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BOWL OF GLEAMING EGGS

Make a bowl of gleaming eggs. Don't be mistaken; this is NOT just an Easter project. A clear bowl of different styles and colors of leaf makes a beautiful and elegant center piece or decorator item. Make one or two dozen eggs using gold, copper, silver and especially the variegated leaf. Purchase of the #831 kit and additional books of other colors of leaf will provide enough adhesive and sealer for many eggs. Each egg takes less than two sheets of leaf.

Step 1.    Find the goose that lays these things, or make them yourself by choosing your eggs.  I prefer brown chicken eggs, not because of the color but because they are much smoother than the more common white variety. I'm sure that any type of egg from hummingbird to ostrich will work.

Step 2.    Empty the contents. Put a small hole in the center of each end with a pin and enlarge the hole to about the size of a large paper clip wire. Puncture the membranes inside the egg with a straightened paper clip for ease in removal of the contents. Blow out the egg into a bowl to use for breakfast if you like. This takes a considerable amount of pressure, but it can be done by mouth. A larger hole at the far end will make it easier. I use a piece of surgical tubing connected to an air compressor equipped with a regulator. Start with the pressure turned off and slowly increase. If there is too much pressure the egg can explode. I learned this the hard way!

Step 3.    Straighten a large paper clip. Thread the egg on the wire. A few bends on the bottom will make the paper clip easier to hold with a pair of pliers. Keep the pliers closed with a rubber band or two. You may think you need a basecoat at this point, but I have found that the eggs I work with do not require one. For maximum luster in the completed egg, you may apply Satin Sealer at this point. Allow it to dry fully. Then apply a thin coat of adhesive size to the shell. Cover it completely, but try to avoid brush strokes. A THIN coat of adhesive is all it needs. Allow this to dry completely. A thin coat will not take much more than 15-20 minutes to dry.

Step 4.    Wearing cotton or thin latex gloves, open the book of leaf and fold back a small section of the paper to expose about 2 inches of leaf.  The gloves protect the leaf from the skin acids and oils which cause the leaf to tarnish. Gently tear off a piece of leaf and lay it on the egg. The curve of the shell will cause wrinkles in the leaf. Don't worry about this, it is to be expected and adds to the hand applied character of gilding. Don't try to smooth it out completely at first. Just keep working until the entire surface is covered.

Step 5.    Now for the fun part! With a soft artists' nylon or Taklon brush about 3/4" wide, smooth out the leaf by brushing the leaf as if it were a paint. If you are wearing cotton gloves, you may take the egg off the wire and smooth it with your hands, rubbing it as if to polish it. Use a soft cotton cloth if gloves are not available. All of the skewings will now come off and make a beautiful glittering carpet. If you wish to avoid the gold floor, do this step over a waste basket. Continue to lightly burnish the shell until there are no overlapping pieces loose.

Step 6.    The finish is now bright and smooth. Unless it is composition silver leaf (aluminum) or genuine gold, it will need to be sealed to prevent tarnishing. The sealer will change the metallic reflection. The light now will have to travel through the sealer, off the metal, back through the sealer and to your eye. This picks up stray light and slightly changes the appearance. Use a thin coat of sealer to minimize this change. Also the blue cast in the variegated leaf is lost somewhat by sealing. Variegated leaf is oxidized already. If the unsealed finish is desired, variegated leaf will not tarnish for quite some time if it is not handled. To seal, place the egg back on the wire to avoid handling. Brush a thin coat of the sealer over the entire surface. Allow to dry fully.

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