|
|
| Nailhead Rusting |
| Rust from iron nails that penetrates or bleeds through the coating and stains the surrounding area. Sometimes referred to as flash rusting when it occurs with prime or first coats. |
|
| Nanometer |
| A unit of length equal to 10-9 meter. |
|
| Nap |
| A soft or fuzzy surface on fabric (such as a paint-roller cover). |
|
| Naphtha |
| A petroleum distillate for clean up and thinning solvent-based coatings. |
|
| Native colors |
| The basic inorganic pigments derived from pigmented earth colored by minerals, and used to make the basic colors found in artist's oil paints: burnt sienna, burnt umber, lamp-black, raw sienna, raw umber and yellow ochre. |
|
| Natural bristles |
| Also called "china bristles." Brush bristles from animal hair (usually hog). Use this type for oil-based paint only. |
|
| Natural finish |
| Any finish resulting from the application of a transparent substance which does not significantly affect the original color or grain. |
|
| Negative stenciling |
| Creating an image or a motif on a surface, often in a repeated pattern, by applying a form and then painting around it. The shape of the image remains on the surface after the form is removed. |
|
| Negative technique |
| Any painting technique that involves removing wet paint or glaze from a surface. |
|
| Neoclassic |
| Any revival of the ancient styles of Greece and Rome, particularly during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The shapes and ornaments of ancient architecture were applied (incorrectly) to furniture design. |
|
| Netting |
| This refers to the warp and weft of woven materials such as grasscloth, rushcloth, jute weaves, etc. |
|
| Neutral |
| The pH reading at which the substance being measured is neither acidic nor alkaline. Neutral pH is 7.0. |
|
| Neutrals |
| Technically, pure white, black and gray. In decorating, the term extends to grays and blacks with subtle tinges of color and off-whites, as well as a range of natural creams, beiges and browns. |
|
| New wood |
| Stems and branches that grew during the current season. New wood is usually greener, smoother and younger in appearance than wood of the previous season, or old wood. |
|
| Nitrocellulose |
| Produced by treatment of cotton fibers or wood fibers by nitric acid, is the major ingredient of most lacquers. |
|
| Noble Metal |
| A metal which is not very reactive, as silver, gold, and copper and may be found naturally in metallic form on Earth. |
|
| Non-Volatile |
| That portion of a material which does not evaporate at ordinary temperatures; the solid substances left behind after the volatiles have evaporated. |
|
| Nonbreathing wallpaper |
| Nonporous wallpaper that does not allow air to penetrate the decorative surface. This type of wallpaper usually requires a longer drying time because the adhesive must dissipate into the wall surface. When both the wallpaper and wall surface are nonbreathable, liner paper is sometimes used to absorb moisture, in order to prevent a mildew problem. |
|
| Nonpolar Solvents |
| Aromatic and petroleum hydrocarbon groups characterized by low dielectric constants are referred to as nonpolar solvents. |
|
| Nonvolatile Matter |
| The portion of a material which does not evaporate at ordinary temperature. |
|
