I recently broke a very special cup. It's not really a special cup and the saucer has long since been mislaid. But it's the cup I remember my dad using for tomato soup when I was quite a young girl. My parents divorced early on so I never spent as much time as I would have liked with him, but my memories of moments in time from that period are special; hence this tomato soup cup is special.
So I've made an attempt at mending it, inspired by Kintsugi, the Japanese art of mending broken pots - repairing the pots with gold, making a feature of the brokenness and celebrating it.
"The world breaks everyone, then some become strong at the broken places." ~Ernest Hemingway
I like that I have spent time with my dad in my thoughts while I attempt my repair. I've not followed the traditional methods, just used modern glues and gold powder, and I've not done an amazing job, but I have my cup back and it may feature as a prop on some of my product photographs.
I found this blog post by Sequins and Cherry Blossom really interesting:
http://sequinsandcherryblossom.com/2014/01/26/kintsugi-lacquer-repair/
Have you ever had a go at Kintsugi? Do share your photos with us!
I've not heard of Kintsugi, but it's a lovely way to keep treasured memories. I have several Victorian cups which have been repaired with metal rivets. This meant they were really cheap to buy, but I love the fact that someone treasured them so much that they took the trouble to staple the pieces back together.
ReplyDeletePenny x