Gilders question

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Compomouldings
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Gilders question

Post by Compomouldings »

Hi does anyone know how i will achieve the finish of the attached frame sample.

It has silver leaf as the base and looks to have a yellow/orange wash/lacquer over the top. This gives the appearance that the frame is goldie in colour
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prospero
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Re: Gilders question

Post by prospero »

I know of what you speak, but never done it.

It was a common practice in years gone by to use a cheaper leaf than gold (could have been silver, or imitation) and put a brown
transparent glaze over it to make it appear 'goldy'. It doesn't match the appearance of real gold, but the finish is attractive in it's own
right. What the glaze is made from I'm not sure. I suppose their were lots of individual recipes. Raw Shellac? :roll:

I'll leave it to more knowledgeable members to provide the details. :lol:
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Re: Gilders question

Post by JFeig »

The 17th -19 century Rx for tinting was to use "Dragons Blood and Gamboge" natural colors mixed into the shellac.
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Re: Gilders question

Post by vintage frames »

There is a name for that sort of finish, but now I've forgotten. It was used extensively in the early 20th cent to imitate gold on frames, where the value of the artwork didn't merit the use of real gold leaf. Silver leaf was and still is much cheaper. Strangely the finish is much brighter and more convincing than the use of schlag leaf which can often look cheap when applied over a wide area.
The finish is achieved by painting or scumbling a gold coloured varnish over silver leaf. The simplest way is to add concentrated spirit dyes to clear shellac polish. Use the colours yellow, red, black and some green. Mix them into diluted shellac 50/50 meths until a suitable shade appears on say a white plate. You would need to then strain the polish and perhaps dilute it further as several thin coats are always better than one.
On the sample you show, it looks as if the colour has been scumbled, so substitute the shellac for some acrylic scumble and use instead water soluble aniline dye colours, concentrated as before. You can then cover the dried scumble finish with clear shellac.
As has been correctly pointed out, gamboge and dragons blood were widely used by gilders in toning a gilded surface but their low tinting strenght wouldn't be enough to effectively change the colour of the leaf. Early framers in fact used saffron as one of their dyes.
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Re: Gilders question

Post by Timh »

Dermot,
was it called Ormolu?

I have tried with Gamboge and the effect wasn't great
I tried with a good quality oil paint and got some good results
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Re: Gilders question

Post by JFeig »

Ormolu is the name.
Of course, modern pigments and dyes are the way to go today with "button" or "seed" raw grades.
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Re: Gilders question

Post by vintage frames »

No, it wasn't called ormolu but something else in Italian. I think each country has it's own name to describe the process and come to think of it, maybe the English frame makers did indeed call it ormolu, although I think that better describes the process of toning the gild. Or not!?
As I said, gamboge is a bit weak for that sort of work and the most reliable way to colouring a varnish is to add analine dyes. The water soluble variety can be mixed into a strong RSG solution and that scumbled or dabbed onto the silver leaf. It would then need some clear shellac to bring out the brilliance on the underlying silver leaf.
Oil paints mixed with linseed oil/ turpentine/ driers can substitute as a scumbling varnish, but the pigments in oil paint inhibit the transparency of the varnish, and can risk dulling the effect. But I'm sure others will swear by it's success. Perception, perception...
I'll own up to having only tried it once and that was to reproduce a 19th cent silver gilt slip. In that instance I actually found it best to add saffron to RSG with a few other dyes. The gritty nature of the saffron gave the finish a more authentic appearance.
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Re: Gilders question

Post by JFeig »

Thanks, vintage frames, two heads are always better than one in that one's experiences differ.
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Re: Gilders question

Post by vintage frames »

Found it! The process is called Mecca. There,. now we can all sleep easy.
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Re: Gilders question

Post by vintage frames »

And if anyone wants to take this further, you can buy some in a bottle from one of these guys -
http://www.materialepictura.ro/ro/aurit ... -gold.html

https://renesanspolska.pl/en/discover-e ... materials/
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