I started building the basic mountain structure by bunching up news print
into various sized balls, held together with masking tape. I then started
placing the crumpled paper balls over and beside the tunnel structure.
I started with the largest pieces first, and worked my way up with the
smaller pieces. I crumpled paper into specific shapes in certain areas and
rearranged the paper balls until my mountain was the basic shape I was
looking for. Once everything was in place, I used long pieces of masking
tape to hold all the paper in place.
Using plaster cloth that I cut into 4" strips, I started to cover the
crumpled paper, overlapping each strip by about 1". I started at the top of
the mountain and worked my way down, ensuring there were no gaps. I used my
finger to smooth out any rough edges and to blend the strips together. I put
my tunnel portals temporarily in place so I could ensure the plaster cloth
and portals fit together correctly. Once the first layer of plaster cloth
was dry, I put on a second layer to make it extra rigid.
While the large mountain was drying, I built a second small mountain at the
opposite end of my layout. I used the same method as before, arranging
crumpled paper to get the desired shape, then covered it with 4" plaster
cloth strips. I also added rock castings that I previously made using a
Woodland Scenics rubber mold and plaster of Paris. I held the rock castings
in place temporarily with toothpicks while I placed the plaster cloth around
it.
Once the plaster cloth was dry, I used a soupy mixture of plaster of Paris
to cover the entire mountain structure to give it its final shape. Now I
must admit, using plaster of any type is probably my least favorite thing to
do. Plaster of Paris is difficult to use as it sets extremely quickly, so
there is only a small window to work with it. Therefore, you must use small
batches at a time. I would have loved to use Sculpt-a-mold, but the one
hobby store here in Lethbridge that sells it is closed for a month as they
relocate.
I attempted to carve rock faces out of the set plaster, and found this to
be very difficult and mostly ineffective. The carving worked in some areas
but the plaster was either too soft or too hard and just chipped away from
the plaster cloth. In the problem areas, I used shallow molds that I made
out of aluminum foil. This was also problematic as they need to be placed on
the mountain at just the right time. If not, they would crack and crumble or
the plaster would ooze out of the bottom of the mold.
