"Nothing lasts,
nothing is finished,
nothing is perfect,
and therein lies its beauty.- Wabi-sabi (侘び寂び)
Featuring kana legends in gold (Kin 金) on black (Kuro 黒), this design is inspired by Kintsugi (金継ぎ, "golden joinery"), the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold lacquer. It celebrates an object’s history, transforming flaws into a feature to be accentuated rather than something to conceal or discard. It is an appreciation that an object gains value and personality through use. More broadly, it is a beautiful sentiment about embracing imperfection and accepting the natural cycle of life and death. Even that which is broken, can find purpose and become whole once again.
“To me this cup is already broken. Because I know its fate, I can enjoy it fully here and now. And when it’s gone, it’s gone.” - Ajahn Chah, Buddhist teacher
During the development of this design, I was also inspired by the TV show Shōgun, which also portrayed the beauty and wistfulness in the acceptance of the impermanence (mujō) of life [Mono no aware (物の哀れ)]. Thus an additional novelty kit that conveys the spirit of the samurai was designed for an alternative look.
“if I could use words
like scattering flowers and falling leaves
what a bonfire my poems would make”
- Mariko Toda, Shōgun
• KITS •
Base Kit - Hiragana[Hiragana sublegends and Icon modifiers. Covers 60%, 65%, 75%, TKL, with terminal ISO, F13, Tsangan support, and minimal compatibility for some Alice, and split space layouts.]
Base Kit - Katakana [Katakana mono legend alphas, Katakana text + icon modifiers, Kanji numeric characters.]
Novelty Kit - Shōgun [Icons include the katana and wakisazhi, forming the daishô that represents the soul of a Samurai. Accompanying these blades are Kamon (家紋) and Shogunate crests, which are clan emblems that were commonly used throughout feudal Japan. These floral motifs are also a reference to the philosophical and poetic musings in Shōgun about the beauty and transience of life]
Novelty Kit - Kintsugi[金継ぎ = Gold joinery; 美 = Beauty [might be culled]. There should be sufficient novelties for XT-layout macro columns and Ortho compatibility ]
Add-Ons Kit[Includes Windowed Keys (legends are UV-print), extra CR black spacebars (2 x 1.00, 1.25, 2 x 1.75, 2.00, 2 x 3.00, 6.00 ; uncommon Shift (2.00, 1.50, 1.00) and Numpad keys.]
Spacebars Accent Kit[Same kit for GMK Black&Gold to reach MOQ]
Media Kit[Viability remains uncertain. Similar to the accent spacebars kit, it is the same kit for GMK Black & Gold in an aim to reach MOQ.]
• GALLERY •
Fuji65 by CMM Studio
Aki-S by senryo
Vanquish65 by Geonworks
E8.5 by Exclusive
Akuma by Mightysetup
Stiletto by Paaradiso
HEX.6C by Kasterborous
Disclaimer: Renders shown may not perfectly display the actual colours and/or texture of the keycaps. Please refer to the actual photo below to see the real colours and texture of existing GMK metallic ABS samples (see below). Variable lighting conditions and screen calibrations can affect color representation. Furthermore, there will be ultimately inherent limits in plastic emulating the lustrous and shiny appearance of metal.
Samples
Quick photo of real-life samples of the metallic gold colourway
More
• SPECIFICATIONS •
Material: ABS Material
Profile: Cylindrical Cherry Profile
Manufacturing Method: Double shot injection molding
Manufacturer: GMK
Compatibility: Mx switches
• Q&A •
Manufacturer choice?More
GMK already has pre-existing doubleshot legend molds for the majority of the Japanese legends in the modifiers and alphas. GMK has also trialled and demonstrated samples with metallic ABS.
Metallic ABS?More
This set aims to use the exciting new metallic ABS material from GMK. A
photo sample of metallic ABS was featured in GMK Kaiju R2 groupbuy - and there also exists other samples of GMK emulating the ‘metallic’ look in other colours to great effect.
As seen in the disclaimer for GMK Kaiju R2 and evident in other
photos, metallic plastic has inherent variables which can lead to
unpredictable flow variations and streaks on the final
result.
