wooden sphere's and hit them on the sander...

AD-

In my experience in LA offices we would often use map pins for larger scale models, or even headless silver pins for even larger or more diagrammatic models.

For site scale models I always used 'stereo speaker wire.' Or any maluable silver/copper wire you can get in a small gage from Michaels or other craft stores. Twist 4 or 5 strands in your fingers and make branches with the untwisted end.

Kinda like this, but you dont have to get this crazy:

http://fineartamerica.com/images-medium/wire-tree-sculpture-1266-aluminum-omer-huremovic.jpg

wood




white tree like flower thingies found at michaels/hobby store....

6step, nice idea!

The handful of models I've ever built... I've prefer to use dried plant matter (baby's breathe, various lichens, mosses, ferns and other small plants). I usually soaked them in white out/white tempra paint/chalk dust mixture as white out isn't glossy nor builds up like spray spaint.

I agree with Unicorn--I prefer the dried plants, or wooden spindles/headless pins for that matter to the clunkier wooden spheres, sponges, etc. The wire can be nice, but I think that sort of detail is only important in especially detail scale models or if there is something particularly important about the shape of a given tree. Otherwise, I think the simpler pegs/pins/dried plants are less obtrusive and obviously more abstract, thus less distracting.

discs cut out of light card with a mist of green and black spray paint attached to a toothpick with a frayed top

Look at the Morphosis trees, see book #1-2, most creative I've seen (not easy to make, though).

Flower thingies look the next best, imho, paint them to match the model

I took these pics in the model shop of an architecture office in Copenhagen a few years ago during my study abroad semester living in Paris. They were made as examples for anyone that might be building entourage for models.

P.S.- This is the first time I am posting images here in a long time so if only links show-up below you'll know I screwed this up and will try and get it right later.

Lets just try this...

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061199&id=1064326410&saved#!/photo.php?pid=31336472&id=1064326410&fbid=1449928842591

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061199&id=1064326410&saved#!/photo.php?pid=31336473&id=1064326410&fbid=1449928882592

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061199&id=1064326410&saved#!/photo.php?pid=31336474&id=1064326410&fbid=1449928922593

Got it!







If a moderator feels like deleting the "06/26/10 6:37" comment with just the links feel free.

Sorry to be such a noob with posting images!

When using the baby's breath "trees" I prefer to trim off the flowers so it's just the branches. The flowers look lame.

Totally depends on the scale though. I like the wire trees myself. Aside from the cut hands, they are fun to make.

trick to wire trees it to take 5-7 36" lengths... twist one end of them together and screw to a table or vise...then put the other end in a drill and twist away.... make sure you dont twist tooo much either, just enough to keep the wires together before your untwist them for the branches

I was impressed by this

To see what can be done with wire trees, check out Kathleen Seyfarth. They are even specific to species. My office has used her trees for two competition models.