Your first kintsugi repair should never be the piece you actually care about, because the first repair is where you learn how the glue behaves, how much is too much, and how a gold seam looks when you get it slightly wrong. Practise on a bowl that costs you nothing emotionally and the heirloom gets the version of you that already knows what it is doing. It is the single most useful piece of advice in the whole craft, and it is why our Kintsugi Kit includes two china bowls specifically for breaking.
People sometimes find this odd. You have bought a repair kit and the box contains something to smash. But the logic holds up the moment you mix your first batch of epoxy and realise the clock has started.
Why do practice bowls matter so much?
Because kintsugi is not a craft you can rehearse in your head. Almost everything that separates a clean golden seam from a messy one is physical: how thick a layer of adhesive is thin enough, how firmly to press two edges together, how long thirty to sixty seconds actually feels when you are holding a piece of china in mid-air.
There is also an unforgiving quality to two-part epoxy. Once parts A and B are mixed, it begins to cure, and it does not wait while you reconsider your plan or hunt for the piece you put down somewhere. A first attempt tends to involve some fumbling, and fumbling is much more enjoyable when the object in your hands is a bowl that exists purely to be fumbled with.
Two bowls, rather than one, is deliberate. Almost everyone improves noticeably between the first and the second, and the second is where most people find their rhythm.
What does the first bowl actually teach you?
Four things, all of which are difficult to learn any other way.
- How to mix properly. This is the most important step in the entire process. Squeeze out equal amounts of part A and part B and mix them thoroughly on the card until fully combined. Epoxy only cures hard when the two parts are roughly fifty-fifty and stirred well, and the number one cause of a repair that never sets is an uneven or half-hearted mix.
- How much adhesive is enough. A thin, even layer along a clean, dry edge is what you want. Too much oozes out of the join and makes the repair look messy. Practising is how you calibrate your eye for it.
- How long to hold. The glue is strong but it is not an instant-grab adhesive, so each newly joined piece needs holding firm for thirty to sixty seconds before you move on to the next. That is a genuinely long time when you are new to it.
- How the gold behaves. The gold-effect powder is brushed along the seam once the join has set, and it wants the surface to be still slightly tacky. If it will not stick, running a fine extra line of adhesive along the join and then brushing the powder on solves it.
By the end of two bowls you will also have worked out how bold you like your veins. More adhesive along an edge squeezes out into a thicker, more dramatic line, while a sparing layer keeps the seam delicate. The line is yours to design, and having an opinion about it before you touch the heirloom is worth a great deal.
How should you break a bowl on purpose?
Carefully, and with fewer pieces than you might expect. Wrap the bowl in a tea towel or a piece of cloth first, so nothing scatters and no shards go anywhere they should not, then give it one firm knock against a hard surface rather than several nervous taps. One confident break tends to produce a handful of clean, large pieces, which is exactly what you want to learn on. Repeated tapping produces gravel.
Unwrap it slowly, keep every fragment, and lay the pieces out dry before you mix anything. Working out the order they go back together, generally starting from the largest piece, is part of the craft and takes two minutes that save twenty.
Then check the edges. They need to be clean, dry and free of dust and grease, because a poor bond usually traces back to a dirty edge rather than a bad glue.
When is your treasured piece ready for its turn?
When you have finished both practice bowls and the second one looked better than the first. That is a genuinely reliable test.
Before you start on something precious, be clear about what the repair will and will not give you. The adhesive is not food grade, so a mended piece becomes a decorative object rather than daily crockery, and it is not waterproof either, which rules out anything expected to hold liquid, a vase included. The dishwasher is out permanently, and a repaired piece should be dusted or wiped gently by hand. A mended bowl holding a tea light, on the other hand, is a perfect use: all of the beauty, none of the food contact.
Handle the epoxy with proper respect, too. Work in a well-ventilated room, wear the gloves, avoid skin and eye contact because it can bond skin in seconds, keep it away from children, heat and flames, and read the safety notices in the booklet before you begin. It is an adults-only kit for good reason.
What if you have already broken the precious thing?
Then do the practice bowls first anyway. The broken pieces are not going anywhere, and an hour spent on a china bowl you do not care about is the cheapest insurance available.
Bag the fragments of the real piece somewhere safe, work through both bowls, then come back to it with your hands trained. Clean breaks into a handful of pieces repair beautifully. Something shattered into small fragments is harder, and knowing your own technique before you attempt it makes the difference between a repair you are proud of and one you wish you had waited on.
The Sandy Leaf Farm Kintsugi Kit is hand-packed in Britain and includes the two-part epoxy, the gold-effect powder, a mixing card and applicator, the booklet, and both practice bowls. There is no kiln and no firing involved, just the repair and time left alone while the glue cures.
Kintsugi practice FAQs
Do I have to use the practice bowls?
Nothing stops you going straight to the real piece, but we would not. The bowls are there so your first attempt at mixing, joining and gilding happens on something with no sentimental value.
What is the gold powder made of?
A premium gold mica pigment, the same family of mineral pigment used in fine cosmetics and art materials. It is brushed along the seam once the join has set.
My epoxy is not setting, what went wrong?
Almost always the mix. Parts A and B need to be squeezed out in equal amounts and combined thoroughly, and the surfaces need to be clean and dry before you apply it.
Can I practise on glass instead?
The kit does work on glass, with two caveats: transparent glass makes the gold seam read quite differently, and sharp edges need planning and care before you glue anything.
Does the repair need baking or firing?
No kiln, no oven. The repair simply needs to be left alone while the glue cures fully, and then it is done.
Fancy learning on a bowl that will not break your heart? Have a look at our craft kits.
