Weathering the Abutments

I woke up pretty early this morning and couldn't get back to sleep, so I figured I'd see what I could accomplish down in the basement.

When I last left the Route 15 Overpass, I'd finished the building & painting and even added little concrete footpads under the piers. Then I put it in place on the layout . . .

Looks pretty awesome, if I don't say so myself. But it looks way too new.

So, what better thing to do in the basement during the pre-dawn hours on less than 4hrs sleep and hopped up on 3/4 of a pot of coffee? How about trying my hand at weathering and potentially screwing up months of work?

Why not

Since my brain wasn't totally foggy, I at least knew enough to start by practicing on the back side of the large abutment - a side which will never be seen. My first attempts were - predictably - pretty awful. But knowing that I had the freedom to experiment helped me get comfortable with a technique that ended up passable, I think:

I used a combination of gray & black chalks & pan pastels, with a bit of rusty colors mixed in, and India Ink wash. Kept applying, and wiping it off, and reapplying until I came up with what you see here. I haven't done the actual bridge, girders, and piers yet, so any feedback/suggestions/guidance on what I've done so far is MOST welcome, as always.

And that's where things stand currently. Knowing that our days and evenings are already packed with work/life stuff, it's nice to be able to steal a little time in the morning - even if I have to pay for it later with more pots of coffee.