Now, Lets Get Started With Some Tutorial On An Earth Effect... I would like to show you something first that inspired me some time ago in my Classes at the University... If you follow this link you will find the Video of a very inspiring Architectual Approach towards Working with Earth more directly to build a House at the Seaside of Costa De La Muerte in Spain... I was fascinated by this because of a couple of reasons (really like the idea of Casting things, Positives and Negatives, Cutting through Things, Sections, Finding Space, etc. ...), here the main reason for showing is to make you understand that Finding New Effects in Miniature Building and Painting should be seen as an Exploration more then anything else... It could be interesting to Explore those Techniques and and try to find Use for them in Miniatures as well...:)... You are invited... 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gurt6fQ6nI

Dry Soil Effect

Allright, this is what you will need to recreate the Dry Soil Effect...

Your Base (A Wooden Plinth or a Plastic Base...)

Moltofill Reparatur (in the very likely case that you won´t be able to get Exactly this stuff, don´t worry... it is basically a very common compound paste that you can buy in any Hardware Store around the World used to fill gaps in Walls, etc. ... Ask for this, if they pretend not to know it ask for Vinylacetat Copolymer Dispersion Paste... Happy Faces Guaranteed...^_^...)...

Superglue with Cyanoacrylate Activator (not vital, but will make Glueing so much more fun...:)...)

Modelling Tools (like a Regular Tool and some Clay Shapers...)

Miliput

... And One Boiled Egg (level of boiledness is up to your personal taste...;)...)

We Ain´t Wasting No Good Eggs In Here, so that´s what you do with the Eggs... Time for your "Welcome To The Jungle" Club Sandwich... You are in the Kitchen anyways, let´s use the Waiting time for comething tasty...

You will need...

2 Slices Of Toasted Bread

Some Mayonaise

Ketchup

2 Slices Chicken Breast

2 Slices Ham

2 Slices Bacon (Baconated...)

1 Slice of Cheese (Edamer, Gouda, all good...)

1 Boiled Egg

1 Tomato

Some Cress... Some Curry... Some Salt...

1 Tasty, Fresh and Dangling Banana

Salad

Assemble the Sandwich by Toasting the Bread, Smear Both Slices with Mayonaise and the Kechup... Then Start Pileing up the Components one after another, the Higher the Better... The Last Component should be the Banana, that you have cut into pretty Slices too... Enjoy your Jungle Meal, Uggggh...:D...

The Base Surface should be ready by now... You will notice that it is now dry and considerably hard, some small Cracks might have appeared... Remove the Base from the Oven and get back to your Working Place... There you take your Tool and SMASH the Surface much as you Smashed the Eggshell before... Do it locally with the Blunt End of your Sculpting Tool and try not overdoing it... There is no right or wrong, proceed smacking the Surface til you are pleased with the result... You will see that the Miliput gives some kind of support from below, forming some "islands" eventually... Use the Eggshell to finally add some extra detail due to their sharp Edges, squeeze them in where you think it might fit in well...

http://www.rainymood.com/