I've held off on the gilding(the application of gold, or other metal, to the surface of the icon) until the end per the advice of the iconographers at the Iconography Institute. According to my artist's manual, gilding actually happens at the beginning. But the iconographers I talked to said it's just too easy to drip paint, scratch, or otherwise ruin the gilt when it is put on at the start. Best to wait until the end, less to go wrong...we'll see.
