Help fix my teacup!
March 12, 2010 7:45 AM   Subscribe

Help me fix my teacup!

I have a lovely teacup made by a local artist that I managed to drop on a stone floor about 2 minutes after purchasing it. It survived pretty well, considering. There is a 1/2"-1" diameter chip missing out of the lip of the cup, and aside from that it's intact.

So! How do I make the best of this teacup, assuming I want to keep it?(which I do!) The missing chip is a little jagged, and I'd love to sand/smooth it down somehow, and if possible, seal it in some manner, without making it unusable as a tea receptacle that will be near my mouth and such. It's made of high-fire porcelain and glazed, as it were, with low-fire colored clays. I've crazy-glued the larger chips back in place.

You can see some pictures here.
posted by sdis to Home & Garden (4 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Sometimes simmering clay vessels in milk can help seal cracks. It might work for your mug, too.
posted by Eshkol at 7:52 AM on March 12, 2010


The artist that made it may be able to re-fire it with a speck of glaze on the chip. That's a permanent fix, and one that will add character to your cup. See if you can get in touch with them. I'd guess that your obvious love for the cup will make them happy.
posted by fake at 7:57 AM on March 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


Use epoxy instead of crazy glue. I am (sometimes) a potter and we use the two part epoxy to fix stuff that has already been fired. It stinks to mix up but is a permanent fix, and should hold.

You can smooth out the rough edges with a Dremel and a diamond bit.
posted by chocolatetiara at 8:35 AM on March 12, 2010


"Gorilla" brand super glue. It has tiny particles of rubber mixed in, and it sets flexible. I've had excellent luck fixing broken crockery and plastic parts with it. Haven't had a failure yet.
posted by Death by Ugabooga at 10:46 AM on March 12, 2010


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