![Hand carved Mirror Production The journey of a hand carved mirror is a long process. A craftsmen, with many years of experience is required to execute such a feat. Design and Carving To put into reality the design starts with joining the dried woods together and with a picture as a guide. The craftsmen start […]](https://leogallery.com.my/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/2014525112349-scaled.jpg "The Birth of a Handcrafted Mirror")
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The Birth of a Handcrafted Mirror
Hand carved Mirror Production
The journey of a hand carved mirror is a long process. A craftsmen, with many years of experience is required to execute such a feat.
- Design and Carving
To put into reality the design starts with joining the dried woods together and with a picture as a guide. The craftsmen start carving away one stroke at a time. After many hours of carving the basic shape of the mirror frame comes into place. A very ornate mirror may take many days or even more than week to complete.
- Foundation
The frame is then coated with red or white lacquered paint. Depending on the finishing with gold leaf using a red or yellow base and silver leaf using a white or black base.
- Gilding or White / Black finishing
Gilding is a specialised method of applying very thin layers of silver or gold leaf to the frame. With the base dried out, special glue is then applied to the surface of the frame. There must not be any gaps in the surface where glue is not applied. Time is of essence this time as the window of applying the leaf is only for a short time. The workers start to apply them covering every inch of the surface. They are then smoothed out evenly ensuring a shiny and smooth finishing. A special coat is then applied to protect the surface.
- Resting Period
The finished frame is then left to rest while the mirror is cut to fit at a later stage
- Packing and shipping
Each finished mirror is carefully packaged in strong cardboard box and further protected with thick plywood box before shipment.
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