Assist gilding
	Before the gilding itself, sprinkle the whole surface of the icon with talcum powder and extend it with a soft brush. This precaution will prevent the golden particles from sticking to the surface of the paint -that is still greasy (egg).
	Let it dry for five minutes and apply, with particular care and precision, the gilding size. This size has been made with the juice of a crushed garlic. As an alternative, you can leave some brown ale in a glass until it dries, dilute it with some water and then apply it on the golden rays. You must use a high quality good tipped brush. To make it more manageable, don’t forget to divide your work in small areas.
Apply the gold sheets on the surface of the sized lines and press slightly with your fingertip on the back of the patent gold leaf. Be careful not to press too much because it would crush the wider sized lines and deform them. The result, when you lift the gold leaf, should be similar to what you can see above to the right...
	With a very soft brush, remove any visible excess of gold. To remove all the remnants, pass the brush in all directions without rubbing too much.
	To protect and fix the golden rays apply a thin layer of transparent shellac (white) on each golden line without covering too much the rest of the paint.

	Next step: Finishing the icon
Click on picture to enlarge...
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