Water Gilding in White Gold

Water Gilding

Water Gilding

A load of frames that are ready to be water gilded. Sixteen are for a gallery and two others for individual privat orders. Four frames will be gilded in 23.5ct gold, one in 22ct moon gold, and thirteen in 12ct white gold. 

Bole Colours

I've been painting gesso frames with various colours of bole today, ready to be gilded.

Canvas Frame

A water gilded 23.5ct gold leaf frame with painted middle scoop and sides, on a large canvas by Jeremy Houghton.

Gilding a Watts Frame

Painting a Frame

This frame is just being painted on the middle section and sides. The gilding is burnished on the outer section but the inner part is not burnished. The gilding is masked off while I do the painting.

Gold Leaf Finish

A gold leaf gilded frame that is having any small breaks in the leaf patched, known as 'faulting'. It will then be distressed and finished.

Start to Finish

There are lots of stages in between these two photos, from a barewood obeche frame to the 12ct white gold gilded frame, takes a minimum 8 days between the various stages and layers.

White Gold

This deep hockey shaped frame (named because it resembles a hockey stick), has a heavily distressed gilded finish. It is water gilded using 12ct white gold on the face and 9ct white gold on the sides, although you can't really see the subtle colour difference between the different carats in my photo. The leafing is intentionally irregular and patchy to give a rather crude looking finish!

Small Gilded Frame

This is the little frame from yesterday after it has been gilded with 22ct Moon gold.

Black Red Moon

22ct Moon gold on red bole with black painted sections.

Same Profile, Different Finish

This is the same obeche frame profile but with two different gilded finishes, one is 12ct white gold and the other is 23.5ct gold.

Gilded Empire frame

Two gilded frames

Gold on Black

Gold leaf on black bole, distressed, and with a grey colourwash.

Gilding the frame from the previous post...

Wide frame profile

A wide shaped moulding that has been water gilded in 12ct white gold, lightly distressed, and then sealed to prevent tarnishing of the silver content. 12ct white gold is 50% silver and 50% gold (12/12) and the silver will darken over time unless it is sealed to stop it oxidising. 

Gold cove frame

A cove or scoop shaped frame that has been water gilded in 23.5ct gold leaf. The top photo is just after the frame has been water gilded. The second photo is after the gilding has been distressed. The last two photos show the finished frame after an off-white wash has been applied to the whole frame.

White gold gilded frame

The top photo is after the frame has been gilded in 12ct white gold, and the second two photos are the finished frame after distressing and sealing.