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Is it a given that Lichen will just dry out ?  I have some older Lichen that was stored in a bag, it was faded, but not totally dried out.  I put in a tupperware bin, added a little bit of water and it softened up quite nicely.  I used some cheap green watered down tempera paint which brought it back to a nice green color.   I glued some onto my layout about 10 days ago and it has already dried out.   I live in Western Colorado so our climate is quite dry here.   I have the old book "Scenery for Model Railroads" by Bill McClanahan,  ( great book )  He talks about using Glycerine.  Will Glycerine keep it soft ? or will it just dry out again.  

Steve

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I literally have some that is over 40 years old on the layout. I spritz it very occasionally with Glycerine. I also have some that I store in a sealed baggie. This was all the strange colors that Life Like used to market in that cardboard box you could buy years ago. Same thing...whenever I see it in the bottom of the scenery tub, it gets a little spray every few years. It is still fine. 

An interesting thing for me....and most likely just me....but lichen has a very unique smell. Not offensive at all, but unique. Whenever I open up that sealed bag I have, I can smell the lichen and it immediately takes me back to some of my layouts I built as a kid. Scent has a way of rekindling memories. I will never get rid of that plastic bag of memories. 

OK....now you all know I am just a little weird.

Donald

@3rail posted:

I literally have some that is over 40 years old on the layout. I spritz it very occasionally with Glycerine. I also have some that I store in a sealed baggie. This was all the strange colors that Life Like used to market in that cardboard box you could buy years ago. Same thing...whenever I see it in the bottom of the scenery tub, it gets a little spray every few years. It is still fine. 

An interesting thing for me....and most likely just me....but lichen has a very unique smell. Not offensive at all, but unique. Whenever I open up that sealed bag I have, I can smell the lichen and it immediately takes me back to some of my layouts I built as a kid. Scent has a way of rekindling memories. I will never get rid of that plastic bag of memories. 

OK....now you all know I am just a little weird.

Donald

Donald,  Yes, I get that old smell memory too.  No, not weird.

Thanks to all for the tips,  Will try to find some glycerine.   Think Walmart or a hardware store might carry the stuff ?

Steve

@Steve24944 posted:

Donald,  Yes, I get that old smell memory too.  No, not weird.

Thanks to all for the tips,  Will try to find some glycerine.   Think Walmart or a hardware store might carry the stuff ?

Steve

Amazon has a 24 oz bottle from Purad'or which will be in stock May 27 for $9.99 with free shipping  if you're a Prime member.

gly

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Last edited by wild mary
@3rail posted:

An interesting thing for me....and most likely just me....but lichen has a very unique smell. Not offensive at all, but unique. Whenever I open up that sealed bag I have, I can smell the lichen and it immediately takes me back to some of my layouts I built as a kid. Scent has a way of rekindling memories. I will never get rid of that plastic bag of memories. 

Donald

Wow, I thought I was the only one who would smell a bag of lichen to trigger my layout memories as a kid. A very unique smell indeed. For me, it may very well be the strongest memory scent I have know. Thanks Donald for reminding me of that. Now, where is that bag of lichen........

I have some lichen that i picked out in the woods about 5 years ago, I boiled it in glycerin and rite dye for the colors I wanted, I don't remember the mixture but the lichen is just as soft and pliable today as it was when I first got it and I have done nothing to it since. There are many instructions on how to preserve lichen online. that was how I found it.

@3rail posted:
Whenever I open up that sealed bag I have, I can smell the lichen and it immediately takes me back to some of my layouts I built as a kid. Scent has a way of rekindling memories. I will never get rid of that plastic bag of memories.

Oh yes!  For me, too, smell can definitely trigger memories. In the model railroad realm, there's two that really trigger good memories:

1. When I open a bottle of Solvaset decal setting solution.

2. When I open a bottle of original formula Floquil.

Both of those aroma's take me back to my basement in KC as young teenager during that time that I was working on my second layout. It was with that layout that begin to learn how to paint and decal my own equipment.

