ilfirinart

[ilfirinart]

Miniature forest finally READY!

This little forest took a while, but here it is – my conifer tree project is finally complete! 16 handmade trees, each carefully shaped, ready to bring some life (and cover!) to my gaming table.

I was honestly a bit nervous at the start – it was my first time making that many trees, and I wasn’t sure how they’d look in the end. But now I’m really happy with how they turned out. My high elf miniatures seem satisfied too – they’ve been waiting for this kind of shelter since the early 2000s 😄

If you’re curious about the WIP or the materials I used, check out my previous posts. And feel free to say hi in the comments – I’d love to hear what you think!

[ilfirinart]

Back to crafting!

After a short summer break, I’m back to crafting — and I can proudly say that my set of 16 conifer trees is finally ready! 😄

Since recording videos is still pretty new and challenging for me, I ended up making over 40 different takes of these trees. There was always something not quite right — the lighting, a shaky hand, trees out of focus… you name it. So now I’m sitting here, watching all of them side by side, trying to figure out which one works best and deserves to be the final reel that represents this miniature, handmade forest.

But I’m getting closer to the decision! Stay tuned — I plan to post the finished reel tomorrow once the editing is done. 😉

[ilfirinart]

Half of my conifer forest is ready – miniature trees meet real nature.

Here we go again with my little conifer forest project – and this time, I'm bringing a few pictures from my recent outdoor session at Zakrzówek in Cracow 🌲📸

If you’ve seen my recent video, you know I’ve been experimenting with blending miniature trees with the real environment. This photo session was part of the same idea – just without the camera moving and with a bit more time to play with the setup.

I have to admit: arranging those trees took a few good hours. The changing natural light was both inspiring and annoying at the same time. It gave me lots of unexpected moods and vibes… and then ruined them five minutes later by shifting everything around 😅 So I’d change the trees��� positions, tweak the angle, adjust the light – and then the clouds would move again. Rinse and repeat.

Also, my phone’s autofocus clearly had a mind of its own. Getting a consistent focal point without making the foreground look detached was tougher than I expected – I still haven’t quite cracked that one.

Still, I’m happy with how these pictures and trees turned out. I think they capture the spirit of the experiment: that fun but tricky line between reality and illusion. The second half of the forest is already in progress – so more is coming soon!

Oh, and yes – that’s me in the last shot. Just checking on the trees. Or pretending to be a very confused Ent 😄

[ilfirinart]

Things aren’t always what they seem...

This little forest might not be as real as it looks at first glance ;)

I recently finished half of my conifer trees (you might remember them from WIP no. 3), and decided to try something a bit different: I took them outdoors and tried blending them into a real-life background to see how convincing the illusion could get.

The idea was simple – create a seamless transition between model and reality. The execution… good, but not so much? 😉

It took me a few hours of tweaking, adjusting and re-setting the scene. Natural light was both a gift and a curse – it kept changing, sometimes giving me that perfect cinematic softness, and sometimes blowing everything out or casting weird shadows. Every time the light shifted, I had to move something again. And again. And again.

Another challenge: finding that elusive sweet spot with the focus. I really wanted the miniature trees in the foreground to blend into the scenery without looking too sharp or too separate. Still figuring that one out, to be honest – any tips from fellow creators or photographers are welcome!

The final reel is a short moment of calm, but behind it there were hours of testing, playing and trying. And honestly? I loved it.

There's a lot to improve, but as a first try at mixing miniature terrain with the real world, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

Let me know if the illusion worked on you – even for a second 😉

[ilfirinart]

Conifer Trees & Hedges – WIP 3/3

The final stage of my WIP journey with conifer trees and hedges is here! This phase focused mostly on adding greenery and refining textures — and as usual, it came with its own share of surprises.

My goal was to create a variety of densities and shades of green, so I experimented with different combinations of foliage materials and scatter I had on hand. For the trees, I applied thick clump foliage and underbrush first, planning to later dust them lightly with fine blends to give them a more natural, layered look. Unfortunately, the spray glue I initially used turned out to be a bit of a disaster — it wasn’t as sticky as I hoped and left weird, white spiderweb-like threads on the trees. So, halfway through, I switched to good old watered-down PVA glue, which worked much better (though the drying time is… well, a patience challenge!).

When it came to the hedges, I skipped the spray glue altogether and went straight for PVA — a good call, as that at least spared me some headaches. The hedges are now almost completely finished, while the trees are about halfway through their foliage stage. There’s still quite a bit of work ahead, but I can already see the finish line!

Maybe I’ll even set up a mini photo session soon for the half-finished trees — they’re already starting to look presentable. :D

[ilfirinart]

Conifer Trees & Hedges – WIP 2/3

The second stage of my terrain-building project is done! Time to share some behind-the-scenes notes from the workbench.

