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August 29, 2026. I finally started working on my diorama, and this is my first-ever proper diorama! I started by taking some measurements and cutting the foam. In my original sketch, I was supposed to have the foam blocks facing straight forward, but I decided to set them diagonally instead.

I liked this layout much more, since the angled mud road makes it look like a real turn. I used a Tamiya hobby saw and a hobby knife to carve and shape the foam, then cleaned everything up with a sanding stick. Looking at the base, I thought to myself that it felt a bit empty. In the reference pictures I looked at for research, I noticed far more tanks surrounded by dense forest rather than open, flat clearings. That made adding more trees feel like the right fix, so I improvised by taking bamboo sticks and sticking them into the foam to build up the forest.

At first, they looked way too thin for 1/35 scale, so I wrapped them in tinfoil to bulk them up and shape them. From the research I did, you don't really see trees being short in European forests like those in Germany and Poland. They're usually very tall and skinny in dense forest areas. I made the trees tall so that having them extend out of frame gives a real sense of scale. I also made sure I could easily pull the trees out of the base so I could work on detailing them separately later. Next, I mixed Red Devil lightweight spackle with PVA glue and water to coat as much of the base as I could. I used the tracks from my donor K2 kit to press realistic track marks straight into the ground mixture.

To get a great soil texture, I grated a cork coaster over the base and added some A.MIG-3004 Europe Earth pigment. Finally, I used the Red Devil mix to coat the trees as well. Now everything has to dry for 24 hours before I can start applying any paint.

While it cures, I can move on to putting the final touches on the K2! 👀