Raised And Burnished Gold Leaf

[caliken]

The application of raised and burnished gold leaf to lettering, adds a new dimension and sets it apart from printed work. I used to be concerned when the surface wasn't absolutely even and smooth, like embossed gold foil on book jackets for example. Then I realised that this very unevenness wasn't unattractive, and in fact, gave the lettering a special one-off look. What you see on screen, is the actual size of the letter.

Photography never does it justice, and "in the flesh" the burnished gold really gleams off the page.

 

 

 

[MisterBoll]

That's beautiful Ken. Can you give a quick rundown as to how it's done?

[Sinistral1]

Beautiful!

[DBQMary]

Stunning!

[caliken]

That's beautiful Ken. Can you give a quick rundown as to how it's done?

I live in the UK and buy my gilding supplies from www.blotspens.co.uk but I'm sure that they are easily available where you are.

 

I use transfer gold leaf which comes in books of 25 or 5 leaves. It's also available loose leaf, but this is very difficult to handle easily.

 

I use a Haematite burnisher which I've had for more than 50 years. Although it's very expensive, there are alternatives made of Agate.

 

For flat gilding, I use "Ormoline Gilding Medium" which is a pva based mixture in 30ml containers. For raised gilding, I use "Improved Gold Body" which is used in place of Gesso and comes in 15ml containers.

 

Method

For raised gilding, I draw my artwork in pencil and carefully flood the chosen areas with Improved Gold Body. I leave it to dry for a long time - preferably overnight. I make a paper cone out of an A4 sheet of paper with an opening of about 1 1/2" at the wide end. I have a sheet of Gold Leaf to hand and placing the wide end of the cone over the piece to be gilded, I breathe slowly and fully down the tube half a dozen times. I then lay the gold leaf over the area and having pressed down firmly, I slowly remove the paper. This usually works fine. If not, I repeat the exercise. I leave it for about an hour, and then rub it down it lightly with the burnisher, through a piece of tissue paper, gradually applying more pressure. I eventually dispense with the paper and remove any little flakes of excess gold with a soft brush before burnishing freely with the burnisher alone.

 

I then draw in the outline to the gold with a fine, black pen - It almost always looks better outlined in black. I then ink in the rest of the design applying colour where wanted. I always do my gilding first, because it occasionally has a tendency to stick to coloured ink or gouache.

 

Ken

[MisterBoll]

Thank you Ken. I've always wondered about this and you've explained it perfectly.

[Sinistral1]

I love to add gold leaf to nearly everything I create. I have used various products and methods over the years, but your method of putting the leaf down first before everything else is genius! I've always done it last and then often struggled to get rid of the extra that always goes where it doesn't belong. Thanks also for the method of breathing on the rolled up paper to grab the sheet of leaf. Thank you for the lesson!

[inkstainedruth]

Interesting technique. I know some people in the SCA who use a disposable straw to breathe through to dampen the gesso. I don't know if they get more control, have a smaller area (most plastic straws are about 3/8" in diameter, I think), or it's just that someone was taught this (or figured it out for themselves) and the concept spread around.

I don't do illumination (for a variety of reasons), but took some lessons a number of years ago, and remember some of it. I was taught that the smoother you got your gesso surface, the easier it was to burnish the gold leaf and get it really reflective. How many layers do you do?

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[caliken]

Interesting technique. I know some people in the SCA who use a disposable straw to breathe through to dampen the gesso. I don't know if they get more control, have a smaller area (most plastic straws are about 3/8" in diameter, I think), or it's just that someone was taught this (or figured it out for themselves) and the concept spread around.

I don't do illumination (for a variety of reasons), but took some lessons a number of years ago, and remember some of it. I was taught that the smoother you got your gesso surface, the easier it was to burnish the gold leaf and get it really reflective. How many layers do you do?

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

Gesso is more controllable than Gold Body as regards getting a smooth surface and yes, the smoother the surface, the brighter the burnished gold leaf. However, I've found that unless you're comparing the two, side by side, the Improved Gold Body gives perfectly satisfying results. Actually, the more perfect and smoother the gilding, the more it looks like embossed gold foil. The slight unevenness gives it character IMO and is obviously not artificial. Also, it has to be said that gilding with Gold Body as opposed to Gesso, is far easier.

 

To expand on my "cone" technique -

I roll up a sheet of paper, producing an opening at one end about 1 1/2" and 3/4" at the breathing end. I secure the shape with a couple of pieces of sticky tape. With a pair of scissors, I then cut across the wide end at about a 40 degree angle. I place it on my work over the area to be gilded, and the angled cut creates a convenient slope of the cone with my mouth over the smaller end. This cone is totally disposable, and takes less time to make than to describe! The measurements are very approximate and, for small areas of gilding, I make my cone with a much narrower gilding end.

 

I then breathe slowly and deeply for at least six breaths and immediately apply the gold leaf. Usually one application is fine, but I do apply a second "coat" if any bits have been missed. The rest of the technique is as described in my earlier post.

 

Thanks for your interest.

Edited May 29, 2014 by Ken Fraser

[caliken]

I love to add gold leaf to nearly everything I create. I have used various products and methods over the years, but your method of putting the leaf down first before everything else is genius! I've always done it last and then often struggled to get rid of the extra that always goes where it doesn't belong. Thanks also for the method of breathing on the rolled up paper to grab the sheet of leaf. Thank you for the lesson!

Thank you MisterBoll and Sinistral1 for your comments - glad to be of service!

 

Ken

[Italicist]

Very interesting! Thanks for the overview of the method that you've used. Real gilding is something that I've never tried, but I look forward to employing the technique soon. The results are certainly far superior to using gold paint; there's a depth of colour in real gold that nothing else can match.

[Anne-Sophie]

Beautiful!