There are few experiences as tactile and therapeutic as making with clay. Using your hands to transform a ball of clay into something functional or decorative is a truly unique and enchanting experience, one that will definitely leave you wanting more!
Perfect for complete beginners, or those with a little experience.
If you’ve always dreamed of having a go on the potter’s wheel then a taster throwing lesson is the one for you!
£36pp for groups of 1-6 people includes:
- Making two pots each on the potter's wheel.
- 1 ½ hour making session.
- 2 hour session to paint your pots 4-8 weeks later.
- Please read the instructuions above the calendar
before booking
Session times:
Monday: 10:30 - 12pm
Wednesday: 1:30 - 3pm
Friday: 10:30 - 12pm
Sat + Sun: 10 - 11:30am / 12:30 - 2pm / 3 - 4:30pm
One of our super talent pottery teachers will give you a demonstration to show you the ropes and fill you full of confidence. After this it’s your go! They will talk you through each stage and remind you of the moves as you create your first ever pot (a bit like you’re all doing a synchronised danced routine). You’ll be making two pots each, with a short break in between of about 5 minutes while our potters re-set your wheel with your next ball of clay and then you’re ready to make your second pot.
All our teachers are knowledgable, patience and love helping people discover the wonders of turning a spinning lump of clay into pots. As it’s a class for compete beginners you can expect to make a small bowl you could use for keys or jewellery, a little plant pot or if things go very well you could try a a mini vase. This class doesn’t include making handles.
These sessions are designed for grown ups, but can be adapted for those 12yrs+ upon special request. Did we mention making together is a lovely way to celebrate a birthday or anniversary with the whole family?
Workshops are one-off sessions perfect for total beginners! These themed sessions combine fabulous tuition with slab and coil building techniques, which means even first timers can create show stopping pieces - book here!
Come alone or with friends :) booking + pre-payment essential.
Make sure you select how many people you want to book for, before you select the date / time you’d like to book for. You can’t edit this once you’ve clicked book. The calendar will only show dates that have enough spaces for all of your group, this may be several weeks away.
Once you've decided on a date click the yellow book button. A form will appear, please read all the info thoroughly, and complete then submit your booking by clicking the yellow confirm booking button.
After a few seconds you’ll be taken to a confirmation page, please double check that your booking details are correct, write them down somewhere safe and then follow the link to our planning your visit page. Have a good read of this page all the way to the bottom! It tells you how to book to paint your pots after your making session, and all sorts of other very useful info. Confirmation emails may end up in your junk folder.
Taster throwing sessions tend to be steadily booked up 4 months in advance. Weekdays tend to be a little less booked up than weekends. You can only book 4 months in advance, so if we’re fully booked as far as the calendar will go, it’s a case of keeping an eye out as new dates are released or looking out for cancellations (you can join waiting lists for dates that work for you, but you do need to be quick to snap them up when you get the email through). Sessions for 03/09/23 are released on 03/05/23, ie. 4 months to the day.
We offer 9 sessions a week with space for up to 54 people to throw. As much as we’d love to, we can’t physically add anymore sessions otherwise we’ll be drowning in pots. There are often cancellations for the coming weekend on Wednesday / Thursday so please check back for any last minute slots.
If you have a voucher: as long as you get booked in before your voucher expires you’re all good :) you can also use your voucher for our hand building classes: www.thepotteryexperience.co.uk/events
Full payment is taken in advance, we’ll send you an invoice to pay via bank transfer. Changes or refunds are only accepted with 48hrs notice. Please ensure all guests arrive promptly for your session. Our session will start without you if you are late. *Any handmade pots not painted within 2 months of making will be donated to local schools to paint in their art lessons. Read our detailed T+C’s.
We try our best to ensure that every aspect of the creative journey you take with us is fun and enjoyable. The final part of this journey involves the glazing and firing of your pottery up to temperatures in excess of 1000˚C. This process is carried out onsite by our studio assistants who treat each piece with the greatest love, care and attention.
We strive for perfection with every piece, however the kiln gods are not always on our side.
Handmade pieces: please be aware that sometimes items can crack or at worst explode in the kiln. If you have lost your pot in the kiln in this way we will offer you a spare as a replacement.
Painted ready made pieces: Occasionally glaze spotting can occur, as well as surface imperfections such as tiny bumps caused by brick dust flying around the kiln as it heats up, this dust can settle on items as the kiln temperature cools. If we feel it is safe to do so, we will try to fix glazing issues by re-firing the pottery. In the exceptional event of a piece of painted ready-made pottery cracking in the kiln we will offer compensation by way of a replacement voucher.
We hope you understand that we do everything we can to try and prevent such things, however it is not always possible. The unpredictable element can be both the charm and frustration of ceramics.
