Kintsukuroi Repair Kit, Repair Ceramic Bowls and Vases With Gold Powder Glue, Crack Beautification Repair Kit-Two Practice Bowls & Rich Accessories

I've always been fascinated by the Japanese art of 'Kintsukuro'.Rather than discarding a broken item, they repair them with gold paste and paint,.This 'Kintsukuro Repair Kit' contains everything you need to complete three types of repair, from simple crack repairs, to bridging gaps and filling. There are two small ceramic dishes included to practice on too.There is epoxy resin included to repair the ceramic and if you’ve not used this before it may be worth doing a bit of research before as the instructions are quite basic on this point,The epoxy dispensers are very basic, but could definitely be better. But there are a couple of small 'spoon' type dishes provided, in which to mix the epoxy and the 'gold' filling materials; as well as some basic gloves and stirrers.Like most techniques, I would recommend on starting with something very small which is why the practice dishes are perfect for, and use less material, until you get a feel for the mix and the working time (once epoxy starts to 'set', you don't want to be rushing and you certainly want to keep your fingers out of the way).My first practice piece was quite cute and following the finishing instructions will be ok.I’m sure i will drop a bowl or something else before long abd I can’t wait to complete a slightly larger project. A much better way of turning a broken piece of crockery into something beautiful rather than just throwing it away.Overall a great kit to start an interest inthe Japanese art of 'Kintsukuro'. Would make a lovely gift.

I've always been fascinated by Japanese 'Kintsukuro', where they celebrate the uniqueness of each object, rather than casting them aside as broken or flawed. It's always seemed so elegant, so simple, yet so tantalisingly out of reach (to my uninformed hand and mind), but when the chance came to try this kit, I jumped at it.The 'Kintsukuro Repair Kit' contains just about everything that's needed, short of patience and a nice (airy) space in which to work. You get all the materials that are covered, in the instructions, for the 'three' types of repair (from simple crack repairs, to bridging gaps and filling) and there's even a couple of small glaze ceramic dishes, with which to practice.I would say that, if you've worked with two-part epoxy before, then it'll be very straightforward to work with, but if you've not, then you might find the instructions a little lacking.The epoxy dispensers are 'ok' at best, but really could be better. At least there's a couple of small 'spoon' type dishes provided, in which to mix the epoxy and the 'gold' filling materials; as well as some basic (thin) gloves and stirrers.Like most techniques, I would recommend on starting with something very small (hence, the practice dishes are ideal) and use less (rather than more) material, until you get a feel for the mix and the working time (once epoxy starts to 'set', you don't want to be rushing and you certainly want to keep your fingers out of the way).My first couple of practice projects have been passable (I'm quite pleased with them) and they'll smooth back nicely, with a little bit of sanding and finishing (something that's not included in the kit).I like the look of the finishes (shades of gold) and I'm fairly confident that the repairs (a crack and a couple of sections out of a ceramic pot) will hold. So, overall I'm actually quite pleased that this kit will not only save objects, but make them look better and feel a little more personal.Just take your time, plan and be patient.

The media could not be loaded.  I was looking forward to trying my hand at a new craft technique. I pride myself at being able to turn my hand to almost anything but I have to say, this has pretty much defeated me. The finished result using the practice pot, is anything but beautiful. The process really is not something for the amateur and would take many practice pots to get even a half decent result. I am sure a simple repair, such as gluing a handle back on or a single piece broken off, would be much easier to achieve but multiple pieces just end up looking a mess as it is impossible not to smudge the glue all over the place. Well, I found it impossible anyway.The two part epoxy glue does set to a very strong finish, so from the point of view of a very strong repair, it is excellent. It also has excellent gap-filling properties and you can use it to fill in missing pieces and holes. It goes off within minutes though so only a very small amount should be mixed at a time. This is rather difficult to achieve as it is hard to control the plunger to extrude only a small amount of glue at a time. I did manage it after several goes, so practice does make perfect. I used a small hack-saw to cut the top off the epoxy tubes but still took a couple of goes to get a nice even cut so that the two parts of epoxy were roughly extruded at the same rate. Most two part epoxy glues I have used have tops that snap off so you don't have to worry about getting the cut just right but there is no way the tops can just be snapped off these epoxy tubes.I used the palest of the gold powders for my practice pots and it turned to a lovely rich gold when mixed with the epoxy. The glue turns them into a completely different colour. Darker.The gloves that are provided in the pack are the type found in hair dye packs and are fairly loose with excess around the fingers which is completely useless for this type of thing. You need to wear gloves but ones that fit your fingers snugly. I found latex or vinyl gloves much better than the ones provided. Even then, it was all too easy to smudge the epoxy.When the epoxy goes off, after a few short minutes, the residue gets very hot in the mixing pot if there is a thick layer. I put it outside on cobbles to let it set in as cool a place as possible. Once cold and hard, only a matter of 15 minutes or so, it is possible to flex the mixing pot and get the residue out so the pot can be re-used.The instructions say to use the flat ended brush to apply the epoxy to the edges, but after the first time the glue went off, the brush was solid with the dried glue and had to be thrown. I found a stick much better. It applied the glue well and residue was easy to wipe off. If I forgot, I just snapped the end off the stick.My second practice pot broke into several pieces and when I came to fit the last piece, it was slightly 'off'. This meant it could not be joined to the rest without leaving a gap. In the end, unable to accept defeat, although I tried to give up on it several times, I filled the cracks with thick lines of epoxy. The photos show the end result. Not exactly a thing of beauty!I would like some more information about the epoxy. The listing shows it being used to repair a mug and a glass, but can the repaired objects be used for food and drink? Is the epoxy food-grade? There just isn't enough information on the listing and none provided in the box either.I am very impressed with the strength of the repairs and will definitely use this in the future, especially on simple repairs. It is a good starter set but two practice pots are insufficient to get used to the medium and acquire the skill required to do a neat job. Frustrating though it was, I still enjoyed having a go. I am determined not to give up and will have another practice using an old cup. I have learned a lot from my mistakes and hope my next piece with be much neater with slimmer repair lines. Less is more! It can be used on wood, ceramics, glass and stone so it has endless possibilities.