Printed gold leaf

[SellersSign&Design]

I posted a while back asking for suggestions on how to make a printed imitation of real hand laid and turned gold leaf. I have never been satisfied with the seamless tile fills or even AlienSkin's version, it just doesn't look like the real thing. I got some great suggestions in the original thread I posted, but I still never got a final product that I was happy with. After a lot of failed attempts I think I am finally on the right path. It involves a multi-step process that is somewhat of a pain, but the final result is close to what I am looking for. Basically I took a single gold "spin", used a fountain transparency to help it feather into the background, and then placed each spin over a solid light gold lettering. I then cleared the transparency, powercliped the spins inside of the lettering and then re-applied the transparency. It works my computer pretty hard because each spin is a complex bitmap. So, I am looking for opinions. Do you like the end result? Can you think of anything that would make this process easier or less of struggle for the computer?

(I know the kerning is off, I am just using this to show the gold pattern)

 

[Gino]

I did a little seaching, but couldn't find the old thread you mentioned. Would you be able to produce a link ??

Also, what is it, you don't like and what is it that you think you are liking more ?? I've never been too keen on any of the vinyl gold leaf. None of it, especially the engine turn (any size) looks realistic.

 

[SellersSign&Design]

I did a little seaching, but couldn't find the old thread you mentioned. Would you be able to produce a link ??

Also, what is it, you don't like and what is it that you think you are liking more ?? I've never been too keen on any of the vinyl gold leaf. None of it, especially the engine turn (any size) looks realistic.

This is the old thread:
http://www.signs101.com/forums/showthread.php?117895-Printed-quot-Gold-Leaf-quot

I think I am pretty happy with the pattern, the swirl marks need to be a little more pronounced but other than that it looks really close to my real hand laid gold. What I don't like is the long process it takes to get to this point, and the fact that it absolutely kills my computer because of how complex it is. I just think there is a better way to do it that I am looking over? I am nowhere near a Corel expert so it is a miracle I even made it this far!

 

[letterman7]

I think that's a pretty good start! With some adjustment with the color, you could get pretty close to the real deal. Try double passing the print, sometimes that will deepen the color without affecting the overall image. That's going to be handy for printed reflective, among other things!

 

[Fred Weiss]

This is the old thread:
http://www.signs101.com/forums/showthread.php?117895-Printed-quot-Gold-Leaf-quot

I think I am pretty happy with the pattern, the swirl marks need to be a little more pronounced but other than that it looks really close to my real hand laid gold. What I don't like is the long process it takes to get to this point, and the fact that it absolutely kills my computer because of how complex it is. I just think there is a better way to do it that I am looking over? I am nowhere near a Corel expert so it is a miracle I even made it this far!

Someone with more CorelDRAW experience may want to add to the following:

• Save the fill you've created into the Patterns folder in your Corel Custom Data folder.
• Select the object(s) or text in CorelDRAW.
• Click on the Fill Tool and then click on Pattern Fill Dialog.
• Click on Load in the dialog and select your fill.
• Adjust to desired size and other options.

Your pattern may look better if it is used to generate a seamless tile and then the tile inserted as the pattern in place of the original in your Patterns folder. If you need assistance in creating a seamless tile, let me know. I am using the Plotter Art™ Small Engine Turn as the pattern fill in my example that follows.