Quick and cheap grass patches

In preparation for my first game of Midgard, which was to be a Punic Wars battle, I wanted to add a bit more interest to my table.  I'd be using my Savannah battle mat, but as the battle was to be set in Iberia, I wanted to add some patches of grass.

My Punic Wars collection is 10mm so I wanted the patches to sit low on the table.  I did look at cutting up a fleece blanket but that seemed a lot of effort.  I'd still have to add colour to it and it wouldn't sit that flat.  My little 10mm warriors would look like they were wading through the jungle!  I thought about returning to one of my favourite materials, old credit cards, but I didn't need much stability in these bases.  It was then that I thought of using gaffa tape.

I had the remnants of an old roll sitting around so I cut a section off and shaped it.  It's so sticky that you do have to use decent sharp scissors.  Once I'd cut out the sections I dipped them in a container of sand to see how well it would adhere.

The sections of tape after being dunked in sand

The answer to that was not very well! I turned to that hobby stalwart covering them in PVA and sprinkled a sand mix over the top.  I wanted for this to dry overnight.

PVA and mixed sand added

On testing these the next day trusty old PVA had done the trick and the sand had set hard.  Time for some paint and I got out the Dulux colour matched to Citadel Khemri Brown (left photo below) and then a drybrush of Dulux matched to Vallejo Iraqui Sand (right photo below).   

I didn't get round to doing the final stage of adding the grass until the next day, and overnight I left a heavy binder on top of the pieces to flatten them a bit.  However, emulsion dries very quickly and I could have waited a little while after drybrushing and then added the grass.  I used a 50/50mix of Javis 2mm Spring and Autumn grass, and after splodging on patches of PVA sprinkled the grass on.  I then blew on each piece to get the grass to stand up.  And they're done.  

Grass mix added

I was pleased with these, as they help to add more interest to the mat. They cost next to nothing as I used materials that were all lying about and they were very quick to make.  Apart from allowing the sand to dry overnight, actual construction time was probably less than an hour.   They weigh next to nothing and are more or less flat so they'll be easy to store.  As usual though I'm always looking to improve and I'd use just the Spring grass colour for the next batch so they'll stand out better.  And of course as with all terrain more is better, so I need to make more with some bigger sizes.

The patches on the battlefield