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Miniatures Adventure => Medieval Adventures => Topic started by: Silent Invader on 15 February 2012, 09:39:32 AM

Title: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Silent Invader on 15 February 2012, 09:39:32 AM
For my WotR project I want a small hamlet and this is the first of the dwellings.

It's actually a joint effort between me and Jimbibbly as it started off as a 17thC cottage before I took it back 200 years.  Originally it was in a square frame style with stone chimney and tiled roof.  Jame's building was absolutely splendid (as we would expect from the master of Oshiro Terrain!) but too late for me.  Using Jame's cottage as a starting point was a great motivator for me as I had been stuck on where to start, but with his building as a base and a tour of the internet I was able to find my mojo.

Changes from Jame's original include the removal of some of the square timber frame and it's replacement with cruck (curved) timbers, removal of the chimney, a replacement thatched roof, some added texture to the wall infill for a rougher look, new groundworks and a complete re-paint.

The cruck timbers are from balsa, which was bolied for 15 minutes, then had its fibres crushed, was reshaped, cooled, then allowed to dry overnight while taped to a former.  The thatch is a hand towel.

Hope you like but all comments most welcome.  ;)


(http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g22/imagebucket_2006/WotR/building_15c_1-a.jpg)

NB:  The base does sit flat - the photo was taken on my painting station with numerous spilled blobs creating an uneven surface

(http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g22/imagebucket_2006/WotR/building_15c_1-b.jpg)

(http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g22/imagebucket_2006/WotR/building_15c_1-c.jpg)

With a Perry WotR plastic for size comparison.

(http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g22/imagebucket_2006/WotR/building_15c_1-d.jpg)

With the roof removed - when gaming I like to put miniatures that are inside a building inside the building, rather than off the table somewhere......

(http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g22/imagebucket_2006/WotR/building_15c_1-e.jpg)

The base is laser cut acrylic and I have a few more on order from Oshiro (ETA James?  ;D).

 :)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: aircav on 15 February 2012, 09:50:38 AM
Cracking stuff Steve  :-* :-*

'Bolied' is that a technical term  ;)

Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Monster on 15 February 2012, 11:37:35 AM
Great work! Look forward to seeing the next one. 8)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Malamute on 15 February 2012, 11:40:51 AM
Brilliant ;D

Now all we need is a village to go with them. ;)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Captain Blood on 15 February 2012, 12:05:40 PM
Excellent!

Now all we need is a village to go with them. ;)

I have a village that would do for the 1470s (buildings were actually quite sophisticated by then).

Too posh for Sherwood Forest though  ;)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: OSHIROmodels on 15 February 2012, 12:32:18 PM
What have you done  :o :o :o :'( :'( :'(

 lol

Looks great Steve, you certainly can't tell it's the same building  8)

Quote
(ETA James?  ;D).

Weekend matey  :)

cheers

James
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Thunderchicken on 15 February 2012, 12:39:36 PM
Very nice Steve!  :-* :-*
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Paul on 15 February 2012, 02:32:30 PM
 :o :o :-* :-* Looks incredible!! The boiling of the balsa wood, that´s to loosen up the fibres so it will bend?
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: flags_of_war on 15 February 2012, 06:03:49 PM
Great work mate. I like it alot. Good idea with the acrylic base.
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Marine0846 on 16 February 2012, 02:35:43 AM
Very nice.
Will be interested in the building of the whole village.
Can't wait.
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: SgtPerry on 16 February 2012, 05:57:50 AM
Very nice building. I really like the thatched roof made of towel. I already saw this technic previously but I never dared to test it.

 :-*

Olivier
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Thunderchicken on 16 February 2012, 11:01:33 AM
Stokesay castle near me. Go on, you know you want to..........

(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/9/1254_16_02_12_11_57_31_0.jpg)

(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/9/1254_16_02_12_11_57_31_1.jpg)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Lowtardog on 16 February 2012, 11:15:31 AM
That castle is fantastic :-* never seen that before and would have thought it was more Tuetonic or Belgian not in Britain, lovely stuff clap of lightening Parrokeet :D
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Red Orc on 16 February 2012, 11:20:47 AM
Lovely cottage, can't wait to see the 15th century hall, and TC's right, Stokesay is totally do-able...

