DIY – Gold Leaf Wooden Bowls

I had recently come across this DIY image on Pinterest and instantly fell in love. Here’s the method as explained by the blogger Amy Christie herself

DIY: These bowls have been on my shelf for months! I messed with them right after I found them in the thrift store but lost interest after my ideas didn’t pan out. And there they sat. Quietly staring at me.

Passive aggressively needling me to hurry up and figure it out. But nothing came. Then, all these months later, it finally hit me: gold leaf. Paired with the warm wood tones, the gold leaf heightens the natural simple beauty of the bowls   Using gold leaf does make the bowls unsuitable for food stuff. I’m okay with it since wooden tableware make me uneasy.

These beauties are destined for a job like corralling the small miscellaneous objects that accumulate around the house although it’s more likely they will just sit, handsome as all get out, on the shelves currently under construction. Some things are too fine for hard labor.

If you want to make some for yourself, here’s how I did it.

Supplies: -wooden bowls, gold leaf, gold leaf adhesive, brush

DIY: After deciding on the design, I brushed on the gold leaf adhesive. The adhesive I use requires some dry time; a pause so the liquid can dry up and leave behind a very sticky surface.

For the longest time I didn’t do the wait part so here’s a hint: make sure to read the directions. When the adhesive was ready, I laid on the gold leaf. Because of the angle and curves, the leaf didn’t go on perfectly but I love the imperfect. The cracks and breaks add character.

I put on enough gold leaf to cover the all the adhesive and added more to areas that were lacking. It’s a delicate process because the leaf is so flimsy.

If you have flaky edges, use a gentle finger to press the pieces back down or brush excess pieces away. A gold leaf sealant is a good idea to protect the design.  

And then, finally, the bowls are done. No more stares filled with longing. That is long gone. From now on, it’s only shimmery goldy glimmers. One more thing off the shelf. So many more to go.”    

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