Gold Leaf Tutorial

     One of the most striking features of a custom paint job is most certainly gold leaf. I am constantly asked how it is I do it. To be honest it is a pretty common trick and nearly every custom painter has his or her own way of doing it. It has been around since before medieval times, and examples can be seen on everything from cathedrals to edgings on paper. It has applications in the sign painting industry, fine art, custom paint, and the craft industries.

    There are very many different way of applying gold leaf. In this tutorial I will explain it the Root Bros. way. We learned from the best and have spent over 7 years perfecting it.

 

In this tutorial we will be demonstrating on the hood sides of the Spirit of Sayler park. The first step is to layout the lettering or the area you will be gilding. We use a Stabilo pencil.

The second step is to apply the Size. Size is an adhesive that is used to bond the gold leaf to the surface. We usually add a bit of gold colored enamel sign paint to the size to tint it so if the leaf nicks or scratches it won't be so noticeable.

 



to ensure the leaf will stick good we leave the size to "tac up" for nearly 6 hours. At this point you can test it by toucking the size with the back side of your knuckle. It should leave no prints. then you can very carefully apply the leaf. Some leaf has two sides so make sure you apply them all the same side up.

 



 

Once the leaf is applied you can brush off the excess very carefully with either your hand or a velvet cloth.



We then added a black outline and a slight drop shadow.

 

If  gold leaf is left exposed to oxygen it will quickly tarnish. It is important to coat it with a clear coat. We always spray multiple coats of urethane clear coat over the entire piece to ensure a smooth glossy finish