The process of illumination usually follows these steps:
<ol><li>Graphite powder dots create the outline</li>
<li>Silverpoint drawings are sketched</li>
<li>Illustration is retraced with ink</li>
<li>The surface is prepared for the application of gold leaf</li>
<li>Gold leaf is laid down</li>
<li>Gold leaf is burnished to make it glossy and reflective</li>
<li>Decorative impressions are made to adhere the leaf</li>
<li>Base colors are applied</li>
<li>Darker tones are used to give volume</li>
<li>Further details are drawn</li>
<li>Lighter colors are used to add particulars</li>
<li>Ink borders are traced to finalize the illumination</li></ol>
<table class="messagebox plainlinks layouttemplate" style="margin:2px 10%;width:auto;border:2px solid #666;background:#fff;color:#222;border-left-width:8px;border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image" style="padding-left:.9em"><img alt="Commons-emblem-legal.svg" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Commons-emblem-legal.svg/45px-Commons-emblem-legal.svg.png" decoding="async" width="45" height="45" class="noviewer" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Commons-emblem-legal.svg/68px-Commons-emblem-legal.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Commons-emblem-legal.svg/90px-Commons-emblem-legal.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="48" data-file-height="48"></td><td class="mbox-text">This image has been created during "DensityDesign Integrated Course Final Synthesis Studio" at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polytechnic_University_of_Milan" class="extiw" title="wikipedia:Polytechnic University of Milan"> Polytechnic University of Milan</a>, organized by <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.densitydesign.org/">DensityDesign Research Lab</a> in 2016. Image is released under CC-BY-SA licence. Attribution goes to <b>"<a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Lucia_cos&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1" class="new" title="User:Lucia cos (page does not exist)">Lucia Cosma</a>, DensityDesign Research Lab"</b>.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<span class="int-own-work" lang="en">Own work</span>