Originally Posted by
Annie M.
OK... I've had a chance to dig through my old 'swatches' ....
To obtain a luster finish comparable to an air dried silver glossy fibre based paper such as Agfa Classic... Dissolve by volume 1 part rabbit skin glue or hide glue (my apologies to all the bunnies) to 6 parts water in a double boiler or over very low heat. DO NOT BOIL. This is a thicker mixture than the usual preparation for canvas prep in painting etc. While the mixture is hot apply it to your paper... as this starts to goo up quite quickly I have found the best method is to attach my Pt print to a board with butcher tape around the outside edge (if you wish to maintain the dekel edge you will have to figure out a different method as I cut the tape off at the end of the process). I use a squeegee to apply the hot glue in one pass over the image.... if you use a brush I assume any marks will flow back into an even surface due to the viscosity of the mixture. You can let the print air dry or use a dryer if you wish. When dry the print is a bit stiff I just give it a run over the edge of the table as the finish is a little plyable and will not crack.
Now... this finish will warm the image and the paper slightly... so no pure bright whites... however the dry down effect is gone... absolutely gone. Another concern may be the method of mounting... I do not use a hot press so I have no idea how this would effect the coating. The test swatches I have here are on Cranes and Kodak PX-3001 (emulsion removed) so I have no idea how the glue would adapt to a more textured paper... you may have to adjust your dilutions according to the penetrability of your paper
This coating once dry will also accept varnishes and you can take it to high gloss if you are inclined to do so.... which reminds me it wasn't varnish over wax as I said in my post above... it was a 'fat' wax over a 'lean' wax (such as the wax mediums & the Marshall's oil dryer) I found the paper experienced less distressing when the wax gels were used prior to the crystalline.
Anyway... keep up the good work and let us know if you find your magic coating!!
Cheers Annie
Bookmarks