 :-* is not to strong an emoticon I think - inspiring work!
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Arlequín on 16 February 2012, 11:49:43 AM
Stokesay is well worth a visit. It's actually a fortified manor house and seems scaled for 1:1 wargames, as its 'footprint' is actually quite small. It would certainly create a great looking centrepiece on a table, without overpowering the rest of the terrain.

The cottage looks great btw... very impressive!  :)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Captain Blood on 16 February 2012, 12:53:09 PM
I so want a Stokesay in 28mm.

(Yes, James, I know you could build one... :D)

Tony (Dampfpanzerwagen) sculpted a couple of fantastic Wealden Hall houses for Grand Manner, based I think, on the Chiddingstone House transplanted to the museum at Singleton...

http://www.grandmanner.co.uk/Wealden_Hall_with_tile_roof--product--627.html

Effing pricey though...  ::)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: OSHIROmodels on 16 February 2012, 01:33:50 PM
I so want a Stokesay in 28mm.

I could do one for you  lol lol lol

cheers

James
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Thunderchicken on 16 February 2012, 01:47:17 PM
Of course it would involve a field trip to sample the atmosphere and feel of the place, perhaps a visit to nearby Hopton and Ludlow castles too. Oh and it would be rude to ignore the local hostelries with their fine ciders and ales......

Then again you could always sit at your desk with a can of John Smiths Smooth (shiver) and look up the plan of the place on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stokesay_Castle
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Lardy Rich on 16 February 2012, 01:57:40 PM
I am really impressed with the towelling for the thatch.  I made some small thatched buildings last week and tried teddy bear fur, which was a disaster.  In the end I sculpted the thatch from Milliput.  Do you just soak the towelling in PVA? 

Really great work.  Some of those big castles would look fabulous!

Rich
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Plynkes on 16 February 2012, 03:01:53 PM
Before you all get carried away building your medieval Stokesays, I feel it is my duty to point out that the lovely half-timbered gatehouse is 17th Century (Wikipedia says Tudor, but is lying). The original was a much more military and castle-like stone affair.


For aficionados of the Civil War, it was besieged, but those cringing, limp-wristed, nancy-boy Royalists surrendered it without a fight.  :)

(My friend who works there just told me all that.)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Arlequín on 16 February 2012, 03:39:16 PM
You always gotta come up and shame us ignant folk with yer fansy buk lerning aint yer....  ;)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Malamute on 16 February 2012, 03:51:02 PM
Glad to see you making your usual in depth plans etc. :)

 Have you thought of making it modular like most of your scenery so you can put it together in a multitude of different combinations ???.... :D... lol
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Plynkes on 16 February 2012, 03:53:44 PM
Have you thought of making it modular like most of your scenery so you can put it together in a multitude of different combinations ???.... :D... lol

Good idea, and you could swap the later gatehouse in for ECW gaming if you wanted then.
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Captain Blood on 16 February 2012, 04:17:35 PM
That's a big piece of scenery Steve. You're going to have to fill it up with an awful lot of money  :D
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Malamute on 16 February 2012, 04:28:20 PM
That's a big piece of scenery Steve. You're going to have to fill it up with an awful lot of money  :D

 lol

Pound coins I reckon for this one lol
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: OSHIROmodels on 16 February 2012, 04:47:31 PM
Why not go the whole hog and use bullion  :D

Stokesay is a cracker of a place  8) and I'm sure you'll make a cracking job of it  :)

cheers

James
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: janner on 17 February 2012, 08:59:12 AM
I can feel a Reading road trip coming on  ;)
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Lardy Rich on 17 February 2012, 09:49:33 AM
Slient Invader, that is a brilliant tutorial!  I am going to try that this weekend. 

Thanks.

Rich
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: elysium64 on 17 February 2012, 12:50:06 PM
If you require any more photo's of details/interior of the Whealdon farmhouse just let me know as I live a few miles away from the museum.
Title: Re: Medieval Thatched Cottage - scratchbuild
Post by: Little Odo on 19 February 2012, 08:53:25 AM
Truly inspiring piece(s). Great to see proper archaeology used when researching is done. Looking forward to seeing all of your finished pieces.