Lacquer is an age-old, almost ancient finishing material. It’s a varnish that has origins in artistic applications.
Asian cultures were the first to truly cultivate and maximize lacquer’s potential. What resulted from the years of tinkering with the material was lacquerware, an ornate way of decorating and protecting wood furnishings and accent items. Decorative lacquerware was typically inlaid or layered and carved for elaborate finishes and even some three-dimensional surfaces.
Lacquer is revered for its ability to vividly display colors and is almost always opaque in common furniture applications. The varnish dries extremely fast and applying it by brushing is just short of impossible. For these reasons, paired with the fact that it is thin in consistency, lacquer is best applied to hard, smooth surfaces.
This famed varnish can be made from a resinous secretion from particular insect species, the sap from the Chinese lacquer tree or a combination of polymers broken down by volatile organic compounds and lacquer thinner.
Technically speaking, if the varnish is lac-based, it is known as shellac. Whereas the polymer version boasts the name lacquer.
The Contempo Black Lacquer Screw Table by Ultimate Accents beautifully exhibits the shine and immense glossy qualities that a lacquer finish has come to be known for.
Although you may recognize lacquer for those glossy qualities, the varnish is also available in a satin and matte finish.