The first segment of the latest episode of Core Kyoto features a novel way of processing urushi that is said to improve its adhesion to certain surfaces, make it dishwasher safe and increase its resistance to UV light. The process appears to involve a high-pressure homogenizer.
I mostly do kintsugi, but I can’t stand wasting urushi, so I keep a few wooden objects around to use up the extra. Finishing a piece can take months, sometimes even years, but there’s no rush.
This Opinel received nothing but layers of black urushi. Through repeated polishing and recoating, I eventually achieved a roiro-nuri finish. I haven’t done the uwazuri step yet, but I did polish it with roiro migaki-ko. Since this is a utilitarian piece that will inevitably get banged up through use, I’m not sure I’ll bother with the uwazuri.
I really enjoyed the challenge, but I now hate dust on a level I never thought possible. 😅
Still, the results are incredibly rewarding, and I can’t wait to try this technique on another piece.
After my first post in this community I bought a used Roccbox and this is the first pizza I cooked with it. I think it's not too bad for a first time, but I used too much dough (~290g), with too much sauce and the mozzarella was too thick. Dough is 70% hydration. The stone was around 480°C, maybe it should have been hotter? Anything else I should change?
