Thorn Gilders Tip

The Thorn Gilders Tip is a nifty tool for easily picking up and placing metal leaf—like gold or silver leaf—onto surfaces with accuracy. Designed by Nancy Thorn, it has a clear mesh screen that lets you see where you’re positioning the leaf, making it a go-to for gilding projects on glass, furniture, walls, and even ceilings.

To use it, just rub a tiny bit of petroleum jelly onto the back of your hand and lightly press the mesh screen onto that spot to pick up a small amount. This adds a touch of stickiness to help the screen to grab the leaf. Then, you can lift the leaf from a cushion or directly from the booklet and place it exactly where you want. The see-through screen helps line everything up with precision, creating seamless, neat results without much overlap.

The Thorn Tip was conceived in July, 2013 by professional gilder Nancy Thorn. Nancy, along with nine other gilders, was contracted by the Legion of Honor to restore their 18th-century French period room, the Salon Doré of the Hôtel de la Tremoillé. During this job Nancy created this innovative new tip to allow her to lay leaf with not only precision, but with greater speed than a traditional tip.

This version of the tip is the 2021 version, and has a plastic frame instead of a cardboard one for increased durability and longevity.

Dimensions: 130 x 130mm

Note: This tip is designed for use with leaves that around 110 x 110 mm or smaller and is unsuited for use with leaves larger than this.