might interest some on here. I like my method as it can make fluffy fresh snow, or more icy frozen snow without having to use expensive crushed glass and such like, is fairly quick and simple to create, and looks good to boot :)

 

First thing to do is base your miniature with sand ect and get that painted ready for the flock. I paint mine grey as I like the contrast between the white snow and the dark slate and rubble, but you can use any colour you choose to do this And it will still look good.

 

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/0DB07CBF-4668-4930-9272-6995E5C9C3BD_zpstsltjmfg.jpg

Next you will need a pot of Gale force nine snow flock (I think Woodland scenics also do a similar product), a spatula of some sort, pva glue (Elmers glue for the USA :) ), and a mixing surface. I do not use the GW stuff to create my snow as it is more like a static grass than a flock, and I do not think it will work as well, but you could give it a try on a spare base and see if that is all you can get.

 

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/9B21B930-8548-4D28-8D14-D5B6FCBE8A8A_zpszsi0hbmd.jpg

Blob a large amount of pva glue onto your palette and slowly add the flock and mix it all together until you have a sloppy mixture. How much or little you add of the flock depends on what you want your snow to look like. The sloppier the mixture the more icy your snow will look, whereas if you want your snow to be nice and fluffy you will want the mix to be alot drier (but not too dry).

 

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/6715BE83-2057-4E27-8498-A03ADE11CE42_zpsdxkb7yxr.jpg

Once this is mixed add pva glue to the base of your model where you want the snow to sit. This creates a better bond to the base for your mixture, but also creates a nice graduating effect on the snow when you get to the final stage.

 

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/36A6E256-E4B7-4A3F-936A-968D658A4CB9_zpse5n40al1.jpg

Spatula your snow mixture onto the base where you have added the pva glue patches and spread around as needed (this is where you create the hight and depth of your snow mounds, so pile it up high if you want nice big drifts or spread it thin if you want a more flat blob of snow).

 

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/FBDF4661-75BD-473B-BF1F-C8AA6E28DD43_zpsipwq8nbb.jpg

While the snow mixture is still wet we add the final dusting of snow on the top. Sprinkle a healthy amount of flock onto the top of the mounds of snow you have created, and then shake it back off. The flock will stick to the parts you have mixed and glued, creating the final snow effect (this is where adding the pva glue to the base has an effect, as it created a nice graduation to your mound of snow and makes it look more realistic).

 

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/08806565-661F-4869-9610-979703881BE9_zpsqml1fnj9.jpg

Wet

http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg600/creamywynch/F6E88447-D9D2-46EF-9E1D-D7B40E7A33D9_zpsovt41trr.jpg

Dry

 

Let it all dry and hey presto! A good looking snowy base :). You can choose how much or little snow you add to your bases, and this method will still work fantastically well, even if you want the whole base to be covered by the snow.

 

And thats a wrap :) Any feedback is much appreciated.

 

Creamywynch

[Russ9576]

I used a similar technique last night for my Fenrisian Wolves, I'm really pleased with the result, great tutorial!!

[Creamywynch]

Thanks :) glad you enjoyed it. Post up a pic of your fen wolves in all their snowy glory if you fancy :)

[Rune Priest Jbickb]

Excellent tutorial.

 

For anyone wondering pva glue is like Elmers glue, the white kind like when you were in school. Took me a while to figure that out when I first got in the hobby.

[Creamywynch]

Cool, thanks :). Added the alt name into the tutorial

[Stoic Raptor]

Great tutorial and great results!  I find that adding a drop of white paint into the glue before mixing in the snow helps not only with consistency and adhesion, but also makes it look even better.

[Creamywynch]

Thank you :)

 

Great tip with the white paint. I will give that a try

[Amarog]

thanks for the tut! good stuff. I'll definately be looking into different makes of snow as like you said, the GW stuff and some other make i got from a model railway store is just too long and static grassy. Doesnt look too bad when you use it fully to cover a base but in small parts it doesnt look quite right.

thank you

[Creamywynch]

No problemo :). Glad you enjoyed reading it.

 

The problem with the Gw stuff is it is much too strandy (is that a word?) as you say, and does not look too good built up into clumps Imo. Just personal preference is suppose but I much prefer the more flock like stuff.

[Aska-Kjelu-Russ]

why not taking wooden glue and baking powder? better effect cause the baking powder is much more fne and the more woodenglue you take and less of powder the more you can icy snow effects from frosty snow to fluffy snow to an iced effect on armours etc :) 

here and example for this,,,, 

[Stoic Raptor]

Are you talking about the yellow wood glue?  In the long run, that will make the snow turn yellow and discolor the snow.  Fine for wolf bases, but probably not the rest of the army. :)

[Aska-Kjelu-Russ]

nah baking powder doesn´t turn yellow when you purity seal it or mix gloss vanish into the combine with wooden glue. ^^