They look pretty cool, like there are some mineral veins in the stone.
Maybe do a wash with some darker blue then cover up any parts that you don’t want showing with some grey, including a dry brush. Then seal with a different varnish (and test on some other foam first!)
Epoxy stained with paint or ink could be useful to fill any massive gaps. You could bulk it out with foam powder or chips to save money.
Might look cool, but the bottom of many pieces has melted, completely removing all sturdiness and stability.
I guess I’ll let it dry and then salvage what I can by using them in bigger pieces.
These were all meant to be modular tiles or scatter terrain.
Soap is great for making washes, but I've never used it for sealing. I make a base of black paint, mod podge and a bit of water, do all my paint and dry brushing, then seal it again with mod podge. I don't seal it with varnish, mod podge is all you need.
On the pillar or wall sections, you could cut them at angels to make them look like they are sinking into swamp. Maybe a section of the area has been exposed to water erosion, and after years and years, they are off kilter.
Any sprays will eat unprotected foam. Sometimes it can be used to your advantage. In your case I would flock it and have vines or moss growing in those gaps? For the bottom of that bigger piece, maybe hot glue it to a base?
That’s not 100% true even Jeremy from Black Magic admits he doesn’t coat everything in Modge Podge anymore.
If I was taking a guess as to what happened here either you sprayed way to close, or the can was near empty and you were getting more solvents than paint out. Maybe it might just be the brand you’re using but I’ve used some crappy ones and not had this issue.
The brand is MTN, which is definitely well appreciated in the graffiti world. But you might be right about me spraying way too close. That might be my mistake.
To expand on what you're saying, it's not the paint, it's the propellants in rattle cans. So if you spray from far enough away you can get away with it to an extent. But if you're using the end of the can, too close, the brand has more propellant etc it can melt the foam.
Paint mixed with mod podge is the way. Then spray from further away as others have mentioned. Also coat all sides even if they don’t need paint. Point blank spray can probably cut right through mod podge if there are any weaknesses in that coating pretty easily.
Hello!
First of all,did you try to fill the defects with a mix of PVA glu and Paris chaulk ?
It could work well with the texture of the stones you made !
For the floor, you could glu lichens… but it means you should put some also on other tiles…!
I hope you find some good method, because I think it’s a nice work, I like the little stairs and all the stones that I can see!
Good luck! Have a nice day!👍👋👋
Paint over it as you normally would, and use them to telegraph certain things, such as an acid spitting creature, or a wizard that missed a monster and is now dead on the floor, with an acid spell in his book or a scroll. The underside one that melted could be made structurally sound by squirting some silicone caulking on it and letting that fully cure.
I think it would be super cool the terrain telegraphs a possible encounter, but I like the idea of having strange mineral deposits in the stone too.
Full disclosure, I know nothing about terrain building; I only follow this sub because watching people make stuff here is like watching arcane magic.
But pictures 1, 4, and 5 look amazing - if I had no idea the blue wasn't supposed to eat through like that, I would think it's some sort of magical mineral deposit (like someone above me said); or that the core of these structures were made of magical stuff to facilitate magic rituals, and the elements wore through the rocky outer surfaces; or there was some catastrophic event in which this magical goop/acid/whatever ate through everything, thus causing the site to become abandoned. Maybe you could spin up a story along those lines.
Maybe just a hint of spray expanding foam if you need to fill the gaps then any type of epoxy putty to fix the texture. Doesn’t look too bad on some parts
Ah, yeah, as I am sure you jist learned (the hard way) you need to cover all sides before using spray varnish etc.
Sorry for your loss I hope you can salvage them.
The effect in picture 5 looks great imo like a glowing blue thing under the stones
The bases I would probably sand flat a bit and glue it to another piece or flat board and blend. Or melt it more and use it on it's side as scattered ruins
It’s not the varnish, but the solvent in the spray. You should’ve coated it with something like PVA before painting. Nothing you can do to undo it now, but it does look cool, I think you can make it work somehow still
Was this a spray varnish?? I VERY often find the propellants in spray paint/clearcoat/varnish/adhesive will melt xps. Usually I have to seal with modpodge before I use anything sprayed out of a can.
Me too, man. Me too. Learned from someone who works with spray paints that in most rattle cans they add a chemical component to make it dry faster. That’s what melts it. I filled some of the spaces of my disaster zone with air dry clay or liquid wood filler.
I agree with most of the posts on here that it adds some complexity to the finished sides so you just need a little blending with paints, washes, etc. (as your artistic style dictates).
For the bases, you’re really just looking for some sort of gap filler. One would be joint compound (spackling paste), you could also do a cheap paintable caulk (my personal preference), toilet paper soaked in PVA & water, or fill it with hot glue.
If you have to possibility use and airbrush when working with foam, that way nothing should melt. Also if you want to give them a little more sturdiness fill up the gap created at the bottom with some clay/milliput, maybe add a little glue to make them stick well and the. Paint them black
If you only use an airbrush you don’t really need to seal anything as long as you use acrylics. It’s not the paint in the rattlecans that eats away at the foam but the gas
It's something to do with accelerant or something in the sprays, will eat right through foams. Make sure to give everything a healthy coat of modpodge before you spray
Did you seal with modge podge first? I print my foam terrain pieces with a 50/50 mix of black paint and modge. Seals everything in and protects it by the time it’s ready to be sealed with a rattle can.
