Making Coffered Ceiling Trim Pop with Gold Leafing

Gilded and Glazed Coffered Ceiling Trim

I'm sure you are beginning to notice a pattern with many of my projects. Lots and lots of gold, silver or copper leafing! There's also leafing with patterns in it. I hope to complete a project soon so that I can introduce you to it. I really love working with it. It can be a bit messy but not in a drippy paint way. More of a bits and pieces of leafing floating around. The good news is, it vacums up easily.
This project has been one of my most favorite lately. We completed some really cool ceilings for this client in their dining room and foyer a few months ago. They really wanted to eliminate some of the white trim without feeling like they had to change all of the trim. Since we had "leafed" the trim on the other accent ceilings, it  was a perfect plan to carry that into the coffered ceiling. So this is how we achieved it.
First, we taped off the trim, separating the crown moulding of the room from the coffered trim. We taped square by square and painted as we went. One coat was sufficient since most of it is covered by the gold. I love to have a bit of the base color popping through the cracks here and there. It adds to the aged look.

Ceilings can be done from a ladder, but scaffolding makes it sooo much better! I highly recommend it. Here's the finished brown.

Next, we brushed on the water based size. This is what makes the sheets of leaf stick to the surface. This goes on milky and dries clear, and of course I neglected to take a photo so you'll need to use your imagination. Once dry,  the real fun begins! Applying each sheet, one at a time. This is actually imitation gold and is really shiny at this point.

I have actually had the opportunity to use 22kt gold leafing before. It's much thinner and the sheets are smaller. I hope to blog about it in a future blog. We continued leafing and worked on the ceiling over the course of 2 days.

The client was a little worried that she had made a mistake.... she thought it was done. I assured her with the glaze it would tone down the shimmer and be perfect. So we started glazing in a burnt umber color. The burnt umber gives a rusty tone to the gold but it was just what it needed. You can see the difference here between the glazed and unglazed. It definitely blends better with the walls and the previously finish ceiling

 

After glazing, we were able to pull all the tape down and see the finished product!

 



Does this inspire you to try a new finish on any of  your ceilings? Be sure to sign up to receive my posts by email. I will be giving away a basic gilding kit in the near future. This kit is perfect to use on small projects. Maybe a mirror frame update or a small piece of furniture. The Gilded Planet will be sponsoring this giveaway. I love promoting my product sources. I've spent many years finding the products that work for me and my clients and I am proud to share them with  you!