Home › Recipes › To colour vellum green

To colour vellum green

Take half a pint of the best white wine vinegar, an ounce of verdigris, and half an ounce of sap green; dissolve them in the vinegar for a few days, having been heated by the fire. Shake the bottle frequently before it is used. Wash the vellum over with weak potash water, and when dry, colour it with the green three or four times, till it has a good colour: when dry, wash it over with thin paste water, to give the vellum a gloss.

To sprinkle the edges of books, &c.

The brushes used for book-edges, must be made of Russia hog's bristles, of good thickness, tied round with cord, glued at the thick end, and half covered with a piece of leather: when dry, tye the brush again with a waxed cord, within half an inch of the soft part, and cut it very smooth and even. Brushes made after this manner are preferable to those with a handle. Prepare the colour in a cup; dip in the brush till it is charged, and then press it out till it will drop no longer. The book must be screwed tight in the cutting press: hold the brush in the left hand, and, with a folding stick in the right, rub it over the brush, which will cause the colour to sprinkle finely on the edges. The brush must be moved up and down over the edge, as you sprinkle, to have it regular on every part. After the sprinkling is done, the brushes should be carefully washed in water, particularly after sprinkling blue, which will otherwise soon destroy the brush.