This week I focused on building the main structure for both conifer trees and hedges. I ended up with 16 trees in total, varying in height from 4 to 7 inches, and 18 hedge sections in different lengths (including 4 pieces at 4", 8 at 3", and 6 at 2") – that gives me around 52 inches of hedges altogether, which should be plenty for some home skirmishes!

For the trees, I used coconut fibre mats to create natural-looking branches. The fibres were glued onto the trunks with PVA glue, and then reinforced with a generous layer of hairspray for extra stiffness. After that, everything was sprayed brown to introduce some tonal variation that will still show through the foliage later on.

This stage went surprisingly smoothly – no major setbacks or crafting accidents, which feels a bit suspicious... I wonder what’s going to go wrong when I start adding all the greenery? I already sense that Merry and Pippin are planning some mischiefs.

Next step: basing and foliage – the most exciting (and chaotic) part!

[ilfirinart]

Conifer Trees & Hedges – WIP 1/3 (Extended version)

You know what they say: "Nothing ever goes as planned." Well… that definitely applies here!

This was supposed to be a relatively quick stage, but it turned into quite a time-consuming process. The old wooden arrows I used as tree trunks turned out to be much harder to shape than I expected. Tapering them by hand was honestly a bit of a pain – the wood was dense and not very cooperative. I'm already thinking ahead about using something softer for future builds – maybe sushi sticks? Or even balsa wood? Both should be easier to carve and much more forgiving when it comes to shaping.

To ensure a strong and stable connection between the trunks and the base, I didn’t rely on glue alone. I used a hand drill to make small holes in the bottom of each trunk and inserted steel nails, securing them with PVA glue. This should keep everything nice and solid – especially during later handling or transport.

Once that part was done, I gave all the trunks a quick brown wash. Even though most of them will eventually be almost entirely hidden beneath foliage, I still wanted a darker, more nuanced base color with subtle variation in tone. It just feels better knowing that even the hidden parts are treated with care.

Another unexpected challenge came from the coconut filter mat – it was way denser than I had hoped. I had to spend quite a bit of time manually splitting it into finer strands and shaping them into branch-like forms, both for the trees and the hedges. But now that I'm through that phase, the first trees are starting to take shape – swipe to the last photo to see the current progress!

I'm genuinely excited for the next stages — they’ll be more creative and dynamic, as the trees will really start to take shape, bringing them closer to their final look – a look that Treebeard would surely approve of. Can’t wait to show you more soon (and earn that Entish seal of approval). Until then, stay away from Fangorn… just in case!

[ilfirinart]

Project Log: Handcrafted Coniferous Trees PHASE: The Sketch, the Plan, and the Materials

This project is something I’ve been planning for a while for two reasons:

Trees seem like a difficult type of terrain to scratch-build, so I wanted to see if I could manage it. At the same time, I hope conifers will be a bit easier to make than leafy trees.

My first ever army in Middle-earth SBG (about 20 years ago!) was High Elves, and I think they’ve been waiting long enough for a forest to fight in.

So this will be a set of tall coniferous trees — designed to add verticality and bring a forest atmosphere to my terrain builds. But before jumping into glue and foliage, I wanted to pause and map things out properly.

Starting with a sketch I always begin with a sketch to figure out proportions. In this case, the key factor was the height — I needed trees tall enough to be imposing, but still short enough to fit into the storage cabinet I use. That meant doing some measuring before drawing! The sketch helps me stay consistent and test ideas without wasting materials.

Materials I’ll be using You’ll find the full list in the image above — these are the supplies I’ve gathered for the base, structure, and foliage.

This is my first attempt at conifers, so it’s going to be a try & learn as you go kind of process — but I’m excited to see how these trees will grow on my craft table, and to finally give my Elves some proper surroundings!

Follow for updates – next phase: trunks and structure!

[ilfirinart]

Project kickoff – materials gathered!

After a bit of a scavenger hunt across drawers, boxes, online stores and local suppliers, I’ve finally gathered all the key materials for two upcoming builds: a set of conifer trees and some 28mm scale hedges.

As usual, this meant juggling scale, aesthetics and practicality — especially since I have limited storage space and need to be mindful of the final size of everything I create. Swipe through to see what’s what: from humble tools and crafting basics to more specific scenic materials like filter mat and various foliage textures.

I still remember those long-ago school days, when I didn’t have access to proper materials (or money, really) and had to build terrain from whatever I had lying around — with results that, well… varied quite a bit. Now, years later, returning to the hobby, it feels great to finally be able to treat myself to some proper scenic supplies. Hopefully it’ll make things smoother going forward!

That said, I still love finding low-budget, creative ways to use everyday items — that’s where the homemade red scatter comes in (but more on that some other time).

Also, I knew GW minis were pricey… but I was secretly hoping that terrain materials would be a little more forgiving. Turns out — they’re not 😅 Oh well, live and learn!

