The Pitfalls of Overpriced Kintsugi Kits
Kintsugi kits flood today's market, promising beautifully packaged sets with over 20 tools and materials. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned hobbyist, being an educated consumer matters when investing in quality tools for lasting craftsmanship.
Many kintsugi kits start at around $100, some even reaching over $200. But are you truly getting your money's worth, or are you paying for the expensive packaging filled with brass powder, conventional cotton swabs, nylon brushes, latex gloves, and off-the-shelf bamboo skewers from supermarkets?
Crafting Authentic Tools for True Artisans
If you are a serious kintsugi learner, while you explore kintsugi supplies, use it as a learning opportunity to understand the tools' names and functions. Artisans often handcraft their tools from wood, bamboo, and occasionally rare animal bones. These bespoke tools can be adapted to suit specific crafting needs and age beautifully, unlike mass-produced alternatives.
When delicately repairing kintsugi pottery, small, precise tools are essential. Bamboo skewers and toothpicks provides you rounded point-tips and are probably suffice with some modifications, but they shouldn't cost you an arm and a leg. Bamboo skewers are readily available in supermarkets, costing mere pennies each.
Spatulas play a crucial role in Japanese lacquer craftsmanship, acting as extensions of the artisan's hands and fingers. They are meticulously shaped into various sizes and forms to fulfill specific purposes with precision and delicacy. In contrast, off-the-shelf bamboo skewers are designed for puncturing and grilling, with a thickness and rounded shape that are ill-suited for refined craft applications. Their bulky design often leads to messy and clumsy applications, lacking the finesse required for intricate lacquer work.
We're disheartened to see craft enthusiasts being charged premiums for off-the-shelf skewers that cost mere cents. Recognizing the challenge of accessing proper kintsugi tools outside Japan, especially for hobbyists lacking crafting skills, we collaborated with bamboo artisans to develop a specialized spatula set for kintsugi and lacquer craft. Bamboo, known for its rapid renewal and pliable properties, excels in delicate applications like mixing and applying kokusou and sabi during pottery repairs.
Our hand-crafted bamboo spatula set features refined tips ideal for pushing the urushi / sabi / kokuso bonding paste into intricate crevices, piling and shaping mixing paste, and scraping away excess. Each spatula's dimensions, pliability, and thickness were carefully designed, and we left slightly thicker tips to allow for personalization based on your hand sizes and pressure preferences. Users are encouraged to modify their tools using craft knives or sandpaper for personalized flexibility. If carving spatulas feels daunting, contact us, and we'll be glad to provide some support and instruction.
We advocate for serious learners to research and comprehend kintsugi tools and materials. As your knowledge grows and your tools acquire patina, expand your tools collection to embrace the art's beauty—a testament to diligence and patience in every repair.
Show us how you customized your spatulas for your kintsugi craft. We have also added a simple video on adjusting your own spatulas.
Last but not least, save those BBQ skewers for meat and vegetables. Fill yourself up, and go back to the craft table!
We handmade our wood spatulas, too!
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