The Making of : Summer Garden Party on Regent St

[Birdie]

That's great, I'm really looking forward to seeing the pictures   

And finding yet an extra floor, what a delightful surprise 

[playmovictorian]

Thank you so much dear Friend 

Karim

[playmovictorian]

Good afternoon dear Friends 

As promised, here are the very first pictures of the drawing of my diorama "Return to Regent St" as well as the pictures of the N°1 Regent St Mansion with its added floor  !

The onsite drawing of my diorama will request a little imagination of course, and should be read from left to right starting with the base of what will be the Summer Pavillion then onto the elevated terrace which will be facing a fountain and 4 square water features, and finally the gates of the Villa which will be overlooking Regent St with a side vegetables and fruits garden 

Onsite drawing of my diorama "Return to Regent St"



















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Karim

[playmovictorian]

The N°1 Regent St Mansion with its extra floor  !

Karim

[playmovictorian]

Good morning dear Friends 

I will start the list of the materials I will use on my "Return to Regent St" diorama with items I have already tried and tested successfully in the past on my previous diorama and which have become my staple products over the years. Once the drawing of the diorama is done, I always cut templates out of coloured wrapping tissue paper in order to highlight certain elements of the decor to come, such as a fountain, elevated terrace, patches of vegetable garden and so on and replace them with the original item as I go along and progress with the completion of the diorama.

I also use wrapping tissue paper as templates to cut of all elements of the decor such as grass, soil, brick and stone effect printed sheet that need to be cut in a tricky curvy shape. I just cut it following the original drawing, put it on the material I wish to use and simply cut it along...simple, but does save a lot of time and guarantee the right cut each time instead of wasting material 

Coloured Wrapping Tissue Paper( available in a great number of colours )



Cost : 2.39 Euros for 25 sheets measuring 50cm x 75cm each

Coloured Wrapping Tissue Paper "in situ" on my previous diorama





Lay your Path with Bricks  !

Brick pavement effect printed paper sheet to cover the alleys of the Gardens ( looks quite dark on the picture but of a nice warm terracotta colour effect in reality )



Cost : 5.25 Euros for a set of 3 sheets measuring 299mm x 410mm each. Quite a goood value for money. Easy to work with and the colour will pass the test of time and remain fresh even after a few years.

Same material used "In situ" on my previous diorama  ...

Karim

[Birdie]

This is really interesting, I've always wondered about which materials people were using for their diorama's.

The mansion looks even better now, and the terrace is accessible again 

[playmovictorian]

Fake it up  !

I may have mentioned this to you before but I do wish to personalize the outside of the mansion but still do not feel confident enough to individually custom paint all the small elements that make the outside of the mansion. My dear Friend Emma Jane is doing a fabulous job at it but she masters the technique to perfection which is not my case so I came up with the idea of a brick effect cover for some parts of the front wall of the mansion, as I believe it has not be done on a Playmobil mansion, yet. And as I was looking for suitable materials, I came accross this fantastic item which I will try and use to decorate certain parts of the outside of the mansion. Please do keep in mind that I will add climbing plants and flowers such as Ivy, Roses and Morning Glory which will be used to frame the wall like they do in real life and the little touches of brick effect paper should create an interesting effect on the overall mansion :

Self Adhesive Vinyl Brick Wall Effect Mat Wallpaper ( 72 styles of coverings to choose from )



Cost : 3.99 Euros for one sheet measuring 315mm x 225mm. Quite expensive but should save me a lot of time as far as decorating the outside of the mansion is concerned 
 

I have also made a note that amongst the many styles of wall of floor coverings options, they also offer a great and original stained glass effect as well as a great wood panelling effect 

Karim

[playmovictorian]

Say it with Flowers  !

As my diorama is called "Summer Garden Party on Regent St", it is obvious that late spring and summer flowers and plants must set the tone and they most certainly did in my previous diorama 

As they worked out beyond my expectations, I will use the same plants and flowers which are all available at the Dollshouse.com (DHE) Website in many varieties of climbing plants and flowers :

Climbing Plants & Flowers from the DHE online catalogue( Ivy, Roses, Morning Glory, Wysteria, Grapes, Clematis, etc )

Cost : 4.90 to 7.90 Euros each and measures 245mm long. This is quite expensive, especially when it comes to using so many on a  diorama like mine, but definitely worth every penny when considering the final result and effect !

Same material used "in situ" on my previous diorama

Karim

[playmovictorian]

Did you say Topiary  ?

I have learned over the years that a diorama, small or large created on a flat surface will only come to life if one adds vertical ornaments such as hedges, flower beds and trees which will create a visual interest.

Topiary is a form of art that involves clipping evergreen trees and plants such as the Box Tree which instantly add a symetrical design to a garden or the entrance of a house, for example.

The following designs are not only inexpensive but also very versatile and I have used many of them over the years.

Topiary Trees made of Polyresin ( available in many styles, flat back or full shape )

Cost : 3.00 Euros per tree and measures between 80mm and 105mm.

Same Topiary Trres "in situ" in my previous diorama

Karim

[Pynedor]

Excellent work with this display. It looks great. Those climbing plants are really cool!