Cloisonne: noun [kloi-zuh-ney]: enamelwork in which colored areas are separated by thin metal bands fixed edgewise to the ground.
No offense to Dictionary.com but that isn't much of a definition. I actually make cloisonne enamels, and that definition confuses me. Seriously, "fixed edgewise to the ground?" What does that mean?
Let me give you my definition.
"Cloisonne" comes from the French word "cloisons" or compartments. So, the enameling technique called Cloisonne specifically refers to the use of these cloisonne wires to create the compartments or cells that can be filled with different colors of enamels. Although, the term "cloisonne wire" is slightly misleading; cloisonne wires are really thin strips of fine silver, about 1mm tall and .2mm thick.
So, when Dictionary.com says "fixed edgewise" that means that the .2mm thickness is what's touching the "ground," the bottom of the piece. And these wires create the walls that make using the different colors possible.
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