Traditional Water Gilding
Jim Hingst
Sign Business Authority on vinyl graphics, printing, marketing & sales. Results-driven product management. Published 200+ articles.
While you might have experience in oil gilding exterior signage or water gilding on glass, you may never have attempted traditional water gilding, or what is also called bole gilding. This technique is used for interior applications, primarily gilding wood picture frames. The process involves coating the wood with several layers of gesso and clay bole. After the bole is applied, its surface is rewet with what is called gilder’s liquor, and gold is applied onto the object. The final step in this time-consuming process is burnishing or polishing the gilded surface to a brilliant finish. Covered in the story are the following topics:
● What Gilding Equipment & Materials Must You Have.
● How Should You Prepare the Surface.
● How do You Rehydrate the Rabbit Skin Glue.
● What is the Recipe for Gesso.
● How do You Prepare the Bole.
● The Water Gilding Process.
● Burnishing the Gild.
The step-by-step process of traditional water gilding is the one that I learned in a Society of Gilders class. This process is described in detail in my Hingst Sign Post blog post.