Lacquers are best be described as a coloured or
clear varnishes. Lacquers dry by solvent evaporation, and quite often a curing
process will be used to produce a durable hard finish for any type of sheen,
from ultra matte to a high gloss, and then the lacquers can be polished even
further if required. The word lacquer comes from the Portuguese word lac, and is
a form of resin excreted by certain insects. Lac based varnishes are known as
shellac. Lacquers refers to some polymers which are dissolved in volatile
organic compounds, such as nitrocellulose and acrylic and dissolved in lacquer
thinner, which is a mixture of several solvents. Lacquers and shellac are
traditional finishes, with lacquers being more durable than shellac. There are
several types of lacquers and some of these are acrylic lacquers, urushiol based
lacquers and water based lacquers.
