I painted the whole background a very dark brown. I chose brown so that any spots would look slightly stressed and add richness to the gold, otherwise it might have looked flat and opulent. When it was dry I painted a layer of Roberson's gold size. This size is brilliant for large flat areas of transfer gilding.  Transfer gold can be bought as hard-pressed and it's impossible to get it off the backing paper (although maybe it works for varnishes in frame gilding). Mine is 23.5carat gold; … [Read more...]