Scratch building with Inkscape 2: Making the most of Inkscape

[@paulbywater3576]

Thank you. As a 71 year old newbie to scratch building I'm finding your videos very helpful. I took a different path to scaling the textures - I counted the bricks and joints to work out the width of the panel and then resized the width with aspect lock on. Now to watch the next video.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you Paul! Michael

[@paulhargreaves1497]

Excellent stuff......no need to watch an Inkscape tutorial and struggle to adapt it to railway buildings.........it's all done for you! Brilliant stuff.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you Paul.

[@robertbage5052]

Great stuff. Thanks. Bob

[@Chandwell]

Thank you Bob! Hope it was useful for you.

[@robertbage5052]

@@Chandwell Much of what you are doing will be very useful. I'll be back to these videos many times before I put your techniques to work. Thanks, Bob

[@pauljames9626]

What a video! I've been puzzling over adding texture fills at the right scale for ages and could never get it right by using the "Pattern Fill" option on the "Fill and Stroke" menu. My friend, you have just solved one of my biggest Inkscape headaches - Thank you! I can't wait for the rest of the series.

[@Chandwell]

Hi Paul - I am really pleased that you found this useful! I enjoyed making it and am part-way through recording the next one - the build of the mill. --Michael.

[@peterstecks7660]

Thank you again Michael. So useful. Appreciated.

[@Chandwell]

Pleased you found this useful!

[@derekmace9298]

I'm so glad I found this channel via Elvenhome. I'm fascinated and inspired by your videos on Inkscape. I'm looking forward to watching you create a mill. I'm downloading Inkscape and going to have a play. Thanks very much

[@Chandwell]

Hi Derek, thank you so much (and to Stephen at Elvenholme for the shout out). I’m really glad you’ve been inspired to download Inkscape. It’s an amazing piece of software. The mill has changed into a smaller industrial building but watch on Sunday and I will explain. I think it’s going to be even better.

[@ottorosborough7589]

You do a great job at showing how to use the program. You obviously know computer programs very well. It is very enjoyable to watch you build and I have picked up so many of your technics you use, especially because I build in n scale. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and talent with all of us. Otto

[@Chandwell]

Thank you very much indeed, Otto!

[@Elvenhome]

Thank you very much Michael, both for the shout out and for all the useful information in this video. I finished recording the Two to Watch segment yesterday. People are going to think we are a mutual appreciation society, because, chosen by a random method I might add, your channel is one of the two for the first in the series. Great minds as they say. Look forward to the next videos. Stephen

[@Chandwell]

Haha! Great minds indeed! I am honoured that your random method chose my little channel to be featured in your Two to Watch segment, and now I am even more looking forward to watching it - thank you very much indeed. I'm glad you found this episode useful, I am often a bit apprehensive that the subject is particularly 'niche', even for our hobby, and quite dry.

[@chimpalienbaby7312]

Thank you so much for this video, I’m off to create an N scale diorama now! I found your channel yesterday and I’m hooked!

[@Chandwell]

Welcome to Chandwell!! Thank you for all your comments, I am really pleased that I have inspired you to go and create a diorama. All the best! --Michael.

[@iainm1256]

this is all inspiring stuff. I have made a start with Inkscape producing some textures in stone for a layout which is in its infancy. A small station is in the design works which I was going to do by hand but now see that Inkscape is the way to go. A big thanks for the clear instructions in this and other videos.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you for the feedback Iain - good luck with your build... let me know how you get on and if you have any questions.

[@MrMagandy]

Thank you so much for your tutorials. I find them very informative and helpful.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you Andy. Glad you found them helpful.

[@wamgoc]

Enjoyed this video very much! Thanks!

[@Chandwell]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@billpoxon]

Another Great informative and useful video

[@Chandwell]

Thank you William! --Michael.

[@Miertreg1]

Cool 👌👍🙋🏻‍♂️ Greetings from Gert

[@Chandwell]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@51yatto]

Brilliant! Very informative and interesting. Thanks. I will try to build a wall in HO/OO scale using card and printed texture.

[@Chandwell]

Glad it was helpful! Good luck with the wall - let me know how it goes! Michael

[@SideburnsSid]

Another splendid video, I wasn't expecting to have my question answered! I will certainly stick around for your building a Mill series, no doubt it will hold the info I can apply to my own scratch builds.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you Samuel! I hope you like the build series. Watch out next weekend and hopefully the first one will be there!

[@SideburnsSid]

@@Chandwell I'm looking forward to it! It took me too long to get around to watching this one, won't make the same mistake again!

[@Chandwell]

Haha! Thank you!

[@joewarner287]

Love this

[@Chandwell]

Thank you!

[@brianbs7348]

brilliant I bought a book on Inkscape as well.

[@Chandwell]

Superb! Hope it is useful for you! --Michael

[@piccadillymodelrailways]

Great instruction video on inkscape and you have employed many useful aspects. Locking layers got me investigating afinity designer and it turns out I can do the same

[@Chandwell]

Good stuff John! I think Affinity will probably have more features than Inkscape, so you should be able to apply all my techniques. Locking layers is really useful when working on things. I lock the layers of my video thumbnails (in Vectornator though rather than Inkscape) so it’s easy just to swap out the photo and reword the title each time I need a new one.

