I have an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner I bought for cleaning my airbrush and found that it is perfect for cleaning nuggets prior to foiling. I just dump all my nuggets in the basket, add enough glass cleaner and water (about 1 part cleaner to 2 parts water) to cover them, let the thing run for a few minutes, then take them out and dry thoroughly. And just like that you have nice, clean nuggets that foil will actually adhere to.

Can anyone help me with patinas? I love the look of antique gold patinas, but every time I try to apply it I wind up with a mess which I have to cover up with black patina. No matter how thoroughly I clean and wirebrush my lead lines, when I apply the antique gold I initially get that beautiful color I'm looking for, but then it suddenly turns to a bright copper color and only a few spots keep the antique gold color. I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. My black patinas are generally pretty flawless.