All About Gold Powders

For outstanding fineness and smoothness, gold powder has been one of the most popular items of Shizendo throughout our history. While we cannot wait to see them spark in more creative projects today, we are conscious that they are unique materials that are a little tricky to work with. Here, we have curated past articles about gold powder so you can briefly recap everything you need to know about them- from how to use them, and how they are made, to how they are used in Japan. We hope you will enjoy working with our metallic powder.

[Tutorial Video] Diluting Gold Powder

Ground from gold leaf, "kindei" which literally translates to golden mud, or more generally, gold powder, is an original Japanese pigment. Traditional Japanese materials do not come in ready-to-go tubes- the users are to take part in completing them through grinding or kneading. While some traditional nihonga artists would even enjoy and appreciate the process as a meditative ritual to get to work, it might feel like nothing but a hassle for beginners. In this short tutorial video, you can learn what to do before picking up the brush to draw with gold powder*Here, gelatine/nikawa glue is used as an adhesive to draw on paper.

[FILM] The Gold Powder Making

Take a sneak peek at our craftsperson quietly and tirelessly making gold powder. He grinds and kneads gold flakes with liquid nikawa glue until the metallic flakes with 0.2μ in thickness are ultimately ground into particles with a diameter of about 3μ. When the glue is thoroughly washed off, the powder dries off to be as fine as flour.

[FILM] Pottery and Gold Powder

Gold powder has traditionally been used for many kinds of arts and crafts. In this article, we introduced an artisan couple who makes beautifully painted pottery. As the wife and the painter, Yoriko speaks“Gold powder gently stands by any colours and beautifully balances the piece as a whole,”the gold powder humbly harmonises the colourful and delightful drawing on the plates.