Welcome to the I section of the Model Scenery Glossary, where we explore modelling materials, tools, techniques and scenic features beginning with the letter I. This page includes useful terms such as ivy, inks, insulation foam, industrial buildings, interiors, inspection pits, island platforms, iron railings and illumination effects.
Whether you’re building a model railway layout, diorama, wargaming board or scale model scene, these I terms will help you understand the materials, methods and details that can add depth, realism and atmosphere to your miniature world.
Modelling Materials
- India ink — a strong black ink often used for washes, weathering, staining timber, adding soot effects and darkening recessed detail.
- Ink washes — thinned inks used to add shadow, grime, depth and tonal variation to brickwork, stone, timber, figures and scenic textures.
- Insulation foam — lightweight foam board used for building hills, cuttings, embankments, riverbeds, terrain layers and scenic landforms.
- Iron filings — fine metal particles sometimes used for specialist rust effects, industrial dirt, magnetic modelling experiments or textured weathering.
- Iron powder — fine metallic powder used for rust effects, weathering experiments, textured finishes and industrial scenic surfaces.
- Iridescent medium — paint additive used to create subtle shimmer effects, useful for water, glass, oil slicks, fantasy scenes or decorative details.
- Ivory card — pale card used for architectural modelling, mock-ups, signs, interiors, pavements, walls and printed scenic details.
- Ivy foliage — small leaf or foliage material used to represent ivy, creepers and climbing plants on walls, bridges, buildings and tunnel mouths.
Tools
- Illuminated magnifier — magnifying tool with built-in light, useful for painting figures, placing tiny details, soldering, etch work and close inspection.
- Ink dropper — small dropper used for controlled application of inks, washes, stains, glue, scenic cement and weathering fluids.
- Ink pen — fine pen used for drawing signs, panel lines, brick joints, cracks, road markings, posters and small details.
- Inspection mirror — small mirror used to check hidden areas, building interiors, wiring, underside detail and awkward corners of a layout.
- Isopropyl alcohol bottle — dispenser bottle used for applying IPA when cleaning, thinning, softening scenic products or pre-wetting ballast.
- Isopropyl alcohol spray bottle — spray bottle used to mist ballast, scatter or ground cover before applying glue, helping adhesive flow more evenly.
Skills & Techniques
- Illumination planning — designing where lights will go in buildings, streets, yards, stations and scenic areas before construction becomes difficult.
- Interior detailing — adding floors, wallpaper, furniture, lighting, curtains, people and small objects inside buildings visible through windows or doors.
- Ink weathering — using thinned ink to add shadows, soot, dirt, stains and age to buildings, walls, trackside structures and scenic details.
- Installing lighting — fitting LEDs, lamps, wires, resistors and power connections into buildings, streets, platforms, yards and vehicles.
- Installing signs — positioning signs, posters, warning notices and nameboards so they look realistic and suit the scene’s era and location.
- Integrating backscenes — blending the modelled foreground into a printed or painted background using colour, height, roads, trees and view blockers.
- Ivy application — applying foliage in thin layers to represent climbing plants without making walls or buildings look overly covered.
- Ivy weathering — toning and varying ivy with greens, browns, dead leaves and shadows so it looks natural rather than flat or bright.
Infrastructure
- Inclines — sloping sections of railway, road, path or landscape used to change height across a layout or diorama.
- Industrial buildings — factories, warehouses, workshops, mills and production buildings used in railway-served industries, town scenes and urban layouts.
- Industrial chimneys — tall chimneys used on factories, mills, engine sheds, boiler houses and industrial plants.
- Industrial estates — groups of factories, warehouses, yards, roads and utility buildings, useful for modern and late-period layouts.
- Industrial units — smaller modern workshop or warehouse buildings used in business parks, goods yards and light industrial scenes.
- Information boards — public noticeboards or display panels used at stations, parks, museums, heritage railways, nature reserves and visitor areas.
- Inspection pits — sunken pits used in engine sheds, depots, garages and workshops to allow inspection beneath locomotives, vehicles or machinery.
- Inspection walkways — raised or ground-level walkways used around depots, factories, tanks, loading bays and industrial equipment.
- Interlocking cabins — small railway buildings associated with signalling and point control, particularly in older railway settings.
- Iron bridges — bridges made from iron or metalwork, often used for railways, roads, footbridges, canals and industrial scenes.
- Iron railings — decorative or protective railings used around parks, stations, houses, churches, bridges and public buildings.
- Island platforms — railway platforms with tracks on both sides, commonly seen at stations with more than one running line.
Details & Accessories
- Identification signs — small labels, plates or signs used on buildings, depots, electrical cabinets, signal boxes, platforms and industrial equipment.
- Illuminated signs — lit signs used on shops, stations, petrol stations, cinemas, cafés, pubs and modern commercial buildings.
- Industrial barrels — drums and containers used in factories, depots, workshops, yards, docks and storage areas.
- Industrial clutter — mixed scenic details such as pallets, pipes, drums, crates, scrap, cable reels and waste used to make yards feel busy.
- Industrial fencing — security fencing used around factories, depots, substations, warehouses, yards and railway compounds.
- Industrial pipework — visible pipes used on factories, tanks, fuel depots, refineries, workshops and utility structures.
- Industrial tanks — storage tanks used for fuel, chemicals, water, grain, oil or other materials in factories, depots and industrial scenes.
- Inspection lamps — small portable or fixed lights used in workshops, sheds, garages, depots and engineering scenes.
- Insulators — small ceramic or glass details used on telegraph poles, power lines, substations and older electrical installations.
- Interior furniture — chairs, tables, counters, shelves, desks and other furnishings used inside buildings to make visible interiors more convincing.
- Interior lights — LEDs or miniature lamps fitted inside buildings, vehicles or structures to create night scenes and visible rooms.
- Ivy-covered walls — walls, bridges or buildings dressed with climbing foliage to suggest age, neglect, dampness or rural character.