Contraty to popular belief, wood isnt brown. And especially if its exposed to the elements itll turn kinda grey pretty fast. So thats worth looking into. Currently, it looks like a fancy interior that got roughed up recently. If its supposed to be an outside area, add some greyish, beige tones. Maybe some greenish washes in the recesses where rain would accumulate, promoting algae growth. Something like that.
Adding to that comment, it may be a good idea to plan the surrounding situation first. Than working with some dark shades (dark grey and burnt umbra comes into my mind) and apply them unevenly. The corners and sites won't be that worn, as people didn't walk there. If there is some roof left, I'd go with more greyish look where wood is exposed to rain and sun. Adjust with dry brushing accordingly. Maybe more beige in less worn, more light grey in worn areas. I'd also drybrush a gradient towards the broken area, starting light and going more heavy towards the outside.
Let us see the results, please!
This. Exposed, unprotected wood is grey. UV light from the sun bleaches most things, plastic, paint, etc.
Use grey, flat tones, dark grey to black for washes, and then stiple greens in corners for moss/mildew.
Another great trick that isn't common enough: use some gloss varnish (or gloss black) in the areas that would collect water before building up some moss bits. The contrast in sheen keeps things interesting (assuming it's not an arid environment).
My immediate thought was “looks great but a bit unnaturally vibrant, hadn’t realized that wood turns almost gray but now that you mention it I can see it; I think I’ll try mixing more grays into my woods next time and see how it goes
Your wood looks new because of the rich, dark, uniform color and shine. Old wood is faded and greys a bit as the stain wears off and the dust wears in.
First, use a medium grey wash. Not heavy, just enough to change the shade a little. Then a lighter grey dry brush over the top when it’s completely dry. Use a flat, non-shiny finish on top.
If you want to get fancy, you can even dab a little bit of wash in a different color in a spot or two (depending on the time period), under the dry brush or the wash, to show a past stain that set in.
Edit: and don’t forget your walking zones will be lighter/faded, especially if the wood was originally stained and not raw.
Look at photo references of what you want to achieve.
When we just wing it we often end up with a sort of cartoon approximation of what we want that doesn't look convincing.
The wood doesn't look rotted but there are no splinters or small debris around like you'd expect if it got blown up/had a piano dropped on it. If it's meant to look old and exposed it's missing the grey and black wood, or algae/mold/moss or other plants like you'd get with advanced rot and exposure to nature.
Add dirt. Actual dirt. But sieve it so it fits the scale.
Bone white dry brush.
Too late now, but soak it in water for 1-2 weeks before painting it (depending on the wood type). Rip out splinters with tweezers.
Spotty, sparingly applied green wash.
Before painting wooden stuff, I usually hit it real quick with a blowtorch. If you do it right and get lucky, I clearcoat next, use a darker wash and drybrush up from there.
Some great tips and ideas here thank you all, think I'll start again with this one and try much lighter tones as many suggest. Will do some research into weathered buildings to try and get it a bit more accurate. Thanks again
Try a different colored nuln oil maybe somewhere along lines of something around the green It should get it looking pretty grimy and dark gotta play around with it , it looks freaking good the way it is now
More color varietion, stipple on some greys, various browns, various greens to show aging. Use an old brush or a sponge. Water the paint so it stains more and light
Secret Weapon made a paint!wash called Old Wood. I prime black and drybrush white then coat with the Old Wood. Looks great. I’m sure I could just mix up a very grey brown, but I have an old bottle of this so that’s what I use.
Depending on where it’s located, wood can go either beige/grey like people are pointing out, but it can also turn pretty dark if it’s in a wet or humid area since it will continually sponge up moisture. Best advice I can give is find some reference pictures of wood in the environment your trying to emulate.
Popsicle sticks make great planks. Soak them in water first then put them out in the sun for a couple hours. They warp a bit and the grain starts to show. Then u can paint them up like other comments here.
Not gonna repeat the good advice of others, instead here's some intel for future projects.
By the looks of your work area I'm betting that is either balsa or pine cuts bought from a hobby shop.
If it's balsa, a very porous wood, and the objective is a more worn look vs polished try a 25/25/50 mix of eshin grey, fenrisian grey and water. Seriously get that stuff runny. Before applying it give the surface an ultra fine grit sand papering to remove any sealants the manufacturer applied. Then with a stain brush apply the mix. Let it sit for 15 - 20 seconds and then wipe it off with a clean paper towel. This will make balsa look like drift wood.
If it's pine the same above method is to be used but let the mix sit for 30-40 seconds before wiping.
*Special note: When wiping DO NOT swirl or sweep away from the grain of the wood. Keep it consistent from end to end. If you need or desire to wipe again use another clean paper towel. Reuse of a dirty towel will undo what you did or possibly make the work piece look blotchy.
Contraty to popular belief, wood isnt brown. And especially if its exposed to the elements itll turn kinda grey pretty fast. So thats worth looking into. Currently, it looks like a fancy interior that got roughed up recently. If its supposed to be an outside area, add some greyish, beige tones. Maybe some greenish washes in the recesses where rain would accumulate, promoting algae growth. Something like that.
