As progress continues on Lafayette Street in Iowa City, I find myself dealing with the dual nature of the scene. On one hand, it’s the largest single road on The Hills Line. On the other, it’ll be primarily blocked by structures between the road and the aisle.
Like before, I painted the entire street using rattle spray paint cans. Anytime I use spray paint I take the piece outside to prevent fumes from building up in the basement. Due to the size of the street, I painted Lafayette Street on a drop cloth in our backyard.
There are no curbs along the south side of the road, which eliminated the need to mask for separate colors. However the far west end has a large flat curb/sidewalk in front of the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office warehouse. Testors Flat Light Aircraft gray continues to be my color of choice for simulating concrete, and provides a good contrast with the primer used for asphalt.
Since I was in a street-building mood, I went ahead and built Dubuque Street and the alleyway in front of Benton Street Storage to finish out the scene. The road stripes on Dubuque Street were masked off with painter’s and RC striping tape, then applied using yellow acrylic craft paint. Fortunately there are no lane markers or center dividers on Lafayette Street, which saved a lot of time.
Every road was then weathered with an India Ink and rubbing alcohol wash, following methods detailed by Lance Mindheim. This is one of the few times that I use an airbrush at all on The Hills Line. However, the results are worth the setup.
I’m holding off on permanently attaching the road to the layout until after the photo backdrop is in place. Even with a blank blue wall behind it, it’s beginning to feel more like the prototype with each passing day.
The Hills Line 