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[Seahag1978]

The badges I had were a bit worn so I thought about how to restore them to their original look.

Silver leaf.

You can buy it at A.C. Moore in the picture frame department for less than $12. It includes 25 sheets of silver leaf, adhesive and sealer.

Take a small artist's paint brush and paint on the adhesive. It's milky when wet and dries in an hour. The adhesive will dry clear but will still be tacky when dry (about 60 minutes). Don't be tempted to touch it with your fingers... just have faith... trust me... trust it... it's tacky, honest.

Take a sheet of the leaf and either tear or cut it with a sharp ex-acto knife to fit the area. It's micro-thin and flops everywhere, so you'll probably mess up the first sheet. I did.

Carefully lay it over the badge and take a soft brush to tamp it down... don't use your finger... especially if you have been polishing chrome and removing paint from places it shoudn't be for the past 2 days... your finger will scratch the leaf because your skin is like 200 grit sandpaper. Trust me... I know.

Once you have it tamped down, brush away the excess. It will have the same luster as the original piece. I was pleased with the result.

In addition to the sealer, I'm also going to spray it again with a clear coat enamel to protect it from the elements.