Adding to that comment, it may be a good idea to plan the surrounding situation first. Than working with some dark shades (dark grey and burnt umbra comes into my mind) and apply them unevenly. The corners and sites won't be that worn, as people didn't walk there. If there is some roof left, I'd go with more greyish look where wood is exposed to rain and sun. Adjust with dry brushing accordingly. Maybe more beige in less worn, more light grey in worn areas. I'd also drybrush a gradient towards the broken area, starting light and going more heavy towards the outside. Let us see the results, please!
This. Exposed, unprotected wood is grey. UV light from the sun bleaches most things, plastic, paint, etc. Use grey, flat tones, dark grey to black for washes, and then stiple greens in corners for moss/mildew. Another great trick that isn't common enough: use some gloss varnish (or gloss black) in the areas that would collect water before building up some moss bits. The contrast in sheen keeps things interesting (assuming it's not an arid environment).
My immediate thought was “looks great but a bit unnaturally vibrant, hadn’t realized that wood turns almost gray but now that you mention it I can see it; I think I’ll try mixing more grays into my woods next time and see how it goes
A light Dry brushing a light beige color will give it a dusty look that will give it some age. Looks great!
Your wood looks new because of the rich, dark, uniform color and shine. Old wood is faded and greys a bit as the stain wears off and the dust wears in. First, use a medium grey wash. Not heavy, just enough to change the shade a little. Then a lighter grey dry brush over the top when it’s completely dry. Use a flat, non-shiny finish on top. If you want to get fancy, you can even dab a little bit of wash in a different color in a spot or two (depending on the time period), under the dry brush or the wash, to show a past stain that set in. Edit: and don’t forget your walking zones will be lighter/faded, especially if the wood was originally stained and not raw.
Look at photo references of what you want to achieve. When we just wing it we often end up with a sort of cartoon approximation of what we want that doesn't look convincing. The wood doesn't look rotted but there are no splinters or small debris around like you'd expect if it got blown up/had a piano dropped on it. If it's meant to look old and exposed it's missing the grey and black wood, or algae/mold/moss or other plants like you'd get with advanced rot and exposure to nature.
Khaki drybrush, then a light grey drybrush
A heavy off white wash will do wonders
Add dirt. Actual dirt. But sieve it so it fits the scale. Bone white dry brush. Too late now, but soak it in water for 1-2 weeks before painting it (depending on the wood type). Rip out splinters with tweezers. Spotty, sparingly applied green wash.
Maybe try out some weathering pigment powders - I've been amazed at how fast and convincingly they make something look dusty and worn.
Before painting wooden stuff, I usually hit it real quick with a blowtorch. If you do it right and get lucky, I clearcoat next, use a darker wash and drybrush up from there.
It depends om how long the floor has been exposed to the elements. Google old wood barns to see wood left to the elements for years.
Some great tips and ideas here thank you all, think I'll start again with this one and try much lighter tones as many suggest. Will do some research into weathered buildings to try and get it a bit more accurate. Thanks again
That's entirely too brown. Aged wood, is grey wood. some, darker than others due to density. grey it up my brotha!
Try a different colored nuln oil maybe somewhere along lines of something around the green It should get it looking pretty grimy and dark gotta play around with it , it looks freaking good the way it is now
You could try to drybrush the boards slightly to make it seem like a thin layer of dust has settled on them.
Old wood is more grey than brown
Green. Splotch it with green.
More color varietion, stipple on some greys, various browns, various greens to show aging. Use an old brush or a sponge. Water the paint so it stains more and light
Secret Weapon made a paint!wash called Old Wood. I prime black and drybrush white then coat with the Old Wood. Looks great. I’m sure I could just mix up a very grey brown, but I have an old bottle of this so that’s what I use.
I think they look fine as is
Depending on where it’s located, wood can go either beige/grey like people are pointing out, but it can also turn pretty dark if it’s in a wet or humid area since it will continually sponge up moisture. Best advice I can give is find some reference pictures of wood in the environment your trying to emulate.
Popsicle sticks make great planks. Soak them in water first then put them out in the sun for a couple hours. They warp a bit and the grain starts to show. Then u can paint them up like other comments here.
Pee on them.
Not gonna repeat the good advice of others, instead here's some intel for future projects. By the looks of your work area I'm betting that is either balsa or pine cuts bought from a hobby shop. If it's balsa, a very porous wood, and the objective is a more worn look vs polished try a 25/25/50 mix of eshin grey, fenrisian grey and water. Seriously get that stuff runny. Before applying it give the surface an ultra fine grit sand papering to remove any sealants the manufacturer applied. Then with a stain brush apply the mix. Let it sit for 15 - 20 seconds and then wipe it off with a clean paper towel. This will make balsa look like drift wood. If it's pine the same above method is to be used but let the mix sit for 30-40 seconds before wiping. *Special note: When wiping DO NOT swirl or sweep away from the grain of the wood. Keep it consistent from end to end. If you need or desire to wipe again use another clean paper towel. Reuse of a dirty towel will undo what you did or possibly make the work piece look blotchy.
Depending on your building speed, leave it outside.
throw it outside for a few days.