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Thanks Jerry, that’s either a typo or referencing the 4th dimension – deep man Anyhow I’ve destroyed those balconies & deploying a 2nd brain cell for a 2nd attempt

WOW!!!!!

Time, this is unbelievable man!

I think I've skimmed over this post a couple times since you began, but never realized the immenseness or magnitude of what your are doing until today. Absolutely fantastic work sir. I can only agree with everyone who said this should end up in a museum in Prague someday. My wee little chapel doesn't look very big compared to the size of this venture. You know, I bet this is how Claude started out... I'll just build a corner of the street.. maybe a section of the castle.. part of the river.. you get the picture

anyway, I love what you're doing with the background building. You've probably already noticed though that there appear to be several buildings that are photobombing... any plans for them too?

Thank you kindly gents, as for other buildings Dave there’s really only one that might need to become 3D – what I loosely call the “Bauhaus” style one on the south side - but it will only photobomb a few final photos & it’s distant enough that a backdrop should suffice. Same goes for the view up the hill past the house, and the Geological Institute (including its chimney) is well hidden behind the trees in its gardens, mercifully.

However, the brakes are going on any further dio-base work for a while because after nearly a year of searching we’ve FINALLY just secured our new residence, 9 floors up with a terrace & big sky aspect for unrestricted daylight diorama photography – had to get the priorities right, I think there’s a kitchen somewhere?

So the clock’s ticking with a couple of weeks remaining to finish the house before packing everything up & TIME will no longer be my own until we’ve settled in, probably by early July. I’m mulling over how to protect/transport the base – police outriders & sirens maybe for an extra wide load?

Hi Tim,

The building is coming on a treat, inspired workmanship, .

Cheers, ,

G

Thanks G & brace for image-heavy…Who thinks they know what the soundtrack is for this episode of HOUSE? Well, you have to promise if you guess wrong you’ll donate the equivalent of US$10 (or more) to UNICEF. Promise? OK your word is your bond, hit it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pe2K5iT8lwE

C’mon I gave you a clue…kinda…besides did I mention if you guessed right you’ll have to donate US100?

So, having abandoned the first expletive attempt at balconies, here’s Take 2:



Hoarding some old Camembert boxes would have saved TIME but instead I wrapped some 1mm thick balsa strips around a jar with rubber bands & steeped it in boiling water for a few minutes. Moving on…







Yeah I really did cut out all the slots between the pillars, the guys in the white coats are on their way. During glue-curing I started prepping the windows for recessed frames, carefully scraping back the foam…



…until I came to my senses…







Half way home…











…and behind the scenes…





Footnotes – apart from the roof elements none of the balsa elements are glued on yet, the gaps are temporary. And a reminder I’m only making the two sides of the house that will be visible. My new Prague correspondent - aka Agent Alfred - has been assisting with local construction details, for example I made the balconies from balsa wood but he’s certain they would have been masonry so I’ll give them the same plaster-type texture as the walls. And he’s also suggested that this was a/the likely colour scheme:



I used MS Paint, crude but effective for this purpose. In mono comparing it to the original…





Maybe it doesn’t prove much - the 1936 image contrast has faded and it’s an overcast day, whereas in my image the house is as it should look in sunshine. But even so I don’t think it’s far off, interesting exercise so unless someone can produce an authentic colour image of that long-demolished house, I’ll settle for this.

Those are some striking balconies you have there fella! Styrofoam!! !
I remember that stuff, little bits of white sticking to everything and everyone!
Can’t knock the results though, you’re building is shaping up nicely Tim.

Nicely done! Great progress!
J

Your progress is really striking... Love the way the house turns out!

I love what you’ve done with the place! 🏠🍺
—mike

Superb house Tim!!

Love the way you use the foam!

This just gets better and better; as I think I've said before simply "magisterial".

Brian

Hi Tim
I don't know what we're going to see,but I'm sure it's going to be something grand. detonate the bomb in the paint box, and it's okay that I lose a button maker

Thanks gents, the foam was the el cheapo option (regulars will recall I embarrassed my wife loading slabs of it into the car from a street clean-up) although not the easiest medium to work with unless you plug yourself into the mains. The static-charged blizzard that erupts every time it’s cut or scraped is a pain although using brand-new blades with a dampened paper towel on hand can suppress most of it…or Earthing of course. The real test will be whether it (and the balsa) will accept a kind of plaster coating I’ve only concocted in my mind so far, with no actual testing.

