I am doing a diorama where I want to place a russian cottage, where the front will have a door and window facing, with two sides. The sides will be cut as I don’t need to show any interior. The width will be determined by how much space I want,
But what I don’t know is what height should the cottage be (in inches) so that it looks realistic with 1/35 scale figure and vehicle beside it.
Also I intend to make the walls out of wooden logs so i was wondering what circumfrance the logs should be. (or unless I do the sides of the cottage by wood planks,what size planks should they be to look realistic)
I think I would find an image, assume the door is slightly shorter than most European doors (180 cm?) You can extrapolate the diameter of the logs by dividing by the number of logs next to it.
What you are referring to is an “isba”. They are virtually identical to generic North American log cabins of 18th - 20th century design. A quick Google search of log cabin designs will give you hundreds of inspirations.
Hello!
Log cabin is probably the way to go. I’d like to offer two more pointers here:
Spaces between the logs would be very carefully stuffed and finished with “stuff” (not sure here - mixture of clay and straw, or maybe a layer of planks) - for warmth. Winters are very cold and fuel is expensive.
The windows would be small, because large glass panes were very hard to come by, and large windows = loss of heat. Likewise the doors would be lower than you’d expect. A modern man always has to bow his head when walking in or out. So you have a high threshold to keep the mud and cow and chicken dung out, and the doors are low, because people were generally smaller (not enough food) - normal man would be about 165-170 cm tall and that’s about how high the doors would be. Any higher would mean unnecessary loss of heat in the winter.
I hope this gives you an idea about the conditions those people had to live in…
You should also think about the well and the outhouse (not too close to one another!)
Jack, I often have this issue when scratch building things for dioramas. I have a scale model reference ruler. It has 1/24, 1/25, 1/35, 1/48, and 1/72 scale markings I have used it numerous times over the years. It’s a handy tool to have. You can also Google Scale Conversion Calculator. I am currently working on a 1/9 scale vignette and used the scale conversion calculator to figure out how big to make a 1/9 scale workbench, tools, and wall. Hope this helps
To go from one scale to another, just multiply by the scale you have and divide by the scale you want.
If you use a pocket calculator, first type in the scale you have and divide by the scale you want, and store that in the calculator’s memory (usually with the M+ or M in keys, though if you use the M+ key, press MC first to clear whatever is currently in memory). Then all you have to do to convert a measurement is type it in, press ×, press MR and press =.
With a computer, or tablet or phone, open its calculator app to do the same as above. If you need to do a lot of conversions, a spreadsheet app will be much easier, something like this:
Depending on where, and when, the cabin was built the “chinking” would have been done with local materials: straw, clay, plaster, moss (as Robin pointed out), etc.
Sorry to disagree Matt but army coffee tastes the same whether up or downstream from the amenities, and is actually often improved by being downstream!
I am reminded of a slur against Guinness stout — that it is brewed with the waters of the river Liffey, which suffer nothing in color or consistency by being passed through the human kidney.
Jack, apologies as I may have inadvertently helped steer this away from your original query. Didn’t mean to take the piss…..
Anyway I think you’ve got some good pointers and some references there. May I advise that, when you’re putting together such a building, think of the human aspect. By that I mean if it’s an izba on a remote steppe, then it’s unlikely to have massive tree trunks for walls. It would have been built by those living in it and without much mechanical assistance like cranes or pulleys. That means logs used would only be as big as a couple of people could lift. For packing between the logs, a mix of mud/clay and straw were used. Usually wisps of straw and clumps of mud can be seen between the logs. Sometimes a cheap whitewash type finish was applied, sometimes the timber was raw.
For buildings in more populated areas, sometimes formed walls were used that were wooden panels. Sometimes the lower parts of the walls were made of stone and/or locally made bricks with the upper parts in timber. In more populated areas houses would also be more ornate in contrast to something on a remote steppe which would be more functional.