Lichen? I can't remember the last time I've gotten a whiff of lichen... but I recall the boxes of Life Like's lichen I used as a kid on my first layout. In fact, I can still "smell" it in my mind. IF I ever see a box of Life Like lichen somewhere, I would be inclined to purchase it just to keep around for "memory whiffing" every now and then!

Other "smell triggers":

* Oil of wintergreen. Immediately takes me back to the slot racing race tracks when I was teen. We used oil of wintergreen as a tire traction additive.

* Certain aroma's from coffee (like when I first open a fresh can). This one was a puzzle. Every now and then I would get such a coffee whiff... and my mind would transport me to when I was a kid walking to school for my K-grade 1-2 grade years! This one had me stumped. One day long after I was married and my parents were aging, we were talking about memories and I mentioned this unusual coffee memory trigger. Dad said "That one's easy: Folgers Coffee". Huh? Yup, during my earlier years, we were within striking distance of the Folgers Coffee plant in KC, and that aroma was Folgers roasting their coffee beans!! It was particularly more aromatic on a crisp morning.

I could go on with "memory whiffs", but I stop at this point.

Glycerin:

According to articles past, you want "industrial" grade glycerin. Far cheaper than consumer grade/hygiene glycerin. Dave Frary has a book about scenery that talks about the lichen pickling process in detail, including a recipe for pickling lichen. Dave describes step by step how to go about pickling lichen.

Fun thread!

Andre

Gee...l thought us model builders  only got accused of huffing model paint, not lichen?😁

Truth be told....I keep a little "stash" of the good stuff in an old Altoid tin (red label) that I carry around in the console of my truck. Every time I feel a little sluggish and need a pickup, I grab the tin and crack the lid for a flashback to the good old days when all I had to worry about was my paper route and if I was going to graduate high school!

Donald

Hi Andre,

Thanks for the reminder about the smell of a freshly opened can of coffee. When I was working, we had a small kitchen with a couple of coffee makers. I would monitor the coffee in the large can and try to be the one to open the next can. Working the hand can opener and getting that first whiff of ground coffee took me back to being 8 years old and mom asking me to open her a fresh can of coffee. What a powerful memory. Also the smell of Lionel smoke fluid reminds me of the smoke pellets from my brother’s 2037 steamer. 

John

Hi Steve, 

Sorry but no.  I collect only train stuff now. We had to simplify our lives once the kids moved out. I’m going to focus on trains. I have a modest O gauge collection, maybe 50 pieces total and about 15-20 G scale items for the future outdoor railway. Until you mentioned it, I had actually forgotten about the key on the bottom of the coffee can. Good memories!

John

The nose knows:

The whiff of fiberglass resin take me back to working on the Chinook CH-47 prototype ducts at Vertol before Boeing.

Also, nostalgia of the smell in early Lionel smoke.

My bag  of Lichen.

The odor of early hot open frame motors.

Differential gear oil.

Pine scents of smoking PW building chimneys.

The odor of first opening an early MRC power pack.

Plus, as mentioned above, the formaldehyde in plywood.  Not healthy but nostalgic non the less.

Glad to read this about keeping lichen soft.  I have several bags purchased at Hobby Lobby in past couple years.  But, it is the several old boxes of Life-Like I have needing most looked into and kept in good condition.  Thanks for the information and memories of smells.  All very much a part of our mutual hobby.

Jesse   TCA   12-68275

Wish I stumbled upon and read this thread a couple of months ago when I bought some large bags of lichen at my LHS, put it on my layout and now it has dried out and crumbles when I move or touch it.

Seems like applying a glycerin mist is a solution for avoiding having the lichen dry out, which is what I'll do if and when I put more fresh lichen on the layout.

Question: if the lichen has already dried out, will a glycerin mist restore it so it regains its softness and pliability and pleasant fragrance?

What about going in the other direction? If one is sure that the already dried out lichen is in the correct place and looks good on the layout, what about misting it with spray glue to make it harder so it won't crumble?

Not sure if this old thread is under Scenery & Structures, but that is where it belongs.

