More on Backgrounds

You might recall this post where I detailed my plans for creating backgrounds for my toys. I have done some research on materials and pricing and I thought I would share my findings here.

I ran over to FedEx Kinkos this week and got a general idea on how much this project would cost me. There are many options for printing the backgrounds on stiff surfaces with a myriad of finishes (matte, glossy, in varying degrees). Basically the following appealed to me:

- Poster board finishing (basically a rigid board with foam in the center so it's hard to bend, but not bend-proof. Would be easier to cut).
- Metal finishing (printed on a metal sheet, completely rigid but there are limits to the colors that can be tampographed on the metal)
- Plastic finishing. (Unlimited range of colors. Has the consistency of Formica samples)

Most of these options cost about $15 per foot, bringing my project to about $160 per background I would want to create. That is hefty when you consider I'd like to create 5-6 of them. In this case I have to consider weather I want to do things the easy, expensive, right way, or the hard, cheap, less-right way. The expensive option would last as long as my toys and be easy to store. It would also be easier to create a computer graphic than it would be to paint the background by hand. But the craft-store option would be way less expensive, at about $40 per background. But then I have to consider how much my time is worth.

Decisions. Decisions.

Meanwhile, I found something awesome. Check this out. For the low, low price of about eight bucks (plus shipping) you can buy these awesomesauce backgrounds for your action figures:

I wont lie. I love these. If they only had girl ones! I might get them anyway for my He-Man stuff. With the internet being so big, there has to be more of this kind of service out there. I am all about letting truly artistic people do this kind of stuff instead of me!

Display Backgrounds - Plan of Attack!

I am starting to get serious about designing great toy displays. I want to be able to set up a collection to look like a catalog picture, or better. See this post for more details. The project would involve the creation of backgrounds and display props that I can set up and rearrange to suit whichever toy I am displaying at the moment.

I have been gathering prop parts for a few years now, just throwing them in a box until I am ready. Here's some of what I have thus far:

Various tree parts that could be painted different pastels for Lady Lovely Locks or Forest of Feelings. They could also be joined and kept their original color for My Little Pony displays or anything else that might have a tree in the background.

A cloud base. Not sure where this came from. I came upon it on eBay a few years back. Good for Care Bears, Moon Dreamers, My Little Pony, etc.

A few other small parts.

As far as the background goes, I have an idea in mind. I will create layers of background that can be switched and matched around to suit the toy.

The first layer would be a gradient sky. Something like these:

I would also do a dark starry night sky for things like Moondreamers and My Little Pony Pegusi and Care Bears.

Then I would create a separate set of land layers such as hills, castles, far away trees, etc.

Then I would create multiple, independant foreground layers like tree clusters, bushes, flowers, waterfalls. These would be done sticker-style so that I could place them anywhere in the display that I desire.

The way I see it, given the items I collect, I would only have to do a few types of backgrounds:

* Fantasy Forest
* Clouds (either in day or night)
* Manly (for stuff like He-Man and Thundercats)
* Under Water
* Urban (for collections like Sweet Secrets, Fairy Winkles--it would be an indoor setting)
* Generic outdoors (like the picture above, but customizable for SSC, MLP, etc)

As far as the materials I would use, that is still undecided. I would want something really sturdy like particle board. I would have to paint the picture on sturdy canvas and glue the parts onto the board and use a jigsaw to cut it. I just want it to last. I think the materials question is probably my biggest hurdle in the whole project. Any thoughts are welcome on this. Meanwhile I will continue to search for props and dream up ideas.

An interesting idea! Backgrounds for your toys!

I got an email blast about this new website where you can download and print backgrounds for your toys. I for one think this is an especially clever idea. I have always wanted to do something like this. The closest I have ever gottten was when I made this background for my toys years ago:

I miss this display! I might do some in cardboard next (the others were on paper and they don't store well) maybe make free-standing pieces that can be arranged differently like rainbows and trees and stuff. That would be a fun project!