The base of a diao piece would be coated with hundreds of layers of lacquer. After a certain thickness was reached, most of the lacquer would then be rubbed off leaving decorative lines of lacquer in relief.
雕漆是在內胎上塗上數十百層的漆，堆疊出一定厚度再來剔除圖案以外的空間。紅漆堆疊作品稱為「剔紅」；黑色稱謂「剔黑」；要是層層顏色都不相同的，隨著用刀剔除的深淺便會透出不同的顏色來，稱為「剔彩」。