A quick method for surface gilding

for the bookbinders out there written up one method I have been usuing since 2010 for surface gilding leather......you will find it on the new DBOA blog

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Eggshell panels (part 2)

Having sanded the panel to a smooth glass like finish, you can colour them and finish with a double coat of shellac(sanding inbetween , of course!).This can be then buffed to high gloss, on the book.
I coloured mine just slightly, using red, blue and yellow dyes.
I have worked panels into shapes and curves before, but it is a great deal of work, and requires different prep.,so while some may rightly think the design lazy....expediency is the key to getting the job done.
IE The Great Gatsby.....east egg .....west egg ..... eggshell panels.... job's'a gudden ....next!
The panels are cut on the board chopper, and recessed onto the case, then worked into a pattern of basic lines, black onlays, and a little gold.I apologise for the quality, I literally had minutes to take them.
This is one method of making an eggshell panel.There are others.....
I will be posting the results of the finished boxes , every 2/3 days...
To come...surface gilding.

Box challenge day 35 / Eggshell panels part 1

Jean Dunand(1877-1942) is credited with first using lacquered eggshell panels in furntiture and bindings.

I was lucky enough to be around to see one of my old teachers make a
panel, and consequently I have another trick I can use.(thanks Mark!) Glue the eggs on to
a rough black paper, grout it with black gesso, sand, and sand, and sand, until the surface is as smooth as glass, or thereabouts...
Part 2 will include colouring the panels , sealing with a lacquer, and mounting as a recessed onlay onto the cover for "The Great Gatsby".

They call it Crack-uele

...no, they don`t really, but it is addictive and very easy to do as explained in the posting "design on the fly".It is easy, a lot of fun, and a quick way to transform a uniform coloured onlay.You will find denise and I carrying out the demo via the link below.
Future demos will be found listed in the categories marked 'Demos",one of three so far, with many more on the way.

There are demos on woodblock printing, and basic onlay to follow.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCA5fhjUMfA&feature=channel_page

gold tooling demo (warning :explicit material)

ok people, so this one's supposed to be just a bit of fun.Abby, if you're out there, boxes are getting cranked out,I promise.
We took video of this tooling to highlight this particular method in use.
However guys, just because it's bookbinding, doesn't mean its all bach and tweed.
If you can get past the soundtrack, its a good demo(apart from the unnecessary headshots).The video is on youtube, the links are at the bottom, and you'll have to cut and paste it in the finder box, you can also adjust the video quality.
Remember, you can't take yourself seriously all the time-keep it real....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9YCAuxEk_M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeSWgD7Dh3I

On another note, I've added the ability to subscribe to the blog via e-mail.
Sorry for the bad pic, it's all I had left.

tooling demo

......so, i got some response to my first items, one of them asked for a deeper explanation of the tooling process .

At work today I had to finish a book for a friend, and I took pics along the way.........

Veterans amoung you will know that an attempt to explain tooling in 1 blog post would be pure folly, but what i can offer is an explanation of what I did today, in one instance, on one book....

Its a cute little red book, palm size, so I`m going to use my 8pt edinburgh to letter, and do some simple single pallets above and below the raised bands......

First, i gotta burnish the book, its small so i can do it using hot plates in the kensol......very quick, very effective.

I paste wash the skin, and tool the lettering and lines in blind .

After glairing up the blind impressions, it is decided that i will use 2 methods for completing the gold work.......

First I will tool the lines, by picking up the gold on the brass pallet.Rub my nose, run the nose grease along the pallet, pick up a chopped line of gold, and drop it in.

I have found that this is best so far, as it avoids filling-in over the bands, and any unnecessary cleaning.

Second, applying the leaf directly to the surface for the lettering using a layer of grease.

The tooling is completed, and grease removed, leaving a simple but rich finish...

One note, you may have noticed the rather cumbersome glove I`m wearing on my left hand.

This is of course enables me to position the tool without burning my fingers(Michael Wilcox uses a thumb cover made of leather , vis , his video on gold finishing)...........but i gotta tell you about these gloves ......My mother in-law gets them for me (thank you juliet)maybe they are store-bought or available everywhere .....but she uses them for sewing thermal blankets for satellites such as cassini (orbiting saturn at the moment) , and the mars rover for Space Systems Loral .

Maybe I`m wrong about this, but as far I`m concerned i can pick up leaf like paper with these things...further experimentation could prove fruitful, but maybe any kind of cotton glove can do the same !!!!!

Either way, I love them, and I hope she keeps sending them!