Arnold

The lichen i use i gather up along the side of the road or in the woods. Then i make a mix of glycerin and a dye of whatever color i want and boil it outside for about 4 or 5 mins. Then take it out and squeeze out the excess dye and glycerin and let dry. I have several bags in my basement that are at least 5 yrs old and is still soft and pliable.

I have taken and boiled old hard lichen and it has worked on that too.

Last edited by old_toymaker

Yesterday, I added diluted glycerin to medium green and light green lichen, and placed it along the edge of my modelled water and plywood table, as shown in the photo below:

20220614_223437

I think this is an improvement.

The lichen is what I most commonly use to hide seams and edges of things on the layout. Adding diluted glycerin to the lichen keeps the lichen soft and fresh. Arnold

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@3rail posted:

An interesting thing for me....and most likely just me....but lichen has a very unique smell. Not offensive at all, but unique. Whenever I open up that sealed bag I have, I can smell the lichen and it immediately takes me back to some of my layouts I built as a kid. Scent has a way of rekindling memories. I will never get rid of that plastic bag of memories.

OK....now you all know I am just a little weird.

Donald

Geez, Don!  There ya go again!  You have this uncanny way of awakening memories...for which I'm deeply gratified.  Helps to keep the drawbridge down across the moat of dementia and oldphartitis!

To which I'd add my 'two scents' worth: 

1) Opening an old construction kit from yore and being wafted with the bouquet of old basswood!

2) Opening an old hobby magazine stored in some dark forgotten area of attic or basement and having the olfactory sensors awaken to...what?...cellulosic mold?...decayed ink?...embedded exhalation of a wide-eyed youth?

And, yes...lichen's aroma is a scent-to-remember in this hobby.

Wired for weird, ...and lovin' it!...I remain (Lord willing)...

KD

@dkdkrd posted:

Geez, Don!  There ya go again!  You have this uncanny way of awakening memories...for which I'm deeply gratified.  Helps to keep the drawbridge down across the moat of dementia and oldphartitis!

To which I'd add my 'two scents' worth:

1) Opening an old construction kit from yore and being wafted with the bouquet of old basswood!

2) Opening an old hobby magazine stored in some dark forgotten area of attic or basement and having the olfactory sensors awaken to...what?...cellulosic mold?...decayed ink?...embedded exhalation of a wide-eyed youth?

And, yes...lichen's aroma is a scent-to-remember in this hobby.

Wired for weird, ...and lovin' it!...I remain (Lord willing)...

KD

Thanks KD. I do not have the old basswood kits but your magazine memory is spot on. I have an old box under my layout with magazines I kept that had articles by John Armstrong and John Allan. On a lazy day when I do not have a lot to do or feel like running trains, I will sit under the layout and thumb thru the magazines and old Lionel catalogs. Yes…there is a unique smell and I am a teenager again.  
Thanks for that memory too.

DK

@Avanti posted:

Glycerine is a little hard to find right now, since it is an ingredient of home-made hand sanitizer.  There are many brands on Amazon. You have to search for one that is in stock and not ridiculously expensive. They are there, though.

Rite Aid and Walgreens , maybe CVS too, usually have Glycerine.  Bought a few  bottles at Rite Aid a couple of months ago.  

How do you apply the glycerin?

Do you just spray it on full strength?

Do you mix the glycerin with water and then spray it on? If so, how much water do you add?

Do you spray it on fresh moist lichen?

Will it work if you spray it on already dried out, brittle lichen?

Arnold

You  soak the lichen in the glycerin, it needs to get in the cellular structure of the plant to preserve it and keep it soft

Be REALLY careful boiling glycerin! At that temperature, the stuff can (and DOES) catch fire. If memory serves correctly, the flame is clear and colorless, so it is extremely difficult to know that you have a fire on your hands!

If you are going to do this, do it outside, away from buildings, with the minimal amount necessary, and use a electric heat source, not a flame. And DO keep a BC rated fire extinguisher handy.

Chris

LVHR

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