A Good Pouncing

So, after some discussions with a few people it looks like preparing my pergamenata with a light pouncing is the way to go. It should soak up the small oily spots I've been finding and I'm hoping that with a couple of changes to my paint mixtures it'll help the cracking / chipping issues too.

So I ordered some Gum Sandarac from John Neal Booksellers without thinking how to apply it. I found this post after using my Google-Fu:

Grind it down to as fine as you can, until it is almost white. Cut a 10cm square of cotton or linen cloth, place you pile of the finely ground powder in the centre, gather up the corners and bind them together with a rubber bamd. You have now made a pounce.

Pounce over the paper/vellum by tapping it on the surface and the fine powder will sift through. With clean hands, spread it over the total surface --- then wipe (or dry brush) it all off ! That very, very thin layer of gum left on the surface will do it all for you. And the smell is beautiful!

The gum resists water. When the pen's edge carries the ink acroos the surface, it pushes away the very fine layer of gum in its path but the ink will not move outside the path --- leaving a sharp edge. This repulsion of water, however, makes it difficult if you want to add any watercolour ornamentaion or backgound painting, So do those before you pounce.

The Aromatic Plant Project also gives a pretty good definition.

This has me worried now though. It sounds like it might cause further issues with the paint adhering to the page? I also bought Dental Pumice and am wondering it the following might work best for my own uses:

How to Prepare Vellum

Vellum has a slightly greasy surface, which makes it a challeng to work with. This will need to be neutrallized before work can begin. It will also need to be given a nap or tooth, which will accept the paint ad ink mediums and bond it to the vellum.
Pouncing accomplished this goal. Pouncing is sort of like sanding the surface of the skin with an abrasive powder.

A recipe for pounce follows:
4 measures of ground Cuttlefish Bone
8 measures of Powderd Pumice
2 measures of Gum Sandarac

Sprinkle a little pounce onto the surface of the skin and gently rub it around in a circular motion with a scrap of vellum until the skin feels smooth. Once the desired smoothness has been achieved, brush off the powder with a soft brush or feather. Do not touch the surface of the skin once it has been prepared. You may transfer the oils from your skin onto the vellum. Be sure to have a piece of paper handy to lay over the surface of the vellum to protect it as you work.

Source: http://brigscribe.webs.com/classhandouts.htm

 I guess its time for me to experiment...