SAND

"keep it a natural light colour".... if the white glue darkens the sand, you may have to start with sand that is lighter than what you want on the final product. Or, lay it down & paint it the colour you want. Other than that, changing adhesives maybe??

I ran into the same thing, because using white glue, which is mainly water, will cause the sand to darken, Try using a spray adhesive, like the 3-M brand, or even something like misting watered-down whilte glue for a very thin layer of adhesive and adding another layer of sand on top of what you already have.

Try painting the surface something like tan, and while wet apply the sand then?

My guess is that the glue is covering the sand grains and affecting the refractive index between the air and the grain of sand. In my experience you can lessen this problem by diluting the white glue. Try a mixture of 25% white glue and 75% water. You may need several applications and its best done using a dropper bottle...research it on some model railroad forums...those guys know how to landscape.

thanks everyone,  i will let you know what i did in a few days    mike

Let the base coat of sand dry, then coat it with Testor's Dull Coat and sprinkle on a fresh, thin coat of new sand. It should retain its original color without problems.

All good advice. as a railroad guy, paint the underlayment a very light color, sift the sand on through a sieve into the wet paint. Put on another thin layer and seal it down with clear flat or dilute white glue.

The usual tools for railroad landscapes are a broad brush, tupperware and a mesh strainer like a pasta drainer, the wire kind. And misters from the plant store- cheap plastic ones.

Sand is cheap so practice is easy.

Also, use much lighter sand than the real thing. I used to run around collecting dirt from the area I modeled, but it doesn't look right on a base. There's a scale effect.

Arizona Rock and Mineral makes great stuff.

http://www.rrscenery.com/

as for the sand i used a fine sand for sand blasting, it is already strained, and the grains are much finer for small scale. for the modle i did it was cartoon style .the road runner and coyote, i painted the sand light mixed colors so i could start with a light base ,and try again but it came out so good i left it alone..  but the other dio is a serious one so i will give your a method a try...

the problem with spraying dull coat is the background and large rocks are in place to make natural drifts,, it would be a nightmare to try to tape everything...