Hand-building Pottery

Class Description

5-Week Hand-building Pottery Series April 2nd, 9th, 16th, 25th and May 7th Come slow down, get your hands dirty, and rediscover the joy of making. This 5-week hand-building series is designed for beginners and returning students alike who want to build confidence working with clay in a supportive, inspiring environment. What You’ll Learn Over five weeks, we will explore foundational hand-building techniques including: • Pinch pot construction • Coil building for functional forms • Slab building and structural design • Proper joining and scoring techniques • Thickness control and form refinement • Surface design, carving, and texture • Underglaze and glaze application basics • Glaze layering and finishing techniques You’ll create multiple finished pieces throughout the course, from small bowls and cups to larger vessels, mugs, or decorative forms. What You’ll Take Away Beyond the physical pieces you create, you’ll leave with: • A strong foundation in hand-building skills • An understanding of clay stages (greenware, leather hard, bisque) • Confidence working independently with clay • Knowledge of glazing and finishing processes • A deeper connection to slow, intentional making Most importantly, you’ll experience clay as a grounding and creative ritual, not just a craft. Firing & Pick-Up After your projects are completed, I will take all finished greenware to be bisque fired. During the final week, you’ll glaze your pieces, and I will then take them back for their final glaze firing.