Using Household Items in Modeling

Monroe Stewart shows some shapes found in everyday life or in grocery, hobby or hardware stores. A pill bottle, top of a mouthwash, hotel room shampoo, PVC pipe with a cone of styrene, a shower cap container, cosmetic containers, plumbing pipe, little miscellaneous bottles, caps, and wood dowels or some of these objects.

After sanding away the grooves of the mouthwash lid, it acts as the furnace. A shampoo bottle was also used with a cap on it for another component. Monroe used a piece of PVC pipe for the furnaces. A combination of PVC pipe can be found along with the wooden dowel, to make the stacks. A shower cap container, which is a cylinder form, was used for smaller stacks. When everything is painted and is placed cleverly, it becomes transformed. The piece of PVC piping with the styrene cone with another pipe on top creates another shape.

Next Monroe shows a commercial water tower kit. The cosmetic cream container he found is a similar shape to the water tank. By adding legs and bracing and paint, you can replicate the water tower for cheap. Next he shows the Koenig Electric Power Company, which is a kitbashed structure. On the roof is found the use of a number of different caps. These add some interest and make it appear more real with cooling towers and such on top of the power plant.

Monroe’s favorite part of the hobby is the fellowship, the places he goes, the people he meets, the layouts he sees. He is very involved, going to half a dozen conventions a year. Check out more tips on using household items for your scenery or more scenery tips!