Three Easy Parts And Items Needed To Gold Leaf Furniture
Gold leaf will give your wooden furniture a different and amazing look, if you want to apply gold leaf to your furniture yourself, then you just need to collect the given items and follow all the given three easy parts to finish your work without wasting your time:
Things You’ll Need
- Gold Leaf
- Water-Based Gilding Adhesive
- Painter’s Tape
- Cotton Gloves
- Paint Brushes
- Clear Polyurethane Sealer
Part 1: Choosing The Gold Leaf
- Simply use the imitation gold leaf for a low budget. The imitation gold leaf is easily available at most craft or online shopping stores. This gold leaf looks almost as shiny & bold as the real gold look and also costs much less. Imitation gold leaf is a good option if you are going to cover any large surface area or a big piece of your furniture.
- Select the real gold leaf to get a bright and shiny look. The real gold leaf can be found at any craft or online store. This item can be much expensive to get in large abundance so choose it only when you have enough budget. This is only best when you are covering a small surface area or the small piece of your furniture with it.
Part 2: Preparing The Furniture
- First of all, you need to clean your furniture with a soap and water mixture to remove any dirt from its surface. Start your work by wiping your furniture down by using a cloth dampened with water and soap mixture. Rub your furniture lightly with your cloth so that there is no dust and dirt on the furniture surface.
- Now, simply sand wood furniture if the furniture has any bumps or cracks to smooth it out. Sand the bumps and cracks with the medium grit sandpaper(120-150 grit). Smoothly rub your sandpaper over the bumped or cracked area to smooth them out so the wood is even now. This sanding step will make applying the gold leaf easier.
- Next, you need to apply your sealer to your furniture if it is porous. If your furniture is unfinished then you need to seal it by using the paint sealer to be sure that the gold leaf adheres to it. Buy sealer paint from your local hardware store or online.
- Now you need to wipe your furniture with the help of a towel so it is wholly dry. Be sure that your furniture is dry to touch because this will ensure that the gilding adhesive sticks properly on the furniture surface. If your wooden furniture is very wet then you need to wipe it down with the help of a dry cloth and then let it dry for a whole night.
- Now use the painter tap to create a design on your furniture for your gold leaf. You may also need to block out any vertical or horizontal lines on your furniture with the help of your painter tape to create the sleek and simple design. You can also try creating circles or the shapes with your painter tape so your gold leaf appears as a geometric design on your furniture.
Part 3: Applying The Gold Leaf
- Safety first, you first need to wear the cotton gloves so you won't damage your gold leaf. Gold leaf sheets are very prone & also delicate to ripping. Wearing the cotton gloves will ensure that you handle the leaf sheets carefully & do not get the oil from your hands on the gold leaf, which can damage it easily.
- Now you need to use your brush to apply a thin layer of water-based adhesive on your furniture. Now you need to apply your adhesive a little at one time by using the smooth, even brushstrokes but try your best not to leave any brushstroke marks on the surface of your furniture.
- Let the applied adhesive dry & also become tacky, this process may take up to 15-60 minutes, depending on your furniture's size & on the amount of applied adhesive. The water-based adhesive tends to dry faster as we compare it to other oil-based adhesive.
- Now apply your gold leaf 1 sheet by using your hand on the adhesive, rub the leaf sheet so it sticks well and then slowly pull the applied sheet back.
- Now allow the applied gold leaf to dry for few hours but the drying time depends on the applied amount. A small area will take 2 hours and large 6 hours.
- Next, when your gold leaf dried wholly, now brush off any leftover gold leaf which doesn't stick to the applied adhesive.
- Now, place your furniture in a spot indoors where your furniture can dry for at least 24 complete hours without being touched.
- This is your final step, simply apply a thin layer of your sealer over your applied gold leaf to protect it. The sealer will give your gold leaf a smooth finish & avert it from flaking off. Use your clean brush to apply this sealer in 1 even layer over any areas of your furniture with gold leaf.