[@piccadillymodelrailways]

Chandwell N Gauge Model Railway Ive learnt what I use, but its like anything vast array of features to be investigated. I do the very same thing with thumbnails I just have to be careful not to shift too much, although its very easy to undo.

[@HumancityJunction]

One of these days I need to learn Inkscape. There are so many things I need to learn :)

[@Chandwell]

The beautiful thing about this hobby is that there is more to learn than any one person can possibly learn!

[@Bytebuster0]

Hi Michael, been watching the evolution of your project - Great stuff, I really like it. Its amazing what can be achieved with glue, paper and card, determination and perseverance - Downloaded Inkscape and signed up for your 'classes', lol.

[@Chandwell]

Many thanks Anthony! Yes, I think card and printed paper is wonderful. Some argue that you don't get the full texture of embossed plastic, or whatever, which is true, but I don't mind that and think it looks great.

[@normanrowe2831]

Hello, nicely done. Thanks.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@Rule1ModelRailways]

Wow, this video must of taken some work to make, well done! Watching through now.

[@Chandwell]

Thank you! I recorded it in one sitting so with a bit of prep it wasn’t too much. Took about three hours to edit afterwards though! I hope you find it interesting/useful.

[@markhayes789]

You mentioned Bradford so I had to check it out on Google Earth. So many amazing buildings!!!!

[@Chandwell]

Bradford was once a prosperous mill town which led to some very grand buildings indeed. It is my muse for Chandwell. Look for “Little Germany” photos of Bradford. It is an astonishing place. And then the mills Lister Mill and slightly farther away, Salts Mill and New Mill. I hope for Chandwell to eventually reflect all of this.

[@TheHeritageLine]

Great series! this will really help me a lot when I start scratch building a low relief town scene, and I suppose it could also be used to print out designs in forced perspective which would be very useful. Looking forward to your next instalment. :)

[@Chandwell]

Yes, it may be fun doing an episode on how I'd use Inkscape in a forced perspective build. The road I did a couple of episodes back was a start, but I think we could do more!

[@johna.dawson709]

Great video.. I'm new to Inkscape application and never used it before. I look forward to your future video, as i would like to start to build my own buildings for my OO gauge and maybe print them off on a laser printer (future purchase)

[@Chandwell]

Thanks John - yes, please follow along with my mill build and you should make something super!

[@charlie1872]

Great explanation on how to scale the reference brick paper. I have a photograph of the sandstone buildings in Glasgow, can I import that and somehow scale it to suit my construction scale?

[@Chandwell]

Yes. You can do that. I’ve learned a much easier way to do it too so I’ll have to share that. I’m thinking of a series of really short videos focusing on one particular topic.

[@charlie1872]

That is interesting as on my channel I have done live, long and shorts. Recently I have found my short videos(and shirts ) do quite well and have bee gathering mire interest than the long and live shows. Looking forward to seeing those👍

[@66ralphy]

here here to all the comments!

[@Chandwell]

Thanks Raph!

[@wimbletrain]

Great tutorial once again. I watched your first tutorial and had a play with Inkscape and found was having trouble with using it. Most of the things I had trouble with you covered in this video. I did have a question, can Inkscape measure the length of an arc? Cheers John

[@Chandwell]

Thank you John! Yes, you can use Inkscape to measure an arc, which comes in really handy when working with arches like my viaduct. I will cover this in the Arches video which will be coming soon. --Michael.

[@alanlautenslager7141]

When you apply your texture how do you add extra to the ends so you can wrap it around the card? Great videos! Thank you!

[@Chandwell]

If I am using the textures by printing a whole sheet and then sticking the base layers to it, then I just mount it with bits hanging off both ends ready to wrap around. If I am using the textures in Inkscape, then I just draw a 7mm wide rectangle on both ends of the piece I am working on, and then select both of these and the main shape then use Path > Union to turn it into one shape, which is slightly wider than the original shape. I can then use Clip to clip the texture to the new shape. Hope this helps! :)

[@NicholassTrainChannel]

That was interesting will you print off your design on paper and then scratch build the building when everything is printed out.

[@Chandwell]

Yes, that’s exactly what I do. The last section of this video gives a bit of info as to what paper I use, and how I stick it, but the next video will show it fully.

[@newwineskin7271]

Hi Michael, Cutting out the window shapes from the "house" - I follow all and the shapes are removed but upon reaching placing the whiole image over the spiral (11:15 seconds in) I can still see the spiral. I am way into my pension years and have just begun modelling so must be doing something wrong. Any ideas? Thanks. Keep on truckin'.

[@Chandwell]

Did you have a fill colour on your shape? If you just had an outline colour but no fill, then you will still be able to see it. Or perhaps the spiral is on top of your house shape. Try moving the house to the front/top using the raise to top button…?

[@newwineskin7271]

@@Chandwell Hi Michael, thanks for your help. I have managed to progress to adding textures. I have hit a puzzling situation. I wish to add a brick texture to the ground floor of my building but concrete rendering to the first floor, as per the prototype house I am modelling.. By measuring the brick texture between ground level and the first floor I am able to apply the brick, but when I use a similar process for the upper floor, the whole image just disappears! I rather think I will have to split the lower and upper portions of the house and add the different textures to each part before joining them together again but I don't know how to do this. Any ideas? Thanks in advance NW

[@TiffanyNg100]

No kidding that you use it to design setting in real life

[@Chandwell]

Thank you!