This is an original Khokhloma and Mstyora lacquer boxes with official Semenov or Mstyora factory logo. All miniatures are hand-painted by Russian artists, so each painting does not repeat one another. "Authoring" lacquer boxes have unique patterns of lacquer miniature also.

The boxes are made of papier-mache and go through a seven-step process to produce the finely crafted boxes for the artists to paint upon. They are traditionally finished with a coat of black lacquer on the outside and red on the inside. The artist draws the design on the box and coats it with lead paint. He uses very fine brushes made of squirrel hair to paint the fine details with a paint made of egg-based tempera. This paint is made in small quantities and very vivid colors. The final step is highlighting and painting a filigree design around the box with paint made of gold leaf. The final coat of lacquer is applied and the box is signed with the artist’s name, theme and the name of the village.

Look at details on "articles about wood gifts" page.