In the spirit of tradition, Joan Perkins combines modern technology with ages-old techniques to apply the name to THIMBLE’s transom.
The waterfront of Bristol, Rhode Island, looks much different than it did when THIMBLE (ex-YANKEE) was built by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company (HMCo.) in 1938. While HMCo. has long since closed its doors and many of its shop buildings are gone from the shoreline, Dan Shea and his crew at the Bristol Boat Company can still be found building, rebuilding, and repairing classic Herreshoffs in one of the remaining HMCo. buildings.
Last spring, I visited Bristol to photograph a project Shea and his crew were working on. As I walked into the shop, which I was happy to find warm and bright compared to the crisp April morning outside, I was greeted by the Herreshoff 12½ I had come to see. THIMBLE was at the end of a thorough and thoughtful restoration by Shea and ready for one of the last projects on the list before her relaunching: putting the name on her transom.
Of the nearly endless typefaces, styles, and methods of lettering available, the new owner decided to stay true to tradition and have the name gilded with hand-laid gold leaf. The artist chosen for the job was Joan Perkins of Padanaram Sign Shop in New Bedford, Massachusetts. With nearly 10 years of gilding experience, Perkins is one of the best in the trade.
The art of gilding—applying thin sheets of gold leaf onto a surface—has been in practice since the ancient Egyptians and has been used in everything from book bindings to architectural features. On boats, gold leaf is commonly used for names, but it’s also common to see a gold covestripe or decorative element.
Skillfully drawing a project such as this can take years of practice, but utilizing a plotter and blade-cut sign masking, described below, in concert with the materials and techniques of gilding, results in a look aesthetically close to hand-lettering.
Here’s how Perkins applied gold leaf on THIMBLE’s varnished transom:
