Sewing a Beauty – Belle’s Yellow Ballgown Creation – Step 3: Gold Leaf Embellishment

Step 3: Gold Leaf Embellishment

They also printed gold leaf and glitter onto the dress for even more sparkle. ~ Jacqueline Durran

One of the main attributes of the outer skirt, one which I didn’t explain in my last post, is the gold embellishment. Due to the complexity of the design and application, I’ve dedicated a whole post to the explanation of the detail!

UPDATE: I made a YouTube video showing the process of applying gold leaf to silk fabric!

First, I’d like to show you photos of the original dress details. These photos are close-ups of Emma Watson’s dress. Also, these are the photos I used to create my pattern and design my process of application.

~ The Original Gold Detail ~

~ Supplies ~

Now that I’ve shown you the original details, I’ll explain my process of applying the gold leaf. Before I explain, here’s a list of the supplies I used to add the detail:

Genuine Gold Leaf (Voltaire) 24K, for base layer.
Genuine Gold Leaf (Voltaire) 18K, for middle layer.
Genuine Gold Leaf (Voltaire) 12K, for upper layer and back ruffles.
Adhesive Size (Mona Lisa, in bottle), the glue for gold leaf.
Glitter (Martha Stewart) Florentine Gold, for base layer.
Glitter (Martha Stewart) White Gold, for middle layer.
Glitter (Martha Stewart) Crystal, for upper layer and back ruffles.
Glue Pen (Quickie Glue), the glue for glitter.
Fabric Marker (Tee Juice) Goldenrod, for tracing the design. (I needed several of these!)
Gem Glue (GemTac), for applying gems.
Topaz Gems (sizes 04, 06, & 08)

This was to test the needed size of the pattern!

~ The Process ~

Now here the process…in words (unfortunately, I didn’t get pictures during the application☹️). Due to the curve of the hem, I did this process a foot at a time.

Step 1:

Place your design under the fabric and trace with your fabric pen.

Step 2:

Now, replace your pattern with some blank paper. This is to protect your work area from the glue (it can soak through the fabric)! Using a fine paint brush, apply thin lines of glue within the design. These lines should be parallel to the hem and to each other. Also, be sure there’s enough glue being applied to each stroke. You’ll known there’s enough glue when the line appears white. Becoming quite annoying, the fabric soaks up a certain amount of glue. If you don’t counter act this by applying more glue, then there isn’t enough glue for the gold leaf to stick to….just do some testing to see what I mean! 😉

Step 3:

Once the glue is dry (the glue appears clear), use a stiff “paintbrush” (I call this my bristle brush) and pick up pieces of gold leaf. Now, brush against the glue and the gold leaf will stick to the glue….that is, if you’ve applied enough!

Step 4:

Using the glue pen, quickly trace the lines of gold leaf. Allow to dry.

Step 5:

Now, pick up a soft “paintbrush”. Dip this brush into the glitter and, if you used the right type of brush, the glitter will collect to the brush. Just swipe this brush over the glue. Now you have a design that has gold leaf with a pinch of sparkle!

Step 6:

Lastly, use some gem glue (I put mine in a syringe for easy application), and apply some to the correct places (correct, as in the correct place on your design!)

Add some completion to your embellishment by adding the gems to the glue!