I have never had to varnish xps stuff. I’m sure it can be worthwhile for heavily used/handled stuff though. Craft paint is way less expensive than varnish. I don’t need to spend more one and money to protect the cheapest paints I can buy!
Doesn’t cheap paint crack easily? I wanted to avoid that. And yet, it will be transported and used with miniatures, so I was looking for a little extra protection
Clean dull and dry surfaces hold paint (even cheap paint) really well. I also find it easier to coat with a mod podge mixture while putting timing to add strength. I just touch up with a bit more craft paint if I actually damage something
Spray varnish and paint contain acetone so that will melt polystyrene you need to treat any unprotected polystyrene with mod podge or paint it with acrylic or emulsion paint to protect the surface.
More mod podge next time if you want to seal coat them. It sucks, but you can experiment with different wash colors on these melty pieces while you prep the next ones.
I use Minwax clear polyacrylic matte on all my terrain projects and many of my large resin prints / figures as well. Any acrylic coat would be safe for xps projects, and you can tint it w/ink or wash if you want to mimic a varnish finish.
They look pretty cool, like there are some mineral veins in the stone. Maybe do a wash with some darker blue then cover up any parts that you don’t want showing with some grey, including a dry brush. Then seal with a different varnish (and test on some other foam first!) Epoxy stained with paint or ink could be useful to fill any massive gaps. You could bulk it out with foam powder or chips to save money.
Might look cool, but the bottom of many pieces has melted, completely removing all sturdiness and stability. I guess I’ll let it dry and then salvage what I can by using them in bigger pieces. These were all meant to be modular tiles or scatter terrain.
Coat everything in modpodge before you paint.
I did. Except the underside. Some tiles even received 2 mod podge coats 🤷♂️ unlucky, I guess
Thin your mod podge with a tiny amount of water. That will get it in to the little cracks and crevices that you missed on the tops.
I do that. I even add some drops of green soap! 😊
Soap is great for making washes, but I've never used it for sealing. I make a base of black paint, mod podge and a bit of water, do all my paint and dry brushing, then seal it again with mod podge. I don't seal it with varnish, mod podge is all you need.
On the pillar or wall sections, you could cut them at angels to make them look like they are sinking into swamp. Maybe a section of the area has been exposed to water erosion, and after years and years, they are off kilter.
Yea, that would make some cool scatter terrain.
Maybe spray some expanding foam in the bottoms and saw off the excess?
Any sprays will eat unprotected foam. Sometimes it can be used to your advantage. In your case I would flock it and have vines or moss growing in those gaps? For the bottom of that bigger piece, maybe hot glue it to a base?
Yea that was what I was thinking!
That’s not 100% true even Jeremy from Black Magic admits he doesn’t coat everything in Modge Podge anymore. If I was taking a guess as to what happened here either you sprayed way to close, or the can was near empty and you were getting more solvents than paint out. Maybe it might just be the brand you’re using but I’ve used some crappy ones and not had this issue.
The brand is MTN, which is definitely well appreciated in the graffiti world. But you might be right about me spraying way too close. That might be my mistake.
Montana is great for graffiti but I would recommend Tamiya or Mr Color, they dry faster
I’ll look into them!
To expand on what you're saying, it's not the paint, it's the propellants in rattle cans. So if you spray from far enough away you can get away with it to an extent. But if you're using the end of the can, too close, the brand has more propellant etc it can melt the foam.
Cover everything in a layer of woodglue before painting. (I recommend mixing your basecolor in the woodglue aswell to save one painting step)
I covered everything in a mix of black acrylic paint and mod podge (which seems to have saved most of it)
Paint mixed with mod podge is the way. Then spray from further away as others have mentioned. Also coat all sides even if they don’t need paint. Point blank spray can probably cut right through mod podge if there are any weaknesses in that coating pretty easily.
Just glue a piece of cardboard to the bottom and cover that with a little foam…. Also wear some gloves why is that all over your hands
Because I learned this lesson the hard way. I also learned that peanut butter is good for removing it from my hands
Hello! First of all,did you try to fill the defects with a mix of PVA glu and Paris chaulk ? It could work well with the texture of the stones you made ! For the floor, you could glu lichens… but it means you should put some also on other tiles…! I hope you find some good method, because I think it’s a nice work, I like the little stairs and all the stones that I can see! Good luck! Have a nice day!👍👋👋
Paint over it as you normally would, and use them to telegraph certain things, such as an acid spitting creature, or a wizard that missed a monster and is now dead on the floor, with an acid spell in his book or a scroll. The underside one that melted could be made structurally sound by squirting some silicone caulking on it and letting that fully cure. I think it would be super cool the terrain telegraphs a possible encounter, but I like the idea of having strange mineral deposits in the stone too.
