Simple window shades made from masking tape.  Take the plain old masking tape roll, the off-white color and cut a piece off to place on the inside of the building window.  Usually covering the top half of the window is the way to go to show a half drawn window shade.  But to mix it up you can cover any amount of window to show a fully drawn window shade to a partially drawn window shade.  And they do make masking tape in various colors to match your need!

I've read lots of advice, howto, intro, and helpful things on the internet about modeling railroads.

But nowhere is there any information for the beginner, [ ... ]

Hopper Weathering Clinic
By Bill Mock
December 2009

Here is the first stages of weathering of my new BN [ ... ]

I've finally added as much plaster cloth as I expect I'll need, and have moved on to priming the base before painting it.  Priming made it look unfamiliar, [ ... ]