A kintsugi kit contains everything needed to rejoin a broken piece and finish the seam in gold: a two part epoxy adhesive, a gold effect mica pigment powder, a spreader and a mixing card, gloves, two practice bowls and an instruction booklet. You add nothing except the broken object itself, and a few things you already own, like a tea towel and a clear table. There is no kiln, no oven and no specialist tool anywhere in the process.
Here is what each item is for, and why the box is put together the way it is.
What is in the box?
- Two part epoxy adhesive. The part that does the actual repair. Epoxy comes as two components that do nothing on their own and cure hard once mixed together in equal amounts, which is why it is supplied as a pair rather than a single tube.
- Gold effect mica pigment powder. The gilding. Brushed along a seam while it is still slightly tacky, it gives you the bright golden line that makes a kintsugi repair look like a kintsugi repair rather than a glued plate.
- A mixing card. A disposable surface to squeeze the two parts onto and combine them properly. Mixing on a card rather than a saucer means you can see the colour change as the two parts come together, and you throw it away afterwards.
- A spreader. A small applicator for laying a thin, even layer of adhesive along a broken edge. It is easier to control with epoxy than a paintbrush would be, which is exactly why it is in there instead of one.
- Gloves. Epoxy is a strong adhesive and can bond skin in seconds, so the gloves are not a formality.
- Two practice bowls. Plain china bowls that exist to be broken and mended before you touch anything you care about.
- An instruction booklet. The method step by step, plus the full safety notices, which are worth reading before you start rather than halfway through.
What do you need to add?
Nothing from a shop. The only thing missing is the broken object, and the reason people buy the kit is usually that they already have one sitting in a cupboard because they could not face throwing it out.
A few household things make the evening easier, though none of them are essential. A tea towel or a sheet of kitchen roll to work on stops pieces skating about and catches drips. A shallow box of dry rice or sand lets you nest an awkward shape at an angle while the adhesive cures, so gravity holds the join closed for you. Low tack masking tape does the same job across a simple seam. And a room you can open a window in matters more than any of them.
What is the gold powder actually made of?
It is a premium gold mica pigment. Mica is a naturally occurring mineral, and mica pigments are the same family of material used in art supplies and fine cosmetics for their shimmer. It is not real gold, and no home kit at this sort of price contains real gold.
What it does give you is the look, and at the scale of a seam on a bowl it is genuinely convincing. Traditional urushi kintsugi dusts real gold over tree lacquer across weeks of layering and curing. Our kintsugi kit gets you to the same visual idea, a break celebrated in gold rather than hidden, in an evening.
Why two practice bowls?
Because the first join you ever make is the worst one you will ever make, and it should not be on your grandmother's teacup.
What you learn on the practice bowls is not theory. It is how much adhesive a broken edge actually needs, which is always less than you think. It is what a properly mixed batch looks like compared to a lazy one. It is how firmly to press two pieces together without sliding them out of line, and how long 30 to 60 seconds of holding really feels. It is how bold you want your gold vein: more adhesive squeezed along an edge gives you a thick, confident line, a sparing layer gives you a fine one. Two bowls is enough to make those mistakes and then not make them again.
How do the parts work together?
The sequence is short. Make sure both broken edges are clean and completely dry. Squeeze out equal amounts of part A and part B onto the mixing card and combine them thoroughly, which is the step that matters most, because an uneven mix is the commonest reason an epoxy never hardens. Spread a thin, even layer along the edge with the spreader, press the pieces together and hold each join firmly for 30 to 60 seconds, since the adhesive is strong but it does not grab instantly.
Then leave it alone to cure fully. Nothing is baked, fired or heated at any point. Once the seam has set, brush the gold effect pigment along it while it is slightly tacky, or lay a fine extra line of adhesive over a cured join and gild that instead. Wipe away anything that squeezes out promptly rather than letting it harden proud of the surface.
What the kit does not include, and will not do
There is no filler for a missing fragment. The kit joins broken edges, so if a chip has genuinely vanished, you mend what you have and let the gap be part of the design. There is no brush in the box either, because the spreader handles the adhesive and a fine artist's brush from a drawer is the easiest way to lay pigment if you want one.
And there are limits on the finished piece that are worth knowing before you start. The adhesive is not food grade, so a repaired piece becomes decorative rather than something you eat or drink from, and it is not waterproof, so it should not hold water or go anywhere near a dishwasher. It is an adults only kit: work in a ventilated space, keep the gloves on, avoid skin and eye contact and store it away from children, heat and flames.
Kintsugi kit contents FAQs
Do I need to buy anything else?
No. The kit is complete apart from the broken object itself, though a tea towel to work on and a box of dry rice to prop an awkward shape while it cures both make life easier.
Is the gold in a kintsugi kit real gold?
No, it is a premium gold effect mica pigment, a mineral pigment of the kind used in art materials and fine cosmetics. Real gold belongs to traditional urushi kintsugi, which takes weeks or months.
What are the practice bowls for?
Breaking and mending. They let you learn how the epoxy behaves, how much to spread and how bold you want the gold line before you work on a piece that matters to you.
Does the kit include a paintbrush?
It includes a spreader rather than a brush, because a spreader gives you far more control over a thin layer of epoxy along a broken edge.
Can children use a kintsugi kit?
No. It is an adults only kit because of the epoxy, which is a strong adhesive that can bond skin in seconds. Keep it away from children, wear the gloves and work in a ventilated room.
Is there a booklet with instructions?
Yes, the kit comes with a step by step booklet that covers the method and the full safety notices, which is worth reading before you open the adhesive.
Fancy mending something properly instead of binning it? Browse our craft kits.
