METHOD | DESCRIPTION |
ALLOY | To add one metal or element to another to obtain a substance with a desired property |
AMBROTYPE | Thin collodian negative on glass with black backing of paper, cloth or paint to make look positive; usually in a velvet-lined presentation case |
APPLIQUÉ | Decorate or trim one material by sewing or fixing onto another |
BAKE | Cook or harden by dry heat, as in an oven |
BASKETRY | Containers made of a mesh of plant fibres using a technique similar to weaving |
BATIK | Fabric-printing method in which wax is used to stop parts of the fabric being dyed |
BEAD | Small, usually spherical beads of glass, wood or plastic sewn to fabric |
BEATEN | Shaped or made thin by hammering |
BEVEL | To cut an oblique face on a piece of timber, or the like |
BLACKING | A preparation for producing a black coating, as in shoes |
BLIND-TOOL | Decorative technique used in leatherwork, especially in bookbinding; the design or lettering stamped, embossed or otherwise impressed on the surface of the leather and left blind, i.e., without the addition of gold leaf or colouring |
BLOW | To shape glass and ornaments by forcing air or gas through the material when still molten |
BORN-DIGITAL | Digital work which is not a copy of analogue items or documents |
BOUND | In bonds; with, or as if with, a rope; secured within a cover or binding, i.e., a book |
BRAID | Decorate with an ornamental trim or border |
BURNISH | Make shiny or smooth by friction; polish |
CARVE | To cut or chip to form a shape; decorate by cutting or chipping |
CHALK | To draw or make something with chalk; mark, rub, or whiten with, or as if with, chalk |
CHASE | Ornament metal by engraving or embossing; to form or finish a screw thread with a chaser |
CHROME-PLATE | To plate with chromium, usually by electro-plating |
CLOISONNÉ | Design made by an outline of flattened wire filled in with coloured enamel; also made by Cloisonne |
DAGUERREOTYPE | Photograph taken using silver-plated (rarely solid silver) or copper-sheet plate, usually found in velvet-lined leather case; introduced in 1839 and popular for around 20 years |
DOVETAIL | Two pieces of wood joined at right angles by means of wedge-shaped tenons and mortices, carved out of each piece |
DRAW | Depict or sketch in lines, with a pencil or pen |
DRAWN THREADWORK | Some threads drawn out from a panel of linen, the rest grouped and whipped together to form geometrical and other patterns |
DYE | To colour or stain something, such as fabric or hair, with the application of a dye |
EBONISE | To stain or otherwise finish in imitation of ebony |
ELECTRO-PLATE | To plate an object by electrolysis |
EMBOSS | To mould or carve a decoration or design on a surface, so that it is raised above the surface in low relief |
EMBROIDER | To do decorative needlework upon cloth or similar |
ENAMEL | To inlay, coat or otherwise decorate with enamel |
ENGRAVE | To inscribe a design or writing onto a block, plate, or other surface by carving, etching, or other process |
ETCH | To wear away the surface of a metal, glass or similar with an acid; to cut or corrode a design on a metal or other printing plate by acid, on parts not covered by wax or acid-resistant coating |
FABRICATE | To make, build or construct |
FACET | To cut faces, such as in a gemstone |
FILE | To shape or smooth a surface with a file |
FILIGREE | Openwork decorations of slender threads and usually tiny balls of gold or silver |
FIRE | To bake a ceramic in a kiln to harden the clay and fix the glaze |
FLAKE | To peel or cause to peel off in flakes; to cover or become covered with flakes |
FORGE | To shape (metal) by heating and hammering |
FRAME | To enclose a picture, window, door, etc |
FROSTING | To cover with icing, as in a cake; a surface roughened, as if to cover with frost and preventing transparency |
GALVANISE | To cover iron or steel with a protective zinc coating by dipping into molten zinc or by electro-deposition |
GILD | To cover with, or as with, gold |
GLAZE | To fit or cover with glass; to cover with a vitreous solution to make impervious to liquid and smooth to touch; to cover (a painting) with a layer of semitransparent colour to modify tones; to make glossy or shiny; a smooth lustrous finish or a fabric produced by various chemicals |
GOLD-PLATE | To coat other metal with gold, usually by electro-plating |
GOLD-TOOL | A decorative technique used in leatherwork, especially bookbinding; the design or lettering is stamped, embossed or otherwise impressed on the surface and gold leaf applied with heated tools |
GOUACHE | Also known as ‘body colour’; a painting technique using opaque watercolour in which the pigments are bound with glue and the lighter tones contain white |
GROUND | A surface finished, thickness reduced or edge sharpened by grinding, such as with a stone axe |
HANDMADE | Made by hand, not machine, usually with great care and craftsmanship |
HEWN | Something struck, especially wood, with cutting blows, as with an axe; to carve from a substance or sever from a larger portion |
HONE | To sharpen or polish with or as if with a hone (stone) |
INLAY | To decorate an object, especially furniture, or a surface, by inserting pieces of wood, ivory or another material into prepared slots in the surface |
INTAGLIO | Incised relief carving, the opposite of cameo, especially on gems, hard stones or glass; also an old printing method |
JAPAN | Lacquered with japan or any similar varnish |
KNIT | To make a garment or textile by looping and entwining wool by hand, using long, eyeless needles |
