Kintsugi Marble X Resin Mirror

About a month ago I had fixed a broken marble slab with some golden resin using the Japanese art of Kintsugi. I made an Instructable about it, go check it out on the following link: https://www.instructables.com/Stormy-Marble-Repair-With-Gold/. It turned out really well but in the end, it was just that... a Marble Slab! So my dad gave an awesome idea where I could turn it into a wonderful mirror. Then you know I had to make it. I incorporated some of the methods used in the previous build as well as some of my other expertise to fulfill this project. Follow this Instructable to see how I made the beautiful mirror in the picture above.

Supplies:

• A Long Slab
• 17”x17.5” Mirror (This will depend on the size of your frame)
• 2 Part Resin Epoxy
• Golden Mica Powders
• Vaseline (optional)
• Gorilla Glue
• Masking Tape
• Corrugated Plastic
• Hot Glue Sticks
• Paintbrush
• Small Screws (Less than 1" in length)
• Popsicle or Mixing Stick

Tools:

• Protractor
• Set Square/ Triangle (optional)
• Measuring Tape
• Ruler
• 3D printer
• Marble Cutting Saw
• Heavy Weights
• Camping lighter/ Blow Torch
• Utility Knife / Exacto Knife
• Hot Glue Gun
• Chisel
• Rotary Tool with a sanding bit + drill bit
• And don’t forget your Pencil!

Sorry guys I don't have a picture of all of the tools and pictures.

Turn over the slab of marble to its back and measure it. My slab measured out to be just under 68 inches long and 4 inches wide. Now if since we are making a square mirror, we need to have 4 equal sides. 68/ 4= 17 inches. Now we've established the dimensions of our frame which is going to be an estimated 17”x 17”.

Start by dividing the piece into 4 pieces each in the length of 17”. Mark them by putting a line across the slab. This will act as a guide for the size and angles.

Now place a protractor where the previous line meets perpendicular to the edge. Now keep in mind that one edge of the slab has a bevel. So, the edge where all the lines meet will be the one outside. I wanted the bevel inside so made all of my angles on the other side. Mark 45 degree angles on both sides of the dividing line as shown in the image above. Do this for all 3 dividing lines. This should make a 90 degree V on all division points.

On both ends, make the same 45-degree angles facing inwards so that each part resembles a trapezoid.

Ahhh yes the most important step, cutting the slab. The sad thing for me is that I don’t even know how to cut a slab of marble. Luckily, I know someone who can. A good friend’s dad offered to cut the piece of marble for me. If you don't have a friend's dad who can cut marble, you can ask a local stonecutter and they might be able to get the job done.

A handy trick that one of my teachers told me was to add hatch-marks to sides that should join. On the first joint add one hatch mark, on the second 2, so on and so on. This will allow me to correctly align the pieces so that the golden veins transition right.

Now take the 4 pieces and align and check them. Shave off and loose bits on the end with a utility knife. Play around with it so that you can get the perfect look in the end.

In order, join the 4 pieces together, we are gluing them together by pouring resin in between the joints. This will allow the joints to resemble the previous cracks. But before we pour the resin we will need a mold. We will again make a custom mold for this project. Now I know that I wrote "corrugated plastic" in the supplies list, but I used foam board for this project. This was because my local dollar store didn't have corrugated plastic boards in stocks but they did have foam board in stock. Something special about this board was that one side was lined with the same material whiteboards are lined with. That acts as parchment paper for the resin. But I would still recommend corrugated plastic only because the foam board took too much work to take off.

Start off in one corner but a little away, leaving enough space to fold up walls, place 2 pieces adjacent to each other. Loosely trace the concave and convex sides and connect them together with a line, This should forming to awful looking L.

Add walls on the side which will be folded up in the next step.

Cut out the previous shape and fold the 2 outer walls inwards. Take some hot glue and glue them together. You might also want to add a line of hot glue in the seam in order to strengthen it. Cut out a strip of foam board about the size of the concave side. This will be the inside wall. Fold it in half and glue it on the inside side of the mold.

