Waterfall and Pond

Woodland Scenics E-Z Water can be difficult to use but Vasilis 'bcterrain'Georgandis has used it to great effect in the two projects presented here.

The basis for waterfall was thick card with polystyrene blocks glued upon it. I use either PVA glue or hot glue (be careful with the hot glue as it tends to melt the polystyrene). I shaped the foam with a hot wire cutter (made according to Gary James' article). I then added more pieces of polystyrene and sculpted it again until I got the shape I wanted for my waterfall.

Next I covered the whole thing with a mixture of watered down PVA glue, filler and sand, and allowed it to dry before giving it a coat of grey primer. I then painted it before adding flock, sand, gravel, etc., to achieve the desired appearance.

The riverbed and the waterfall were painted with a dark blue/green colour, darker in the middle of the bed and lighter towards the banks. I sealed it with two coats of watered down PVA glue, added rocks and gravel, and painted it once more with PVA.

For the main body of the water I used E-Z Water with a drop of dark green ink stirred in when melted. I then poured it from the top of the waterfall so that it flowed naturally down the river.

Sealing the parts on which you're going to use E-Z Water is VERY IMPORTANT because if it's not done properly it will melt the polystyrene and you'll see it flowing away like a real river. Also, don't forget to dam up any exit points. I used plasticine which I left to harden for about an hour before pouring the E-Z Water. It worked well but bear in mind that in this case the 'resin' would have cooled quite a lot before coming into contact with the plasticine. On other occasions it might be better to use ordinary clay.

For the foaming water I used 50/50 PVA glue with filler. Using a small brush I made the upper part and the face of the waterfall. To do the foam at the foot of the fall I applied several layers of the above mixture and, as each layer was nearly dry, I stippled the surface with a paintbrush. For the rest of the water I applied thick layers of PVA glue.

I also used E-Z Water for this pond. As with the waterfall, I did everything else first, including painting and sealing of the pond bed. It's usually a good idea to finish all the rest of the terrain before you do anything with any water media so you don't end up with grassy water".

For the waves I used transparent silicone. I prefer to work with PVA glue and/or two part epoxy. The silicone smells bad, is not so transparent, and after a while and it tends to shrink, but it does look good for rough water.

Vasilis also told us that he found Richard Windrow's book on Terrain Modelling from the Osprey Masterclass series to be a great help in the construction of both of the projects shown here. Click here to see a review by Gary James.