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Eduard Photo Etched Diorama Accessories – Wild Flowers and Butterflies 1:72 Eduard December sees the release of another handy set of 1:72 scale pre-painted photo etched diorama accessories from Eduard. This time we have a scaled down version of their 1:35 wild flowers and butterflies set, released in 1:35 scale in the summer. On the single, pre-painted fret you get a variety of different wild flowers, most of which are multi-part items. Some have separate petals whilst others have separate ground foliage and stalks. You can, of course, achieve a subtly realistic look by twisting the stalks and leaves into a more natural position than the flat effect caused by the choice of material. Both sides are painted too. I won’t attempt to tell you what kind of flowers are included as my knowledge of botany is even worse than Mikes! Also on the fret are a number of tiny butterflies, any of which can be posed with wings open or spread. They are seriously tiny though, so get your magnifying glass and tweezers out before you attempt this. Conclusion Eduard’s range of 1:72 diorama accessories is growing into an extremely useful asset for modellers of small-scale subjects. It would have been nice if they had identified the flowers included, but if, like me, you are an ignoramus when it comes to these matters, it will scarcely hold you back. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Leaves and Branches - Diorama Accessories 1:35 Eduard Eduard's foliage and fauna sets have been coming out in bunches for a while now, and we have the latest sets here, which deal mostly with small branches from various types of trees and plants. Oak Leaves Autumn (36218) and Spring (36205) Each of these sets contain 14 large "sprigs", two medium sized, and six small sections. They are all painted on both sides with shades of green for the Autumn set and a more brown shade for the Spring set. Each leaf is shaded and has delicately printed vein detail on both sides, and the April set have no acorns, while the Autumn set does. The branch sections have a more curved cross-section due to their paint covering, which stops them looking like a flat PE set. Careful arrangement and twisting of the leaves and branches to random angles will make for quite a believable appearance. Autumn (green) Spring (brown) Garden Flowers (36223) This fret, measuring 14cm x 8cm contains many different types of garden variety flowers, the names of most of which escape me, mainly because I'm not a gardener. Some of the flower types require a little bit of assembly to improve their 3D look, namely the tulips, gladioli (?) and daffodil, but there are a couple more that need petal manipulation to finish them off, and I have no clue as to what they are. With careful bending of the petals and leaves they should look quite realistic in the right surroundings. Palm Leaves - Coconut (36210), Desert Fan Palm (36206), Kentia Palm (36207) Each set contains pre-painted frets of palm leaves, with 9 leaves on the Coconut set spread over two large frets, 10 leaves on the Desert Fan Palm on one fret, and 6 leaves of the Kentia Palm on two large frets. Each set is given its official botanical name, which confuses simpletons like myself. Here is a quick run-down of their official and common names: Cocos Nuicfera - Coconut Palm present in most tropical areas. Washington Filifera - Desert Fan Palm, cotton palm, Arizona/California fan palm native to the West coast of the US. Howea Belmoreana - Kentia Palm, common in Austrailia. Grapevine (36204) This fret contains seven 13.3cm lengths of grapevine, with finely etched leaves and grape clusters, which are of the green "white wine" type and are folded into bunches from three sections so that they look a little more three-dimensional. The instructions recommend curling the leaves over by using a small ball-bearing on a soft surface, which could be quite time consuming due to the myriad of leaves present. Careful twisting and bending will result in some pretty realistic looking vines. Review sample courtesy of