Modeling Guides: Winter Hexes

The Basic Winter Technique - All of the hex styles you have read about in standard terrain are used in a winter board. They just have to be covered with snow rather than grass. And the trees are bare, or snow-covered conifers. The deciduous trees are now modeled from braided picture hanging wire, which is sold in hardware stores. Get several different thicknesses, especially the heavier gauges. These are used to make bare trees, which, though fragile, add a great deal of realism to any winter scene.

Though it seems a bit silly, paint the basic hex with white interior latex paint. If modeling a road, paint it tan (mud), white (snow) or gray (blacktop).
Mix a THIN wash of 20 parts water to 1 part royal blue acrylic paint. Apply this onto the white hex sparingly to achieve a "cold" effect.
Dot the open areas with white glue, and apply a tan/yellow foam to simulate dried, winter grass and bushes.
Creating trees: Cut 3" of braided picture wire. Fray 1" using a pointy object,and then twist groups of wires into a branch structure
Paint tree gray. To plant the tree, use an awl to poke a hole clear though the hex. Apply glue and insert trunk. Cut excess off bottom with wire cutters.

Modeling Ice - We could cover ice with snow, but that really gets boring. A much more pleasing effect is to model translucent, grey ice, occasionally blanketed by drifted snow. Again using all water-based materials, this is an easy project. Ponds and rivers can be created using the same techniques.

To add a great detail to the banks, use picture wire to model brush without summer foliage. Simply fray a piece of the wire, and "plant" it beside the frozen streambed.

Determine where the stream bed will be on a 1/4" hex. Paint it with a blackwash: 10 parts water to 1 part black acrylic paint. Allow to dry.
Glue the bank pieces as shown on page 28. To achieve the translucent icy look, apply a coat of white glue to the streambed. Repeat as desired.
Mix some water putty into a thick "milk shake" consistency. Carefully apply drifts to simulate wind-blown snow. Allow to dry completely.
Apply white latex paint to all snow areas of hex, and add ground foam bushes using white glue. Wire bushes can now be glued into the bank.
For snow laden conifers, prepare the trees as shown in each TM packs instructions. Use downward strokes to apply white paint for snow.