Repeat this step and the previous 3 more times to end up with a total of 4 corner molds.

Now, this step is crucial for your end product to look right. Take the pieces and place them inside the mold. Make sure that the hatch marks are matched with the corresponding side. Make sure the inside and outside edges are square with each other too. Add an appropriate gap in the corners so that your end product looks nice.

Mix a batch of 2 part resin epoxy with some Golden Mica Dust. I had leftovers from the last project so I just used those. Mix an equal amount of both Resin and Hardener with some Golden dust and mix it for at least 5 minutes to get a nice consistency.

Pour it into the corners carefully to resemble the previous cracks. Once done, pop any bubble that has surfaced with a blow torch or camping lighter. Cover the mold once done.

Wait for 2-3 days to allow the resin to cure and harden.

After the 3 days, take out the frame from the mold.

If the frame is stuck to the table, take a chisel and hammer and try to release it with that.

Rip off the foam and try to take off all of it by using the chisel. This might take some time but be patient. In this case, you can also use your Rotary tool and try to take some of it with a Sanding or Cleaning bit. At this time, unfortunately, I did;t have my Rotary Tool... yet.

Use the Sanding Drum that comes with your Rotary Tool to take off resin stuck on the sides and corners. Use a smaller sanding drum bit in order to make cleaner and sharper corners. Also, use it to clean the bevel in order to give it a nicer look.

Now just like the previous instructable, I’m going to brush on a clear coat of resin to give the frame some shine.

With a warm, damp cloth, wipe off any dust from the sanding process.

Mix up another small batch of resin epoxy but this time don’t add any dyes. Take a paintbrush and brush it on the frame. Pop any air bubbles with a blow torch or camping lights to give it a smooth shiny, finish instead of a rough, bubbly one.

With a warm damp cloth, wipe the back of the frame to remove any dust. We are now going to glue on the mirror. My mirror will be the same size as the perimeter which gives me a greater surface to glue on. So I ordered a 17"x17.5" mirror from my local mirror and glass shop.

Add some gorilla glue to the back of the frame and place the mirror on it facing down. Make sure all of the corners and edges match. Weight it down by putting something heavy on top of it to create a better bond line.

Allow that to sit for 3-5 hours.

Now I had 2 options to hang the mirror.

1. The first option was to buy mounting hardware from the hardware store rated for the weight of my mirror. This is the most reliable and will be my safety net for mounting it on the wall
2. Make custom, 3D printed wall mounts for the mirror. This is totally experimental but opens up possibilities to make a 3D printed signature on the back of the mirror.

I decided to go with option 2 as I felt a little carefree for this. Now I won't be explaining how I made them in this Instructable since I already have too many steps in this one. Maybe a possibility for a future Instructable!

I requested my local library in order to print the mounts since I do not have access to my own printer yet. I recommend printing it at 100 infills since you want these to be sturdy.

Once I got them, I Gorilla glued them to each corner and waited for them to dry. With my Rotary Tool and the drill bit that came with it, I drilled pilot holes into the marble through the points designated on the mounts. This gave extra support to the mounts so that one day, they don't fall off.

Using the same foam board used with the mold, I created a protective backing for the mirror so that my 3mm thick mirror doesn't break on impact. I cut out a 17" x 17.5" rectangle with the corners adjusted to fit the hardware. Easily glue it on using some gorilla glue and secure it by taping the edges with some masking tape.

Finally, we have finished the mirror. It looks so nice. You can hang it in your washroom or your bedroom. For me, I’m probably going to hang it up in my entrance foyer.

This is a really fun project to do and I would totally recommend anyone to try it. If you don't want to get in the whole resin mess, you can find a marble or quartz slab, cut that out and stick it together. As time goes on, I will try to add more and more pictures to the instructable. Maybe even add a gallery.

Coming Soon!!