Though I had a dollhouse in childhood, my main interest for as long as I can remember has been cars.  I wanted an all-terrain vehicle for my second birthday, and grandpa bought it for me.  :D  I am not sure exactly when I got into building model cars, but I still have three completed 1:25 scale models - one showroom quality and the other two junkers.  These were made sometime in the late 80's - early 90's.

The first is a Jaguar XKE.  It's the most polished of the three.  It has a gold metallic undercoat covered by sheer deep green.  I used an airbrush on all the models.  Other than on the wheels where I was able to use a small brush, the chrome details were painted gold using the tip of a sewing pin.  That same method was used to paint the dashboard details.

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The second is a Volkswagen Beetle in a lovely shade of oxidized army green.  :D  Of course, the kit body was originally pink.  Ech!

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I cut mini vinyl floor mats to cover the holes in the floorboards.  It has broken windows, dents, rust, a missing rearview mirror, multiple city stickers and a now-missing CB antenna mounted on the back.  That's railroad paint called dirt as accent.

The third, and my personal favorite, is the Datsun 240Z.  It has a cockeyed suspension, which - if you have ever seen one of these on the road - should seem familiar to you.

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Occasionally, I will see one that is showroom new and I just have to smile.  This model has the same issues as the Beetle - the dents, rust etc., but I did a few extra things here.

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The spider web crack in the front windshield is done by poking a heated straight pin through the plastic then using a hobby knife to etch the pattern.

I upholstered the hatchback just to put a greasy tire mark there.

There are cigarette burns in the seats, a missing headlight and only part of the nameplate remains on the back.  I painted most of the car in a mix of gloss and flat black, but the hood and rear piece have a bit more gloss to represent replacement parts.  It, too, got a splash of dirt to finish it off.  Interestingly enough, the dustier these models get over time the more realistic they look.