Gold leaf. Gold leaf gilding

What used to be allowed only to kings, in today's world perfectly survives in the mansions of successful and accomplished people. We are talking about the use of gold and gold ornaments in decorative interior finishes, furniture, and exterior architectural elements of buildings. Of course, this will not apply to parts made of pure metal, and a special technology – gold leaf gilding, which originate in very distant times.

Precious element decoration

Gold is a very expensive material in order to use it in large projects. Therefore, in ancient times, people began to use the plasticity of metal to save it for decorative purposes. Take, for example, a stretcher of the Pharaoh. They look massive and are cast from pure gold. But in fact it covers gold leaf a very thin layer.

Thanks to the development of the industry, sovershenstvovaniye and tools and the emergence of many new materials to surround yourself with luxurious décor can afford anyone. However, this possibility is due to the use of substitutes, such as gold leaf or acrylic paint "gold leaf".

Ways of obtaining and scope

So what is it-gold leaf? This term came to us from the ancients, hidden in the depths of the civilization of the times, meant “surface”, “coverage”. He transformed into the concept of “leaf” from the word “face”, “front”. If not to plunge into the jungle of linguistics and other Sciences, the gold leaf acquired its name because of the way the use-surface coating “leaf”.

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Decorative designs that are covered by this kind of material, give beauty, elegance luxury furniture and facilities. But the use of this kind of decoration could be very problematic, as it implies the use of very thin slips of material. Their thickness varies from 13 to 67 hundreds of thousands of a millimeter, and work with them requires some training master and the use of special technologies and instruments.

The gold Leaf is obtained with the use of “bounce” technology, when heated and otverzhennye to a certain thickness for the piece of metal is transferred to “space”. Previously, this process took place in several stages and required a huge amount of human time and effort. Now it is computerized and mechanized, but its cost is still high enough – of two and a half kilograms of the precious metal is only a kilogram foil. The leaves of the finished material are placed between the leaves of books of a certain format. The weight of these books can be from one and two-tenths of a gram to six grams. It should be noted that for external use use this material weighing from two and a half grams. Gold leaf, the price of which depends on the sample, can be purchased in many specialty stores ranging from 36-40 dollars for a book.

Technology gilding

The Technology of applying decoration can be divided into two main types. First – when the gold leaf is transferred to the surface, previously covered with oil or varnish composition. It's called matte. The surface is matte and not particularly elegant. But this method of application is more stable and is applied when you perform as a decorative interior work on different materials, and external.

Another type of – paymenty (adhesive), provides for the imposition of gold leaf on the surface treated water-glue mixtures. It's a way that achieves maximum gloss gold-plated surface. But to apply it is only possible when the decorative finish indoors and mainly for the decoration of wood products or plastics.

Features gilding gold leaf

This is the complexity of the material. After all, even the lightest draught can result in the loss of hundreds of dollars if weightless and precious gold leaf will fall under its influence. Also gold leaf can not take just hands – it weightless and fragile structure immediately affected. He will turn to dust at the hands of would-be masters. Therefore, working with a special tool and having at least ordinary skill with such a delicate and expensive material.

Imitation gold

Some cost involved in decorating the precious metal are called substitutes. It can be like gold on silver – double and gold on copper base – Talma. The high cost of the metal itself contributed to the origin of such simulators gilded surfaces, such as alloy and gold leaf-silver aluminum, as well as the disulphide of tin, often used when gilding wood and plaster.