Below is a basic lesson / tutorial on how to fix / mend broken pottery if you choose to do it yourself. This tutorial may assist you to repair your broken ceramic object using commonly available materials and tools saving you the cost of repair. If you decide to use our restoration services, we will be glad to provide you with an estimate for the repair.

Before and After Repair

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On-line Restoration Cost Estimate Form

About our service capabilities: Our repair and restoration offerings include: Ceramic, Pottery, Statues, Dolls, China, Porcelain and Wood Sculptures. As you can see from our Before and After example page, the range of repairs we can perform is diverse - it can be a simple crack or a multiple breaks and / or missing pieces. Lakeside Pottery can match the ceramic material and restore the original look and feel. As an option, we have the unique capability as ceramic artists of taking an impression of missing pieces, reproducing them from clay and kiln firing the duplicated pieces (instead of a lower cost "filler" option) to insure uniformity of materials. At times, making a Custom Made replica in our pottery studio is a more cost effective option which you may choose.

Satisfaction guaranteed: We do not ask for the balance due payment until you are 100% satisfied with the end results (we'll e-mail you high resolution pictures for review). For more details and restoration pricing, visit our restoration main page.

See Some related links below:

Ceramic Restoration Shop Tools and Materials	Restoration Services Home Page	Repair Video
Lesson 2 - Do it Yourself - Missing Pieces & Coloring	BEFORE and AFTER  Restoration Pictures

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LESSON 1: How to Fix Broken Pottery, Ceramic or Glass
(To see a repair process of a broken pot with missing pieces, antiquing and color restoration, go to: Lesson 2 )

We are often asked if we can refire a broken pot or a statue and make it "perfect" again. A potter simply cannot refire a pot and make it whole again. The only thing that will fix pottery is epoxy glue. With modern adhesives, it's possible to make nearly invisible repairs to damaged ceramic and glass items.

What you will need:
1. Adhesive - two-part clear epoxy glue
2. Wooden stick or a pin-tool for applying adhesive
3. Modeling clay
3. Razor blade
4. Gloves

Choose your adhesive. Specific kinds of adhesives are generally used to mend ceramics and glass. We recommend clear, slow- setting two-part epoxy. There are cases where a quick set epoxy will work better. In order to choose the correct adhesive for a ceramic repair, you must first identify the type of ceramic involved. Because an exact fit is essential in repairing ceramics and glass, you must adjust the pieces precisely before the glue sets. Five-minute epoxies and instant glues might dry too fast and are not recommended if you need longer time to match and adjust precise fit. We use different adhesives for different applications. For the purpose of this tutorial, we recommend more commercially available brands that are listed in our Where to Purchase Ceramic Repair Materials page.

Prepare the surface. The most important step in repairing a broken glass or ceramic item is to make sure the pieces are clean. If the item has been fixed before, undo the old repair, or the new adhesive may not bond. Before handling the pieces, you may want to put on clean gloves to protect your hands from sharp edges. Clean the pieces with a mixture of mild dishwashing liquid and warm water; gently loosen dirt with a plastic scrubbing pad. Rinse the pieces and let them dry completely. If stains persist, use Goof Off heavy duty spot remover.

Applying the adhesive. Use a wooden stick, paper clip or a pin tool and apply glue to only one of the broken edges. Use only enough adhesive to cover the edge. Too little will leave gaps, resulting in a weak repair; too much will make it difficult to achieve a tight joint. Quickly join the pieces together while applying light pressure squeezing extra glue out. Use modeling clay as illustrated below to hold the pieces together. If clay is not available, you can fill a container with rice or beans which will hold the repaired piece in place while it dries. Avoid shifting the pieces; small particles may come loose, ruining the repair. Any glue that oozes from the joint can be removed later using a razor blade. Use tweezers to apply small pieces.

Fixing an item with multiple breaks. If you have a piece of pottery, ceramic or porcelain that is broken into more than two pieces, plan the sequence in which you will attach each piece to avoid being left with a final piece that cannot be easily attached. Numbering the pieces after a dry-run is important and will assist in the actual implementation. Let each joint cure before repairing the next one.

