i have a few scenes where i want to have gray rocks mixed with some grass and i don’t know how i color the rocks gray. can someone please explain how to do this to me?
michael
I use a water based paint I get at hobby store, I dilute the paint with water to create a stain and brush over the rocks until I get the right shade I like
I use Delta craft paint, avalable at any AC Moore, or Micheal’s. First, I paint the rocks a dark gray. Then I drybrush on increasingly lighter shades of grays and browns until I get the coloration I’m looking for.
Nick
Basically, you idealize the perfect rock…whatever that is…maybe from a photo or well-known place, and then mix colours until you get a close base colour. Use single gobs from the small plastic bottles of acrylic artists paints that Walmart and a jillion other places sell. Mix and dilute to one part paint and four parts water. Then paint the rock.
Hint: err on the side of lightness. In other words, when you are happy with your base colour, add a dollop of white to it and mix well.
Later, when the rock is dried, take a drop of India Ink (but flat black acrylic will do), add about ten drops of water, mix thoroughly, and use a dropper to dribble some of that from the top side of the rock face downward. Let it find its own path. Dry, and do it again, and again, until the rock begins to look weathered. Cement it in place.
(You could seal it with Dullcoat to prevent subsequent handling from leaving human marks on your nice work).
I will go outside and look for small rocks for my layout,It works for me[^][:D][2c]
JIM
I paint them a base coat of latex flat wall paint ($5 a gallon for mismatched paint) and then after that apply washes of thinned craft paint or artists colors.
Didn’t turn out well? Give it another coat of latex, let it dry fully and try again.
Dave H.
I use Kilz acrylic primer as a base coat. It covers better and seals the surface. It gives a rocklike texture.
(click image to enlarge)
Those are ceiling tile rocks. There were painted with Kilz and then acrylic craft paints
Just a thought
Harold
Ok Thank you. what do you guys think would be the easiest for rocks made out of paper? i will try and take a pic and put it on here to show my situation. thanks for all/any help you can give me…
michael
http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=7768956&uid=3764347&members=1
click the link to see a pic of my situation… thanks for any help you can give me.
I can tell you what I would do. I’d put a fine coating of wet plaster all over that paper, and let it dry. Then I’d appy a few plaster rocks, or stack some ceiling tiles like Harold has done for rock cuts and whatnot. Then I would do the colouring as I suggested earlier, or as Harold suggest with his methods.
i am going to use a glue mixture to put over the top of it to make it a hard shell would that still work? i am also on a very tight budget so where could i get the ceiling tiles from that would be very cheap. lows or something? also what color of ballast would you use there? it is mainly going to be trees and bushes there near that corner? thanks for the help.
michael
The glue will pool and look terrible. You are better off spending $4 for a carton of plaster of paris from Walmart (craft section) and coating your paper. In fact, you should overlay that paper with strips of paper towels dipped in the p of p. I don’t believe that what I think you showed us in the photo will be terribly absorbent. Paper towel is relatively inexpensive and will help to keep the p of p in place.
A way to make really great rocks is to use pine bark mini-nugget garden mulch. Sort through a bunch of it to find the size and shapes you want. I use Poly-S paint in various color wash combiations (grey, brown, some green for moss, etc.). The final result is lightweight and easy to glue. Depending on the nugget size, can be used for any scale. Get the nuggets NOW (Home Depot, etc.) before they are taken away for the winter. One $3. bag should fill your “rock needs” for years.