If it doesn’t work Dim, I’ll have plenty of material to convert to buttons…but it looks like you’ve stopped knitting already & gone back to making awesome dioramas? What a great loss to the Fashion world, and yes this really is getting surreal

After some hesitation I ditched the idea of using ordinary plaster to face the walls, because I recalled trying it on foam some years back and it started cracking up/off even with only minimal handling. However, tests with the exterior wood-filler I used for the road surface showed that it gripped the foam as tightly as balsa, so…



…and even during vigorous sanding it held fast…



The finish is rougher than I’d normally settle for, but there won’t be any close-ups & the texture should provide plenty of tooth for some light weathering. But first an undercoat of powder paint…





As you can see the two-tone scheme’s been ditched – the ground floor seems a shade darker in the 1936 photo but I’m not convinced enough. And after a second coat…







Ah the perils of outdoor photography – the last shot’s askew because just before I clicked the whole house & foam base (which it isn’t attached to) momentarily lifted an inch off the table as a swirling gust of wind grabbed it, and another sent the whole lot up in the air as I hurriedly put the camera down. If it had flown off the balcony imagine the surreal conversation with the ground floor resident 3 floor below: “Please sir can I have my house back…before your dog gets to it?” For the record it weighs just 150g or 6 oz., I guess the windows & roof will add another 33% but it’ll still be a hazard to air traffic until nailed down.

Also for the record the images are raw, no manipulation. In sunshine I think it’s good enough – what Alfred suggested as somewhere between cream & panzer yellow. But I’m not sure why the top storey looks a couple of shades darker than the ground floor, the opposite of what I’d prefer – maybe when it’s in position for final photography it’ll reverse. The clock’s ticking ever louder, this time next week the house should be (or rather needs to be) finished

Whoosh!🌪🏡 ... “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.” 🌻🌻🌻

Perspective mastery at every twist and turn. Your amazing diorama just never gets old!

Cheers!🍺
—mike

priceless Mike, priceless & thank you

The hat on my head is semi-tall and has two colors, fortunately it is not made of stone

Autsch, I hope the airborne tests did not do any damage?

Beautiful work Tim , looks great !!
Aside from the potential Judy Garland disaster , the worst part musta been you having to change yer pants ......

Thanks friends, yep watching your creation suddenly taking wing is a good test of coronary health & I even passed the clench test too. I was lucky Erwin, the house flew into my right hand as the base fell into my left, no damage at all. Dim - copy that…er The Lion Sleeps At Midnight.

Talking of obscurity, kudos to Glenn for shaking off his invisibility cloak (France 44), I’ve been thinking for some time it would be nice to know what we all looked like so c’mon guys show yourselves (no Maarten the crusader outfit just won't cut it)…



Yeeeaaaah baby check it out…….OK some mistake that’s not my head…and certainly not my

Cool man , yer oldish , ..... like me !!

Either you have a great sense of timing, or very good reflexes.
And we are lucky that everything is still intact..

Hi Tim,

Loving the way your building is coming together, like Cheyenne your attention to detail is truly awe inspiring, .

Cheers, ,

G

“ But I’m not sure why the top storey looks a couple of shades darker than the ground floor, the opposite of what I’d prefer – maybe when it’s in position for final photography it’ll reverse. The clock’s ticking ever louder...”

It’s the sunlight reflecting back up from the base in front of the building. Try another picture with a darker something or other in front ...

Hah I’m only a couple of years behind you Glenn i.e. 30 something, look what model-making’s done to us. Pure luck Erwin, I may have the blood pressure of a 21 year-old but the reflexes of a centenarian. Thanks G but truly his exquisite Conservatory makes my house look like a mud hut. Phil you’re dead right, I’ll lose the white base before taking any more photos – a darker base should indeed reverse the effect.

Well Dave, I’ve given you a run for your money in the race to get to 300K views but I think you’ll get there by a short head, congrats & well deserved