However unlike Kaiju R2 Mechakaiju base kit, in GMK Kintsugi the metallic ABS is limited to primarily the legends (except for accent keys), so this effect should be limited to a great degree on the overall look. However it is impossible to predict whether it will or won't occur, and it may feature on some legends regardless. Please also keep in mind that the overall sentiment of this keycap set is about accepting and embracing flaws. As the great philosopher Bob Ross once said “There are no mistakes, only happy accidents”
More
Although I enjoy the aesthetic of complete katakana modifiers, with katakana only alphas, I understand this would really alienate those who need latin characters, and symbols present, which is why a standard base kit set with hiragana sublegends with icon modifiers is also available.
I know it’s a bit ambitious to offer 2 base kits in the current market climate, but it’s what I’d like to try to aim for, especially since no other set besides GMK Masterpiece has katakana modifiers (credit goes to Energieschleuder). Note that the Kintsugi Katakana base kit also has some differences in legends compared to GMK Masterpiece’s, listed in another answer below.
Similarities/differences in the Katakana base kit compared to GMK Masterpiece’s base kit modifier legends?More
Many thanks goes to the energieschleuder who designed GMK Masterpiece where most of the modifiers are from. However there are some differences/updates from GMK Masterpiece’s legends that I’ve decided to implement:
> The F-row and Numpad are now Kanji only. There are no Arabic numerals, nor ‘エフ’ (F) prefix. From a consistency and aesthetic standpoint, it made more sense to adopt Pach’s approach in GMK White-on-Black Katakana in this regard, especially given these molds already exist.
> The Esc legend is now katakana (エスケ) to be consistent with the other modifiers, instead of the kanji 中止(stop)
> The R4 1u modifier keycaps are not icon legends, but also katakana as well for more consistency. i.e. コード for ‘code’, アルト for ‘alt’, メタ for ‘meta’.
Latin Only Alpha/Base Kit?More
It is called GMK Black & Gold. It is a separate interest check. The colours are the same but no Kana, with more standard modifier legends and alternative novelties that aren’t Japanese theme, such as Art Deco and Casino Royale.
Will there be other kits /layout compatibility?More
Given the current market conditions, and the likely manufacturer pricing structure and MOQ (minimum order quantity) requirements, I’m unsure if additional kits beyond the Novelties would reach MOQ.
Hence why the Extension kit is a combination of spacebars, basic 40s, alongside the windowed keys and HHKB support. It’s not ideal, but it should hopefully make it more likely to hit MOQ.
I considered a Katakana sublegend alpha kit too but it’s omitted for now.
International kits for other regions will frankly not be viable, as the molds with those region-specific legends and hiragana sublegends do not yet exist.
I will be exploring combining GB purchases for the Gold accent spacebars kit and media kit, with the GB for GMK Black & Gold to make MOQ easier to reach.
• DESKMAT •
Pending
• COLLABS •
TBC
• LOGISTICS •
TBC
Estimated Groupbuy Date and Production Timeline to be confirmed.
• VENDORS •
TBC
• MISC •
• FEEDBACK FORM •
• SOCIALS •
• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS •
Thank you to those who provided help, support or design assistance for this project in some form or another. Special shoutouts in particular to Energieschleuder, Pach, Kidviddy and Cutie:
More
> Energieschleuder of GMK Masterpiece, a great keycap set design which also echoes an appreciation of the Japanese aesthetic, whose modifier legends feature in the Katakana base kit.
> Pach of GMK WOB Katakana also gets a nod as another set that was referenced
> Kidviddy for his assistance with Japanese terminology for modifiers
> Cutie for the renders and encouraging feedback
> The designers of the respective keyboards in the renders depicted
> The people behind Blender, Inkscape, KLE, and KRK (Imperfectlink) which was used in the development of the visuals of this project.
> Nopunin10did and Konstantin also being the original kitting senseis whose advice on previous projects of mine (and others) have led to my foundational knowledge and decision making for kit composition (any mistakes or peculiarities are mine though haha)
