Introduction

DioramaWorld is a Dutch Family company which offers 1:35 scale diorama products. Our goal is to make good quality and affordable diorama products. Our specialization is the production of diorama bases, vignettes, and accessories made of resin, and intended for 1:35 scale / 54 mm figures en vehicles.

The products of DioramaWorld are designed so that every tank, figure or diorama modeller, be they beginner, intermediate or pro can make something really nice to present figures or vehicles. With an ever growing range of interesting diorama products I think we can expect some really good things from this company. The diorama and vignette bases they offer are great building them out of the box and will look very good. But next to that they are a great starting point to add more detail and the imagination is then the only limit you as modeller will experience. Another good thing is that the products are quite universal and can be used in several theatres. A good example can be found in this review. But again Diorama World offers you a lot of possibilities as to what time frame you will use the diorama and vignette bases for.

Package and presentation

The Cornerhouse comes in a sturdy box of 24 cm x 16,5cm and 9 cm deep. On the lid is a big and very attractive looking image of what the contents of the kit look like when assembled and the item number. On the side is another image where you will find some more information about the kit and the contact information of DioramaWorld as well as the internet and E-mail address. Inside packed firmly in bubblewrap are the contents. Also in the box is a little leaflet but more about that later.

Contents

In the bubblewrap you will find 5 parts all cast in cream/white coloured resin. The base, 2 remainders of walls, a floor and a door. Also in the box is a little leaflet but more about that later. The base is very nice and is molded with 2 slots for the two ruined wall sections. Also on the base is a partial floorsection, the rest of the groundlevel looks like a big shell landed inside. The walls are molded with detail on both sides and have some very nice crisp brick sculpture. Also the wallpaper is already molded onto the inside of the walls.

DioramaWorld includes some wallpaper which is ready to cut and glue onto the sections where it needs to be located. Another nice touch is that the window frames are already molded in place which means only some minor work on the windows remains to be done. The floor section included in the kit are actually part of the ceiling of the first floor and floor of the second floor with beams between inbetween. The whole floor shows a very nice woodstructure and is done compleet with screwholes.

Assembly

Really this kit will be assembled without any problems. On the base you don’t have to do a single thing. Both the wall sections need a little sanding to make a nice smooth and flat surface. The castingblocks on the floorsection and the door might be a bit on the big side but with the proper tools it should be an easy job. I used a razorsaw to cut most of it off and then sand the last bit. Glue everything with CA glue and you will have some that will last for quite some time. Adding the second floor is quite easy because Dioramaworld molded the location for it in the two wallsections so it is easy to position. Even the beginner will not experience much problems constructing this diorama base.

Of course finishing touches need to be added. The slots where the walls fit onto the base need to be hidden away. Adding a collection of rubble along the wall should do the trick. You have to do the same with the outside of the wall where there is a seam between the wall and the rubble. Further you can add furniture scattered around, weapons, etc the choices are endless. The base also shows part of a tube on the outside of the wall just in front of the corner. You can add a telephonepole in it but also (and that is what I did with my kit) add a rainpipe to the side of the house.

The Building in perspective

When you assemble the kit you might start to think that the building's dimensions are a bit on the large side. But keeping two things in mind, first, it is designed for 2 scales both 1:35 and 54mm and second, it does not specifically say what kind of building it is. Pre-1900 it was quite common that buildings with status, for example government buildings, tend to have very big rooms with high ceilings. Also schools and universities were quite common to be large (I went to a school that was built in 1874 and the classrooms were more then 4,5 meters high with huge windows). Also this building could well be the remains of a medium sized factory. As I mentioned before with this offering you have the possibility to use the building in a multitude of settings from France to Holland, Berlin 1945 and all the nations and armies that were fighting in that period in those places.

The Leaflet

Another nice thing that I must not forget to mention is the leaflet that I mentioned earlier. In the box is a small leaflet. On the backside you will find some build information and instructions about the kit, what glues you can use best, the paint, what to do when a part is warped etc. etc. But...the real good thing is on the front of the leaflet. On their website you will find a gallery section. DioramaWorld encourage people who bought and built DioramaWorld products to send their pictures to DioramaWorld so they can be added. When you do this you have a chance of winning 50 Euro’s of DioramaWorld products. Which I think is a very great initiative of the company.

Conclusion

The cornerhouse with second floor is a kit that builds up into a very nice backdrop for your figures. The detail on both sides of the walls is very crisp and nicely molded. An absolute minimum of airbubbles are in places that are easily filled. Additions to the kit such as the wallpaper and the door are very nice things that the big resin diorama manufacturers often forget.

DioramaWorld is a company of which I think we can expect some really interesting releases. They show some great initiative and ideas. For example the house section from this review can also be bought as a separate piece (product # 1006). Next to that the presentation of their products (both the website and the packaging) are of a very high standard and very appealing and eyecatching. I would recommend this kit of DioramaWorld to everybody.

My thanks go to DioramaWorld for providing this review sample.