If all goes well, these two sets should bring a lot of visual variety to the table, both for gaming and for photos.

WIP updates coming soon – stay tuned!

[ilfirinart]

Project log: HEDGES

Like every good build, this one begins with a sketch – setting the scale and proportions for what’s to come.

These hedges are designed for 28mm tabletop games like Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game. After some experimenting, I settled on a height of around 22 mm. That makes them tall enough to provide partial cover for most warriors, giving them a bit of extra protection from ranged attacks. In melee, they can serve as defensible obstacles, adding tactical options to the battlefield.

But there’s more: smaller figures like hobbits or goblins will be completely obscured, allowing for some sneaky positioning or unexpected charges. I love when terrain influences the way the game flows – and that’s exactly what I’m aiming for with this piece.

The goal is to keep these hedges modular and practical, both for gaming and storage. The design also takes into account base sizes and movement trays, so they’ll fit seamlessly into most setups.

Materials and dimensions are available above, and WIP pictures are coming soon – stay tuned!

That's all for now - the hobbits have gone to lunch, and the hedges need trimming ;)

[ilfirinart]

Old hobby reforged into something new!

Some time ago, I used to practice traditional archery (great sport, by the way!). The thing is, at the beginning of your journey — or when you start shooting from longer distances — you sometimes (or frankly, quite often 😉) miss… And when you miss, your arrows can hit all sorts of things behind the target.

Ideally, that should be soft soil (or a 3-meter-high earthwork if you're lucky), but in my case, it was often a tree trunk, a wooden stand, a glass bottle (damn vandals!), or a rock. And when a typical wooden arrow hits something like that — it usually breaks. Sometimes it can be repaired, but more often, it's beyond saving.

For some reason, I never got rid of those broken arrows — and now, a couple of years later, I finally have an idea how to use them in a new way. More info will be revealed soon! 😉

[ilfirinart]

The Menhirs’ Final Gathering

At long last, my first scatter terrain project reaches its conclusion. What began as a handful of rough sketches and foam scraps has grown into this full circle of ancient stones—six standing sentinels and two fallen relics, each bearing its own weathered tale.

This build was all about keeping it simple and fun: hot‑wire cutting the foam, adding texture with stones and foil, then brushing on layers of black wash and light drybrush. No fancy tricks—just basic tools and a bit of patience.

What’s next? I’ve already started thinking of the next terrain set—so stay tuned for more miniature landscapes and DIY magic ;)

[ilfirinart]

Blueprints for Rocks? Apparently, Yes.

As absurd as it sounds, yes – I actually sketched out a blueprint for a stone.

When working on terrain pieces like these menhirs, especially for tabletop games or miniature dioramas, I’ve found it surprisingly useful to set some ground rules. Not for the sake of strict realism, but to create consistency and scale that works with mini figures. Think of it as… world-building with calipers.

But there’s another reason behind these technical sketches: space. My storage area is limited, and that has a real impact on how I plan my projects. If I want to create more terrain in the future (which I do!), I need each piece to not only look great on the table, but also fit neatly on a shelf when the game’s over.

This particular drawing is my dimension plan for one of the handcrafted standing stones I made recently. It’s part of my first scatter terrain set, and while the final product looks rugged and ancient, the design is anything but random.

I like to think of this as the moment where art meets engineering: a prehistoric relic shaped by modern hands – starting with pencil sketches on paper, then refined into a clean digital draft with precise measurements.

[ilfirinart]

One stone to shape them all…

I love the simplicity of this little piece. Just a chunk of styrofoam and a bit of imagination (and hot wire :D) – that’s all it takes to start bringing something to life. This single menhir is part of a bigger scatter terrain project, but I wanted to give it a moment of its own as this was a starting point.

There’s something relaxing about working on these – no rush, no pressure. Just carving, painting, and watching it slowly transform into a relic from a forgotten age.

More of these are on the way, but for now, I hope you enjoy this simple 360° spin.

[ilfirinart]

Echoes carved in polystyrene.

I’ve been slowly expanding my collection of scatter terrain – and these new menhirs are the latest addition.

This little project started as a way to get back into the hobby after a long break. I wanted something simple and atmospheric to build with my own hands – and it turned into a small series of stone monoliths that could easily belong in the world of Middle-earth.

These new ones follow the same visual style and were made using my usual techniques – the good old black wash and a couple of swings of drybrush in varying shades of white and light grey.

There are two more in the works – this time overturned ones, because ruins are just more fun to make. 😄

If you’re into handmade fantasy terrain and moody tabletop scenery – feel free to stick around! More coming soon.

[ilfirinart]

Hello and welcome! After a several-year break from my hobby and only watching others create their amazing work, I’ve decided it’s high time to start doing something on my own again. To start, here’s some stone scatter terrain – menhirs – for MESBG gaming. I had fun making them, so there are a couple more in the works.