Traditionally lacquer boxes are made of papier-mâché. Papier-mâché is used because, when prepared properly, it is stronger than wood and does not warp.
To make a papier-mâché box first many sheets of a kind of cardboard are pasted together with a glue mixture, wound around a mold, pressed, and are then left to dry. Once dry, the papier-mâché is boiled in linseed oil. It is then placed in an oven where it is heated very slowly to 212 degrees Fahrenheit and is then brought back to room temperature. This heating and cooling takes many days.
The pieces of papier-mâché are then cut into the sizes necessary for the boxes. The pieces of the box are then joined together. Coats of a black paste are then applied. After each coat the box is placed in an oven for a day. Next the box is smoothed. Coats of the base lacquer (usually black or red) are then applied to the box. The box is then covered with a few coats of clear lacquer.
The artist then paints the box, using brushes as fine as a single squirrel's hair for the details. Once the box is painted, the artist applies the gold work. A sheet of gold leaf is ground and combined with an egg solution. The gold leaf is then painted on. To make the gold glisten it must be very thoroughly shined. This is done with a very smooth surface: a wolf's tooth.
To finish the box more coats of clear lacquer are applied.
Higher quality boxes are always painted on papier-mâché. Some less-expensive boxes, however, are painted on wood or
plastic (no boxes offered for sale at this website are plastic). On this
website boxes that are not made of papier-mâché are clearly identified as such.
Also, some people have manufactured boxes that are not hand-painted; instead, printed images are placed under the lacquer. All boxes on this website are hand-painted.