The Impatient Sewist

Materials & tools

• A broken ceramic bowl
• Gorilla Epoxy 5 Minute Resin
• Acetone
• Gold or silver acrylic paint
• A fine paint brush
• A wooden toothpick (or something similarly sized) to mix the epoxy

Kintsugi – meaning “golden join” or “golden seams” – is a Japanese mending technique that celebrates the imperfections in a broken piece of pottery. Japanese artisans added gold dust to the lacquer that joined the shards of a pot.

My parents went to Japan some years ago and brought me back a set of two flower-shaped bowls. One of these broke so I decided to repair them in the Kintsugi style.

Ceramics are brittle, which gives you a very clean break. I managed to collect all the pieces of the bowl but had there been missing pieces, I could have filled in the gaps as well. The replacement of missing pieces is common in Kintsugi mending.

I used Gorilla Epoxy 5 Minute Resin to repair the bowl as well as gold-coloured acrylic paint. The materials are cheap and the epoxy is very strong, so it will give you a sturdy repair.

To give you an indication of the epoxy strength, I once repaired the pestle (from a pestle & mortar set) using epoxy and it grinds spices with no problems. Sometimes I forget I ever repaired it (should have used Kintsugi!).

My method

1. Mix the epoxy parts together and brush a small amount on the edges of the shards to join the bowl together. Firmly press the shards together and hold for about a minute before putting them down. Allow the epoxy to set.
   • While the epoxy is still wet, you can clean it up with acetone.
2. With a fine brush, paint over the joins in gold (or silver)
3. Mix another batch of epoxy and thin it out with acetone. Then quickly brush the epoxy mix over the acrylic paint to seal it in place.

I rushed a bit with the gold paint so the lines are not quite as thin and neat as I would like them to have been… but it’s in the Kintsugi spirit to embrace imperfections.

My tips

1. Mix the epoxy in small batches because it sets quickly.
2. Use a small amount of epoxy on the joins or it will spill over too much when you press the shards together.
3. Make sure the epoxy is fully set before painting over it. I would give it 15 minutes, and a bit of heat always helps. If the epoxy is still soft, your paintbrush will drag the epoxy out of place.