new stuff

Well, I am somewhat excited about a new way to work with Gilding. There was a Demonstration in my Calligraphy class last Friday. She was working with Patent Gold, which is 22 or 23 Karat and pre-attached to a small square of waxed paper. She simply put crayon on the places she wanted to leaf and then applied the patent gold on top. She burnished it with a piece of Mylar and a Bone Folder to weld it to the surface. The leaf was flawless! So, my question was "will it work with composition leaf?" She didn't know. So, I did some experimenting with scraps of Aluminum leaf (which is the thickest) and got OK to great adherence depending on a few factors. The leaf which was scrappy tended to not attach here and there even with other applications. The bigger and more solid pieces attached perfectly in some cases. You really need to scrub the crayon on. Then, the leaf detached very easily from the crayon. Which is a plus and a minus. The plus is that it allows you to draw into the leafed surface, write words, etc. The minus is that you need to use a sealer to keep it on without scratching and that may dull the sheen of the leaf. The burnishing with Mylar gave me a much more luminous, shiney and smooth surface than I have been able to achieve with this kind of leaf in the past. I also, while I was at it, put some leaf on wet acrylic paint (not too wet) and I got adherance, smoothness, sheen, and permanence. I could incise the surface and create a pattern but it did not de-laminate. All attempts were good-looking and the colored crayon showing through the scrappy ones could really add to the design instead of taking something away.. Anyway, It was an exciting few hours well-spent and it makes me wonder what else I do that I am so used to doing that it doesn't even occur to me to try something another way. These life lessons keep coming at you whether you are looking or not, whether you are wanting them or not. I think of Hide and Seek where you are covering your eyes and counting and then finally yell "Here I come, ready or not". The idea is "IT" and hopefully I am not hiding very well so the idea can find me easily. Olly Olly Oxen Free Free Free....