01
Clean the glass
Use glass soap and leave no grease, dust, or lint behind.
Water gilding, in order
The mirror method
Reverse work is viewed through the glass, so the face you make against it becomes the finished face. Traditional mirror brilliance comes from loose leaf floated onto a clean pane with gelatin water size—not from oil size.
02
Mix the size
Dissolve gelatin in water. The listed sheets are embossed; two diamonds equal one 00 capsule.
03
Float the leaf
Flood the glass, then lay loose leaf with a gilder’s tip. Let the water draw away.
04
Burnish & decorate
Polish with rolled cotton. Etch fades or engine-turn patterns from the back.
05
Back it up
Protect the image with backup enamel and a final window spar overcoat.
Mirror brilliance
Gelatin water size + loose/surface leaf. This is the traditional combination for a reflective gold face on glass.
Matte or satin overlay
Dux water-based adhesive and oil sizes are separate processes. They are useful for decorative overlays, but they do not make the same mirror finish.
Method reference: “Mirror Gilding with Water Gelatin Size” by Ron Percell
Bench catalog
Leaf, size & color
Search or filter the core catalog. “Book” means 25 sheets unless noted.
23kt Glass XX Deep — loose
The site’s named mirror-glass formulation. 3⅜″ square sheets.
Manetti 23kt Double-XX Glass — loose
Named by the seller as “great for glass gilding.”
23kt XXX Triple — loose
Thicker, low-pinhole leaf suited to burnishing.
24kt Fine Gold — loose
Pure gold in 3⅜″ square sheets.
Manetti surface leaf range
Deep Yellow XX, Double-XX, Dukaten Orange XX, and Rosenoble Double.
Manetti 19–23.5kt range
Platin, Champagne, Moon, French Pale, Dark Yellow, Yellow, Citron, and Caplain alloys.
Fine silver mirror leaf
Manetti 20gr and 28gr options, W&B .999, loose 3¾″ sheets, and heavy 4″ foil. Silver tarnishes—sometimes intentionally for antique mirror work.
Non-tarnishing silver tone
Manetti, W&B .999 loose, and WB surface leaf. Listed as the “King of Silvers” and a pure-silver substitute.
Contrast leaf
Available in 6kt, 12kt, and 13.25kt options. Useful for contrasting reverse-glass fades.
Copper, brass & aluminum
Loose copper, brass/composition, imitation gold brass, and loose aluminum. Copper alloys tarnish and require sealing.
28 decorative colorways
Amber, bronze, greens, reds, blues, black, pink, cocoa, koi, nebula and more. 5½″ sheets; seal against tarnish.
Gelatin Size sheets
Five embossed sheets. Two diamonds are described as equal to one 00 capsule.
Gilders Glass Soap
Foil-wrapped soap for cleaning glass before water gilding.
Copper Gilders Chalice
Hammered or polished 16 oz copper cup. The copper inhibits electrolysis/static that can wrinkle leaf.
Dux Water-Based Size
Commercial extended-tack adhesive; a different process from gelatin mirror gilding.
Dux Quick & Slow Size
Quick and slow working times are available in multiple container sizes.
1 Shot & Lefranc
1 Shot Fast Gold Leaf Size, plus Lefranc 3-Hour and 12-Hour oil-based sizes.
Leaf-laying brushes
Big Triple, Mack blue squirrel, Mack RP synthetic single 3½″, and Scharff 2170 4″ Kazan squirrel.
Mops and sizing brushes
RP5 water sizing brush, RP8 mops, Scharff 1″ mop, and goat-hair surplus brush.
Rick Glawson Japan Color Brushes
Available in 1″, 1½″, and 2″ widths or as a set.
Gilders’ knives
Deluxe UK 6″ single-edge, Italian 5½″ square-tip, and Standard models.
Pads and cushions
American 4½×8″, Italian 7×10½″, English wind-screen 5½×9½″, and Italian cushion options.
Etching pens & rolled cotton
Burnishing pen, fine-tip model, replacement tip, and 4 oz surgical-grade rolled cotton.
Spinning tool set
Full set and individual sizes 00–04, ranging from ½″ to 2½″.
Specialty glass tools
Hide glue bottle, economy heating pot, trimmer knife, pen glass cutter, and pistol-grip cutter.
Catalog note: Patent/transfer leaf and 67-foot gold rolls are adjacent inventory for controlled handling and surface striping; loose leaf is the mirror-primary form. Rolled 23kt leaf is available in widths from ¼″ to 4″. No active agate-burnisher listing was verified. Platinum leaf is also listed.
Build the bench
Tools that earn their place
A disciplined kit is small: a clean water vessel, a knife, a cushion, a tip, a sizing brush, a mop, and cotton. Add tools only when the effect calls for them.
- Leaf handling: gilder’s knife, pad, loose-leaf tip.
- Wet work: copper chalice, squirrel sizing brush, glass soap.
- Finishing: dusting mop, surplus brush, rolled cotton.
- Decoration: etching pen, engine-turning tools.
- Storage: large brush case or premium wood case.
Protect the image
Back up & seal
Reverse-glass work lives or dies by its backing. Choose color for opacity and tone, then cover the finished work against scuffs and scratches.
Black
Silkscreen consistency; can be thinned with turpentine or mineral spirits for brushing. Listed 15-minute dry time.
Silver & ochre
Both colors are offered in ½-pint and quart sizes. UPS Ground, USA shipping.
Window Spar Varnish
Final overcoat for reverse-glass work; protects against scuffs and scratches.
Bulletin Spar & Quick Rubbing
Bulletin Spar comes in ½-pint and quart sizes. Traditional alkyd Quick Rubbing Varnish also doubles as quick gold size.
Damar & Fibra Seal
Damar is used for picture adhesion and “cent embossing.” Fibra Seal is a flow-control and binding additive for Japan paints.
Asphaltum
For reverse-glass work, sandblast resist, gold-leaf shading, and antique-mirror backing.
Currently out of stockView ↗
Beyond leaf
Shell, mica & jewels
Set flashes of color behind the glass with shell veneer, crushed brocade, mica, or hand-polished German crystal.
- 21 shell inlay sheet patterns
- Agoya mother of pearl
- Figured white mother of pearl
- Paua abalone
- Crushed shell
- 21 mica powder colors
- Hand-polished crystal jewels
- Shell & Jewel Inlay Glue
Crushed shell is limited to stock on hand. Copper-alloy leaf must be sealed.
Explore shell inlay ↗Workshop photograph: Letterhead Sign Supply
Keep learning
Books & how-to
Start with the mirror-gilding article, then keep a technical reference at the bench.
Mirror Gilding with Water Gelatin Size
A focused how-to article by Ron Percell on the traditional glass process.
Read the article ↗Gilding on Glass Wood Metal
By E.C. Mathews and Lawrence S. Strong. Covers oil/surface and water/mirror gilding.
Gold Leaf Techniques
Covers surface gilding and reverse/mirror glass gilding.