Vintage

If this is a project you would like to make, here are the directions for making a woodland scene in a cup and saucer.

Supplies:

Choosing the right cup and saucer is very important for making this project work. You will need a large cup and the saucer should be more like a bowl. In other words, the saucer must be deep and not flat and still hold the cup when sitting on its side.

From the craft store, I bought sculpting plaster, a small terracotta flower pot, a small cat, and little turtle. You will also need some small rocks and pebbles such as Woodland Scenics' rock debris in fine and course grades and ballast, Realistic Water and Water Effects from Woodland Scenics. For the foliage, I used Woodland Scenics' medium green foliage, course turf. All this can be found in a miniature shop under landscaping supplies or where model railroad supplies are sold.

On to the project directions:

Using the sculpting plaster, I mixed according to directions and put some in the saucer/bowl to the point I wanted the soil to be on the outside. Next I placed the cup in the plaster and put some of the sculpting plaster inside. I pushed the small terra cotta pot into the plaster and placed a tiny bit of plaster inside this as well. the pot is buried half into the plaster to give the look of a drainage pipe. Make an indent in front of the terra cotta pipe that is deeper right in front of the pipe and gets shallower as you extend to the sides of the cup. You don't want this area to extend too far back on the sides of the cup. Make sure you make a small hole in the side of the cup where you want the tree to be before the plaster dries.

After the sculpting plaster has dried, glue the ballast over all the sculpting plaster to create the illusion of dirt. Glue course turf inside the cup leaving the ballast showing on the sides and inside the terra cotta pot.

Making a waterfall

The water fall is made by using Water Effects from Woodland Scenics. You squeeze the water effects onto wax paper forming a rectangle. Then using a stiff paint brush or any other item that will make ridges in the water effects, you create streaks. this makes the water seems realistic. The waterfall is white until it dries which can take several days. Also, when you place the waterfall in place connecting the terra cotta pot and the water beneath, the waterfall will turn white again. This should disappear in a day or two.

White this is drying, it's time to work on the pond under the terra cotta drainage pipe. Place several larger rock debris pieces around the pond. Remember that the pond is deeper in the center and gets shallow as it starts around the cup. you will need some rocks that will be out of the water. If you need larger rocks, check out a gravel driveway. Regardless, the rocks still need to be small. Glue these in place and when dry, pour some of the Realistic water in the pond. You will need to do this in stages. Pour the "water", let it dry. pour another layer, let dry. Do this until you get the dept you want. Keep in mind that it has to be low enough for the waterfall. Place your waterfall before the last layer or two. I put a small amount of the Realistic Water in the drainage pipe to help keep the waterfall in place.