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How Is Golden Leaf Flake Made?

We prize gold for its rarity, beauty, malleability and indestructibility. Pastry chefs sprinkle gold leaf flakes on desserts, and vintners mix the flakes in celebratory drinks. Golden leaf flake is made from pure gold, gold mixed with silver, or gold mixed with brass or copper alloys. The process is similar for all kinds of leaf, no matter the metal, but pure gold or gold mixed with silver is edible, while the others are only decorative.

History
- Gold leaf flakes traditionally were used to decorate. China dishes had gold leaf melted around the edges. Fancy woodwork and wall paper like that found in the Versailles has a form of paint made from gold leaf flakes mixed with an adhesive. Ancient scribes used gold leaf ink to decorate book pages. Applying gold leaf is called gilding.
Gold Leaf Formation
- Gold leaf flakes are made when gold is squeezed into thinner and thinner sheets and then broken into flakes. First, the gold is melted into liquid and molded into gold bars. Next, a machine presses the bars flat into golden belts. Machines then cut the gold belt into paper-thin squares about 3 1/2 inches on each side. These gold pieces will be soft from annealing--from being heated and cooled in a furnace. The soft gold sheets are flattened again, making each one into a 4 3/4-inch square. Finally, sheets of leaf are manually cut into smaller pieces called spills, 16 to a sheet and separated by paper.
Gold Leaf Colors
- When you mix pure gold during the melting process with alloys, it adjusts the color and hardness of the leaf. This is called composition gold leaf. Colors range from slightly red to bright yellow to white gold. When using imitation gold leaf, you need to use a varnish or sealant to keep the metal from tarnishing. Pure gold leaf doesn't tarnish.
Handling Gold Leaf Flake
- Pure 24-karat gold leaf is very soft and delicate. A sheet of gold leaf is so thin that you need to use a special brush to handle it. As you brush the gold leaf, it produces the flakes used in decorations, foods and drinks. The gold leaf flake is so light that if you breathe too hard it can blow away.
Edible Gold Leaf
- Generally, eating edible gold is perfectly safe. A long tradition of edible gold exists in Europe. In the 16th century, Dukes and Earls decorated risotto with edible gold leaves. The Elizabethans dusted their feasts with edible gold dust. Alchemists used gold for medical purposes and served gold-covered candy to keep their patients' hearts healthy.

Rocks & Minerals