Yesterday I pulled a mirror out of a skip, it's a mid 19th century rococo style (read:fiddly) piece where the frame is made of moulded plaster.
Pretty lucky find, except at some point some fool has painted over the original gilding with several thick coats of magnolia gloss on the front - the back is the original gold finish. The gloss is cracking in some places, looks like it has been on there a long time, and is so thick it's obscuring the detail a bit.
Does anyone know how I can get this off, or get most of it off, so I can either re-gild or repaint it in a more sympathetic finish? I'm afraid of the plaster absorbing any liquid/solvent I put on it, and it's too intricate to sand off, I'm stumped.
Any help would be greatly appreciated
Pretty lucky find, except at some point some fool has painted over the original gilding with several thick coats of magnolia gloss on the front - the back is the original gold finish. The gloss is cracking in some places, looks like it has been on there a long time, and is so thick it's obscuring the detail a bit.
Does anyone know how I can get this off, or get most of it off, so I can either re-gild or repaint it in a more sympathetic finish? I'm afraid of the plaster absorbing any liquid/solvent I put on it, and it's too intricate to sand off, I'm stumped.
Any help would be greatly appreciated