Filling in for missing pieces. We use different products and the choices are too numerous to list here. We'll mention a couple that are more commercially available: Magic Sculpt or C-11, Epoxy Putty. The key elements with fillers are A) Exceptional adhesion B) Will not shrink while curing B) Workable - can be drilled and sanded C) Paintable D) Water / oil proof, E) Will tolerate wide temperature range without shrinking or expanding: See Lesson 2 for more details.

Painting / color touch up: If the glued seam shows or the filler is visible and this is not acceptable to you, color touch up is required and is not covered here due to numerous possibilities and the complexity of it. We use high end acrylic paints or coloring pigments powders and colored hardeners mixed with proper additives to create strength and the right light reflection to emulate the broken item's glaze affect as close as possible - see our tools and materials tutorial page. Note that this is the most difficult part to master and it is very time consuming in particular repairing objects with multiple colors. See Lesson 2 for more details.

• Example of repair without paint touch up ............ Example of repair with paint touch up

Restoration Customer Comments about their experience using Lakeside Pottery:

Patty and Morty, you are really incredible! The Santa plate and my violin girl figuring are both whole again, and beautiful. Thank you for your care, amazing response time, and artistic excellence. Ellen

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Morty from Lakeside Pottery repaired a small saltbox for me that had strong sentimental value. It had belonged to my parents and had some historical value as it is labelled "Made in Occupied Japan".

The broken off corner piece is now back in place; the paint was perfectly matched. Morty used great care and his considerable skills to restore the box to its former glory. We are completely satisfied with Morty's dedication to his craft and would recommend Lakeside Pottery whole heartedly. Paul and Dorothy

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Thanks so very much!! The dish looks amazing thanks to your talented repair. Thanks again for fixing it so quickly!!
Happy New Year to you and yours!! Chris

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Restoring a lid to a pot. "Hi Patty and Morty, I received the lid and it looks beautiful! I can't thank you enough for doing such a wonderful job. I appreciate your expertise and also your kindness. Thank you so much. Carol"

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Restoring Josefina Aguilar Ceramic Sculpture. We recently had two large clay figures repaired at Lakeside Pottery. The statues were made by the world famous Mexican Folk Artist Josefina Aguilar. The two figures each 30” high were quite heavy and though professionally packed broke in shipment. The repairs required reconstructing complex shapes that had broken off the figures, adhering them to the body, and painting them to match the original colors. In addition a 10” long hairline stress crack up the back of one figure needed to be stabilized. To reconstruct the broken pieces, Lakeside Pottery used both primitive techniques employed by the artist, and cutting edge technology such as high strength adhesives, fiber and fillers. Using only materials that would not damage the art work, they restored the broken pieces so the repairs were stronger than the original clay construction. All the work was done with great care and expertise and when finished the repairs were invisible to the naked eye and touch.

It was a pleasure working with Morty and Patty. From the outset, they explained their process in detail and kept us informed of their progress completing the work on time as promised. If you are looking for a museum-quality ceramic repair, Lakeside Pottery can provide that service.

Alan Eliot Goldberg, Architect, and Folk Art Collector

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Restoring broken vase. "Dear Patty and Morty - Thank you for the vase - she is absolutely beautiful! Arrived yesterday on my doorstep. What an incredible restoration - unbelievable! I am having a photographer over tomorrow to do a photo shoot for my website and I will include the vase in a vignette on website. Will be sure to send pic your way. Again, heartfelt thank you!!!!"

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Restoring Lamp and Jar. Morty, thank you very much for your wonderful work on both items. They arrived yesterday safe and sound, and I thought you would like to see them for yourself. The little lid is back on the jar and reunited with its partner. The lamp looks fabulous. David is thrilled and sends his thanks.

Best regards, Dawn

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Restoring broken vase. "Wow!!! .... I am excited! Guess what the best part of the pic was? It's what drew me to the vessel to begin with. The claw marks from the reptile crawling up side of it which are still in tact! I love the color the way it is. Shows character. Perfect. Anything without blemishes is not real. Let's just say that your very timely email made me a very happy woman. Therese."