You can create some really good imitations of gold leaf, but nothing is ever quite as good as the real thing.

The techniques for preparing the surfaces and laying the leaf are centuries old, and looked after, gold will not fade or tarnish. When distressed it reveals the beautiful colours of the clay ground on which it has been laid, and when burnished it shines beautifully.

Gold leaf comes in four main colours; gold, white gold, champagne or rose gold, and moon gold.