Thursday 7 August 2014

It's all in the detail.

A new addition to our range of lightweight rocks: tree trunks, tree stumps and logs.   Like the rocks, the artificial timber products are lightweight and durable.   I thought it was time to branch out.   Silence.   Ok, that pun is so bad no body even groans any more.  

Take a look at the detail on the largest tree trunk.   It looks like the bark is actually flaking off just like the real thing, but it's firmly affixed.

artificialrocks.co.uk


Lightweight artificial log

Lightweight artificial log

Lightweight artificial tree trunk

Lightweight artificial tree trunk

Lightweight artificial tree trunk

Lightweight artificial tree trunk

Stone style planters

The rectangular planters and tall square planters in the following images are 'polystone'.   That is to say they are stone chippings in resin.   They look like they are made of stone but are much lighter.   The tall rectangular planters can have a flat top to convert them to a pedestal or can be fitted with a smaller planter on top to add height and style.


Polystone planters - stone chippings in resin


Polystone planters - stone chippings in resin


The following stone style planters are made completely from a glassfibre resin material made to look like stone.


Stone effect glassfibre planters


The polystone vases shown below are also available in grey and cream as are the rectangular polystone planters.

Polystone vase.   The look of stone without the weight.



Go large

Following an enquiry at the beginning of the year, I tried to find the manufacturer of an extremely large tapered round plant container 1400mm wide and 2000mm tall that I had previously seen.  My search led to a non-functioning website www.ego2.com that suggested the company was no more.   Looking for an unrelated product the other day I found the large planter! It seems that the moulds have been purchased by another manufacturer and are now available in a limited supply.   These are made from glassfibre and are currently available in white.   It is possible to spray paint glassfibre however.   Do you want to go large?







Saturday 2 August 2014

Artificial dry stone wall.

Following an enquiry for the top section of a dry stone wall I was all of a quarry, sorry, quandary.   The obvious method is to build a small section with real stone and mould from that.   I usually use latex to mould with as it is very economical.   The thing is, latex takes a while to dry and several layers must be built up to get the required thickness.   The Cassini's plaster I use to make the finished article also takes up to a week to cure fully.   With a vacation looming I was stuck between a rock and a hard place.   Pun number two.

I decided to get the mould prepared by a mould maker.   Transporting a dry stone wall in real stone posed a bit of a problem.   You can't easily lift a complete dry stone wall, not even the top section.   I could have built the wall on a pallet but had this been handled roughly, my short section of wall may have crumbled.

I decided, therefore, to make a section of wall from scratch.   Using a box section as a base I used plaster to make the basic shape of the dry stone wall and then added cracks, notches and general rocky features by hand.   Here is the result:


Artificial dry stone wall




I haven't painted it as yet as it's still wet but I have converted the image above to greyscale, added some colour, added more of the lower wall and dropped the wall in to a farmer's field.   Digitally as opposed to literally, that is!  Aye, that'll do.



Artificial dry stone wall.   Digitally enhanced image.


artificialrocks.co.uk