KNOT | To tie or fasten a knot |
LACQUER | Decorative objects coated with lacquer, often inlaid |
LAMINATE | To make material in sheet form by bonding together two or more thin sheets; to cover or overlay with laminae |
LASH | To bind or secure with rope, string or similar |
LUTE | To join separate pieces of clay together with liquid slip, such as when applying clay decoration to a vessel |
MACHINE | To shape, cut or remove excess material using a machine tool |
MAGNETISE | To make a substance or object magnetic |
MARBLE | To colour sheets of paper or edges of books through their contact with patterns of colour floating on water |
MASS PRODUCE | To make identical products by machine in very large numbers |
METALLIC | Of, concerned with or consisting of metal |
MINT | To make coins by stamping metal |
MOULD | To shape or form, as with a mould |
NATURAL PROCESS | Produced by nature |
NEGATIVE | Developed photographic image in which the lights and shades are reversed (i.e., in negative), usually then transferred to positive through printing |
OIL | To lubricate, smear or polish with oil or an oily substance |
OPAQUE | To reduce transparency so light is not transmitted |
PAINT | The act of producing a picture using paint |
PHOTOGRAPH | Recording of an image on a sensitised surface by the chemical action of light or radiation; see also print |
PLAIT | To intertwine strands or strips in a braid |
PLATE | To coat with a layer of metal |
POLISH | To make or become smooth or shiny by rubbing, especially with wax or an abrasive |
PRESS | To make objects from soft material by pressing with a mould; to squeeze or compress to alter in shape |
PRINT | To reproduce text or pictures, often in large numbers, by applying inks to paper or other materials; to mark or indent a surface by pressing something onto it; to produce a photographic print from a negative, using light and chemicals |
PULP | To reduce a material to pulp |
PUNCH | To pierce, cut, stamp, shape or drive with a punch |
QUILT | To stitch together two pieces of fabric with a padding or lining between them |
RAISING | An ancient craftsman’s process of making a hollow vessel from a sheet of fairly soft metal by hammering it into shape on a wooden block |
RECORD | The act or process of recording, especially a sound recording but also documenting through transcription |
SCULPT | To carve, cast, or fashion a material in three dimensions, e.g., the art of making figures or designs in relief |
SEW | To join or decorate pieces of fabric or other material by means of needle and thread |
SILVER | To coat with silver or a silvery substance, as in silvering a spoon |
SILVER-PLATE | To coat a metal or object with silver through electro-plating |
SKIN | To strip of the skin |
SMOKE | To darken glass or similar material by exposure to smoke |
SOLDER | To join or mend with solder; joining metal surfaces by melting an alloy so that it forms a thin layer between the surfaces |
SPIN | Form or manufacture by spinning, e.g., spun glass, spun gold |
STAIN | A solution of liquid used to penetrate a material’s surface, especially wood, to colour the surface without fully covering its surface texture or grain |
STAMP | To impress or mark a device or sign on something |
STENCIL | To mark a surface with a stencil |
STEREOTYPE | A pair of photographic prints designed to be viewed in tandem, side by side, to produce an effect of depth; usually used for scenic views and taken with a camera with two lenses |
STIPPLE-ENGRAVE | To decorate glass with incised dots of varying density, giving an appearance of light and shade |
STUD | To ornament or make with studs |
TAN | To change to brown through exposure to ultraviolet rays; to convert a skin or hide into leather by treating it with a tanning agent |
TAXIDERMY | The art of preparing, stuffing and mounting animal skins so that they have a life-like appearance |
THROW | To shape material on a potter’s wheel |
TIE-DYE | To dye textiles with patterns produced by tying sections of cloth together so they don’t absorb the dye |
TIN | To plate, coat or treat with tin |
TINT | To colour or tinge with colour |
TINTYPE | Photograph, usually portrait, produced in the second half of the 19th century by the collodian process directly on japanned iron; it contains no tin, but is grey or tinny in appearance |
TOOL | To decorate a book cover with a bookbinder’s tool |
TRANSPARENCY | Lantern slide or other positive image designed to be viewed by looking through it; the colour film for making modern transparencies was introduced in 1935 |
TURN | To shape or cut a thread in an object by rotating it on a lathe against a cutting tool |
TYPE | To write copy using a keyboard |
UPHOLSTER | To fit with padding, springs, webbing and covering, e.g., chair, sofa, car seat |
VARNISH | To cover with varnish (resinous matter dissolved in volatile liquid) or varnish-like substance |
VENEER | To face a material with a thin layer of wood or another material; to conceal something under a pleasing surface |
VIDEOTAPE/RECORD | Recording designed for television playback on which sound and images have been registered electronically |
WALTER | To produce a wavy, lustrous finish on fabrics, especially silk |
WAX | To coat or polish with wax |
WELD | To join pieces of metal or plastic by softening with heat and hammering, or by fusion |
WEAVE | To construct something by interlacing elements, especially fabric produced by yarn woven on a loom |
WOOD-GRAIN | To apply a pattern to a wood surface that looks like wood grain |