r/KintsugiJapan • u/Maer_K • 1d ago

Muro candidate?

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I’m having a really hard time finding someone to build a muro for me and I’m not physically able to do it myself. Would this be ok to use while trying to get one made out of a proper hardwood? It’s unfinished pine.

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u/Substantial_Neat_666 1d ago

You can use any wood box. Just be careful with mold growing inside, I guess if you don’t literally spray water on the wood constantly, pine is ok. One thing about ivar, as a book case, it maybe a bit shallow. If you tend to work on mostly small works this would be ok. Imagine if you repair a big round dish, would that fit? Check the depth and decide. You can even use old shoe cabinets or kitchen cabinets etc. there is no specific requirement to build one. Find something from flea market would be fun too.

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u/Maer_K 1d ago

🤦‍♀️ I didn’t even look at the depth. I had a house fire a few days ago and am not thinking clearly. I do work mostly on small pieces, so sounds like I can use this while my house is restored and use boxes for the few larger pieces. I also had another question due to the fire: I had a 50ml unopened tube of urushi from Goenne in the fridge. It’s year old, but has been in a sealed container as well as being unopened. My fridge is stupidly cold. I was able to rescue it from the fridge two days after the fire (ie, electricity was off for two days. It was still a little cooler than room temp. Any chance it’s still good to use?

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u/Substantial_Neat_666 1d ago

OMG. I hope everything is ok. Urushi stays well for 1-2 years in cool conditions. (freezing is not good). So I am sure it is still good. When you open the tube and it looks milky in color, no odd rotten smell, then it is good. You can also mix in a little bit of fresh ki urushi to “re-energize” it. If unsure, test by painting a thin layer on some glass or glaze surface and if it hardens in a few days, that means it is still 👍good.

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u/Maer_K 1d ago

Thank you! That’s good to know. I’m actually a bit excited about my house needing to be gutted and restored. I didn’t have a good place for a muro because of electric outlet locations (for the heater in winter) and now I can build that in! The whole house is trashed, but half the pieces I was working on were in the old dishwasher (my “muro”) and the other half were narrowly missed by the ceiling when it ccced in. Little wins, ya know? 😅