Stone work for miniature cabin

I started making ‘stone’ with Paperclay after reading Rik Pierce’s tutorial book years ago. If you don’t have this book and you are serious about being a miniature builder you need to purchase it asap. It is well worth the price and is filled with knowledge from an amazing artist as well as an outstanding person. Rik passed away this year, but left behind endless amounts of knowledge and passion for our art form. Because I believe his knowledge and endless generosity should be supported I won’t be sharing a step-by-step for the stone work, you can find everything in fine detail in his affordable tutorial book by visiting his shop HERE. 

However, here are a few photos showing my progress on the stone work. 

I have been making stone work for years and have developed my own techniques added to Rik’s crucial ones. Here are a few tips:

-Press down any lifted clay along the grout lines while sculpting with your finger

-When dry, the clay may sink in the center of the ’stones’, so add more clay and blend until level.

-While drying, the clay may pull away from the grout lines and leave cracks. Fill those in with moer clay and redraw the grout lines or leave a few cracks and tuck some 'grass' in them.

-The paint will always dry lighter than you think. 

After the paint dried, the patio was grouted. Usually I don’t do this step and just leave the line I drew alone, but I wanted a rustic outdoor look so I mixed up some spackle and water and put it in a squeeze bottle. Apply slowly in the grouted areas. When dry, it turns white.

When it was almost dry, I ran my finger along and took away any excess spackle. Then reapplied here and there until It looked complete. 

Once completely dry, give it a light wash of grey or brown paint and blend into the ‘stone’.

As you are making your stone work, remember that even in full scale sometimes imperfections add charm and create a mood that tells a story. Be aware of those little hints your project gives you and don’t be afraid to think outside the box. It’s those little moments that will “wow” your audience. 

If you feel this blog has helped you, please consider donating what you can using the donate button above left. All funds will be used to purchase supplies and materials to be shared here as well as given back to other miniature artists. Lot’s of love to you and have fun creating!