The Story of Shellac and the Laccifer Lacca (Lac Beetle)

From the beetle to the tree, 'Shellac' embarks on a remarkable process before it is purified for commercial use. The Laccifer Lacca (Lac Beetle) is a scale insect from the cohiael family. Measuring just 5mm in length when fully grown, it resides on trees in India and southern Asia, such as the Ficus, Palas, Kusum (Schleichera oleosa) and Ber (Ziziphus mauritiana) tree's.

After the Mother sucks sap from the branches of certain trees. It sucks sap from the beginning to the end of its life. Mostly staying put, immobile but not not lazy. The Lac beetle is anchored by it's stalk of nose. The nose that slowly sucks sap, know as Lac that builds up and hardens over the Beetle to form a protective shell.

This amazing process requires the precise efforts of man, animals and nature to perfect.

Larvae draw sap from fresh shoots and then secrete a saliva known as "Lac." It sucks sap from the beginning to the end of its life. Mostly staying put, immobile but not not lazy. The Lac beetle is anchored by it's stalk of nose. The nose that slowly sucks sap, know as Lac that builds up and hardens over the Beetle to form a protective shell. The Lac continues to build up over the reproductive cycle.
The male fertilizes the female, then dies, leaving the female to produce a larvae of anywhere between 200 to 10,000 Lac Beetle's.

The amber coloured Lac is the raw material for "Shellac." Shellac is used for French polishing, food, medicine and many other household products.

At the end of the cycle, the adult Beetle's are harvested, separated and purified. Some adult Lac Beetle's are left behind to provide food for the newly born larvae. The process starts over again, taking 300,000 Lac Beetle's to produce a 1kg sack of Shellac.

French polish is formed from the excretion of the Lab Beetle which is the core ingredient of shellac.' From the beetle to the tree, shellac embarks on a remarkable natural process before it is purified for commercial use. Shellac was confined to the Far East until traders introduced it to Europe in the 1700's, it wasn't until the 18th century that the technique was refined by the French.

Survival of an art

"French polishing'' was the industry standard in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries, pushed aside by the efficient advantage of modern methods in the industrial revolution. Lacquers and spray systems replaced the original French polish finish, it is unpractical for mass furniture production due to the labor intensive process of application. As the desire for antiques was not idle, neither is the need for them to be appropriately restored. Which in many sense has kept the trade alive. Few people realize the unmatched beauty of a 'French polished' finish,

Many attempts have been made over the past hundred years to find a suitable synthetic duplicate of shellac. This has led to an increase in the use of toxic chemicals to produce goods, such as bakelite, cellulose nitrate, acrylics and urethanes. As people become increasingly aware of the harm 'safe' toxic chemicals do to themselves and the planet, shellac is starting to make a comeback.

Other Uses Of Shellac

Most commonly known as a wood finish, Shellac's most fascinating uses of are in everyday products. Because of its specific characteristics, it has a wide variety of uses, most of which continue to this day.
Although it is often a food ingredient, it is commonly know in the food industry as 'confectioners glaze.' Have you ever wondered how M & M's don't melt in your hand but in your mouth. It's the same insect excretions as time release pharmaceutical pills. the top four uses for the dry shellac flakes are pharmaceutical, confectionery, hats, and food coatings.

Shellac vinyl records, When the music industry exploded in the 1970's, demand for shellac was twice the amount of supply. This lead the the industry looking for other suitable materials.

Mixing Shellac - Making the Cut

Mixing shellac is simple, although you may wonder why you'd want to when it can be purchased premixed. Shellac has a six month shelf life once mixed with alcohol using an older solution of mixed shellac will result in longer drying times and more prone to water spotting.

Shellac flakes are the raw material of mixed shellac and when stored away from heat and sunlight offer a much longer shelf life. By buying shellac in flake form you can mix only what you intend to use.

To make a solution, shellac flakes are mixed with denatured alcohol. The amount of shellac and alcohol can vary depending how thick or thin you want the mix to be. It is worth keeping in mind that the thinner shellac is easier to apply smoothly and dries a lot faster. Once mixed the shellac flakes start to dissolve almost immediately. To make a pint of sealer use the 2:16 ratio (2 oz. of shellac flakes dissolved in 16 oz. of alcohol).