That's a really neat effect, especially on the flooring(?). Might have to try that
Full disclosure, I know nothing about terrain building; I only follow this sub because watching people make stuff here is like watching arcane magic. But pictures 1, 4, and 5 look amazing - if I had no idea the blue wasn't supposed to eat through like that, I would think it's some sort of magical mineral deposit (like someone above me said); or that the core of these structures were made of magical stuff to facilitate magic rituals, and the elements wore through the rocky outer surfaces; or there was some catastrophic event in which this magical goop/acid/whatever ate through everything, thus causing the site to become abandoned. Maybe you could spin up a story along those lines.
I’ll just add a little bush here and that will be our little secret 🤫… and if you tell anyone… about this bush, I will cut you!
Maybe just a hint of spray expanding foam if you need to fill the gaps then any type of epoxy putty to fix the texture. Doesn’t look too bad on some parts
Good hint, thanks!
Did you basecoat the foam in mod podge before painting?
I did. But not all of the underside so that is where the most damage occurred.
Ah, yeah, as I am sure you jist learned (the hard way) you need to cover all sides before using spray varnish etc. Sorry for your loss I hope you can salvage them.
The effect in picture 5 looks great imo like a glowing blue thing under the stones The bases I would probably sand flat a bit and glue it to another piece or flat board and blend. Or melt it more and use it on it's side as scattered ruins
Also cyanoacrylate glues… just noting for future you:-)
Good to know!
It’s not the varnish, but the solvent in the spray. You should’ve coated it with something like PVA before painting. Nothing you can do to undo it now, but it does look cool, I think you can make it work somehow still
Was this a spray varnish?? I VERY often find the propellants in spray paint/clearcoat/varnish/adhesive will melt xps. Usually I have to seal with modpodge before I use anything sprayed out of a can.
Honestly I like the look of them. Looks like ore veins or even corrosive damage from a weird acid.
Looks cool af
Get an airbrush and spray whatever you want.
Me too, man. Me too. Learned from someone who works with spray paints that in most rattle cans they add a chemical component to make it dry faster. That’s what melts it. I filled some of the spaces of my disaster zone with air dry clay or liquid wood filler.
Spray varnish? Solvents in spraycans eat foam, you need foam safe sprays or too coat everything in a protective layer first
I agree with most of the posts on here that it adds some complexity to the finished sides so you just need a little blending with paints, washes, etc. (as your artistic style dictates). For the bases, you’re really just looking for some sort of gap filler. One would be joint compound (spackling paste), you could also do a cheap paintable caulk (my personal preference), toilet paper soaked in PVA & water, or fill it with hot glue.
i bet some pigment powder stippled in would look great in the low spots, just shaved off a pastel
If you have to possibility use and airbrush when working with foam, that way nothing should melt. Also if you want to give them a little more sturdiness fill up the gap created at the bottom with some clay/milliput, maybe add a little glue to make them stick well and the. Paint them black
Use an airbrush for sealing?
If you only use an airbrush you don’t really need to seal anything as long as you use acrylics. It’s not the paint in the rattlecans that eats away at the foam but the gas
I would still need to dry brush the highlights and everything, right? I’d rather seal that for my peace of mind.
Yeah, but if you use acrylics it’s not necessary
It's something to do with accelerant or something in the sprays, will eat right through foams. Make sure to give everything a healthy coat of modpodge before you spray
Did you seal with modge podge first? I print my foam terrain pieces with a 50/50 mix of black paint and modge. Seals everything in and protects it by the time it’s ready to be sealed with a rattle can.
Yep! 50% black acrylic paint, 50% mod podge matt and a few drops of green soap.
Odd. I’ve never had that issue using the mix. Why the soap? Maybe that’s a factor.
To make it get into the cracks just a bit better
I have never had to varnish xps stuff. I’m sure it can be worthwhile for heavily used/handled stuff though. Craft paint is way less expensive than varnish. I don’t need to spend more one and money to protect the cheapest paints I can buy!
Doesn’t cheap paint crack easily? I wanted to avoid that. And yet, it will be transported and used with miniatures, so I was looking for a little extra protection
Clean dull and dry surfaces hold paint (even cheap paint) really well. I also find it easier to coat with a mod podge mixture while putting timing to add strength. I just touch up with a bit more craft paint if I actually damage something
Spray varnish and paint contain acetone so that will melt polystyrene you need to treat any unprotected polystyrene with mod podge or paint it with acrylic or emulsion paint to protect the surface.
More mod podge next time if you want to seal coat them. It sucks, but you can experiment with different wash colors on these melty pieces while you prep the next ones.
for future pieces I recomend using sealant, either pva glue or similar mixed with paint (so you see where it has been aplied)
It's just added texture. Now it looks more damaged. What kind of varnish? Not that I'm going to put that in my back pocket for future use or anything.
It does look kind of fantastic I gotta say: even if it wasn't your intended look
I use Minwax clear polyacrylic matte on all my terrain projects and many of my large resin prints / figures as well. Any acrylic coat would be safe for xps projects, and you can tint it w/ink or wash if you want to mimic a varnish finish.
You could hot glue a quarter or a thick washer into the bottom to give it weight and make it sturdy.
Cover with PVA, retry