Summer Grass Mats

Parched grass at the end of the season

The end of summer changes a meadow beyond recognition: green gives way to straw and ocher tones, the hay is carted off and stubble stretches to the horizon. The summer shade hits this phase of the year and suits scenes from the harvest, airstrips and vehicles in dusty landscape, where a fresh green would look out of place.

The material is a vinyl mat with flock that does not come off, resistant to tearing and fast in color. The size of 83.8 x 127 cm covers an ordinary layout module or a large diorama, a smaller view is cut out of it and the rest stays for next time. The edges can be hidden under the edge of a board or under spread material.

Fine-tuning the shade

The summer tone stands up to a great deal of extra work. A dry brush with beige pigment brightens the raised places, lightly spread light stone suggests dried-out places by roads and glued-on clumps of taller grass give an area an outline. Anyone building stubble can cut regular bands left by a mower lightly into the surface and spread coarser material between them.

Watch out for one small thing: parched landscape seldom has a uniform tone. A field, a field boundary and a shoulder tend to be dried out to different degrees, and even a slight difference between them makes a view believable.

Permanent fixing is provided by glue intended for mats. When laid loose, an area can be taken off at any time and exchanged for another shade according to the season the view is meant to take place in; one board thus serves for several quite different moods. It is precisely a seasonal change that with dioramas tends to catch a viewer's interest most at an exhibition.