Pottery Update

It’s been ten weeks since I threw my first pot. (In fact, ten weeks ago I thought throwing pots was about expressing anger.) As I prepped myself for that first class, I told myself that if I couldn’t make anything round, I would simply close my eyes and imagine Patrick Swayze’s ghost was enveloping me…you know, the classic scene from Ghost, which might be what prompted my desire to sit at a pottery wheel. (Here’s a playlist of Patrick’s most romantic scenes. I think I’ve loved him since the early 80’s.)

Throwing pots is not as easy at it looks.

Like dancers on a stage or athletes on a basketball court, potters make their work look effortless. During my first class, I was pretty embarrassed. Not only was I sweating bullets because the thermostat was stuck, but the lump of clay I was trying to manipulate seemed more stubborn than me! The classmate to my left, who has since become a friend, helped me through the steps. I made three “bowls.” When I got home from that first class, I was determined to succeed.

My advice to anyone who plans on taking pottery is to watch videos before you go to your first class. Each week, I watched several videos to prepare myself for the techniques we would be learning that week. I studied a few variations of the same technique–I found this to be very useful. The videos gave me a backup for the times I could not follow my instructor’s lead. The second class went much more smoothly.

HOW TO THROW A POT

The steps to making pots are quite simple.

• Throw your pot.

1. Knead the clay. You want to get all of the air bubbles out.
2. Centre the clay on the wheel. Make sure you keep your hands wet. It took me a while to learn this.
3. Open up the clay in the centre by pushing in with your finger. Pull the “wall” towards you until the pottery is as wide as you want it to be.
4. Start pulling up the wall.
5. Compress the bottom and the sides. Even out the top edge.
6. Use wire to cut the pot off the wheel and put it on a wooden slab. Cover with plastic and wait a week.

• Trim the pot.
• Fire the pot.
• Wax the bottom of the pot, so the glaze won’t glue the pot to the shelf in the kiln.
• Apply the glaze you desire.
• Fire the pot again.

(Obviously, this is oversimplified. Go here to get an in-depth explanation.)

What next?

Well, the friend I mentioned? She and I have decided to take a hand-building class together. It starts in two weeks, and I am so excited to see what I manage to create. I plan to start watching videos this week, so I know what I’m walking into. This time, I will take more risks.

If you’re interested in taking pottery classes, you should contact your local potters guild. Here is the link to Saskatoon’s Potters Guild. You’ll probably suck at first, but then you’ll start making somewhat round things, and the fun begins. And there’s always the Patrick Swayze daydream to fall back on.

Some of my pots