Thanks Vet & Willem,
I thought about it some more- the letters aren't deeply inscribed, so it's hard to paint them a different color. I was thinking though about one possible solution- i could probably paint on a very thin coat of wax over the whole thing (or a water soluble "release" of choice). While the wax is soft, or using gentle heat to maintain the softness, then I could gently scrape the wax off, roll a light coat of paint onto the plate very thinly and use one that beads up on the wax. Then let it dry. Standing it up on edge in a pan and putting it in an oven at 250-300 degrees or so might then cause the wax in the letters to melt and run out of the letters- leaving your letters the original metal color, contrasting nicely with the (for me) black plate. I have also used an eletric iron with newspaper underneath to lift wax out of tablecloths, maybe that would work as well.
It's just a thought, and I won't belabor your thread further with this detail... I am 100% happy with your work!
Jim
