Epoxy is a common material in ceramics – either to repair something that chipped or broke after the firing, or as a material in the creation of the work itself.

While epoxy won’t make it through the firing process, it can have several uses in working with ceramics post-firing. Sometimes epoxy is concealed from view when it’s used to do something to the work that isn’t possible with clay working techniques (like adhering two pieces of ceramics that were fired at different times and different temperatures). Or sometimes an artist might want to highlight the epoxy for a particular visual appearance, or to express the fact that the pieces are joined together after the firing.

An important thing to remember is that most hardware stores carry dozens of different varieties of epoxies, so always read the instructions on the package!

The following videos demonstrate how to mix some of the types of epoxies are commonly used by artists working with ceramics: