A bit of an unusual request. These two beautifully made French chairs were originally gilt, but as the years have passed, the gilding has worn off and someone in the recent past has decided to coat them with thick gold paint to try and revive them. Trouble is that paint never has the same look or feel of gilding and the gesso/gilt finish beneath the paint shows through with ugly chips and cracks. So the new owner has requested that we remove the gold paint, re-finish the chair frames in distressed grey Farrow and Ball paint and then replace the cane seats.
The hand carving is top class and very fine, so we will blast the paint off with soda which will leave the gesso undercoat and delicate carved details intact. Imagine how long it would take to strip this by hand with chemicals especially the little crevices around the rose petals where the paint has run into big thick blobs!
First stage in progress, the side rail has been blasted and you can see the intact original surface beneath. More updates to follow......
1 comment:
Good Job.
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