Wheel House
A potter at a kick wheel seen from above, ringed by clay bowls left to dry

Learn the wheel on a weeknight.

Six-week beginner courses in Leeds, or a Saturday taster first.

Book the six-week course Try a Saturday taster

A weeknight, or one Saturday

  • The six-week course

    One weeknight evening a week, the same wheel each time.

  • A Saturday taster

    One session at the wheel to find out if it is for you.

  • The room

    Wheels, glaze buckets, bisque on the shelves and a kiln at the back.

1. Centre the clay

Weeks one and two.

Wedge
Knead the air out so the clay runs true.
Centre
Brace your elbows and press until the lump stops wobbling.
Open
Thumb down, then out, to make a floor.
A hand steadying a centred mound of clay as the wheel turns

2. Pull the walls

Weeks three and four: cylinders, then bowls, then a mug with a handle.

Two hands drawing wet clay upward on a fast spinning wheel

3. Trim, glaze, fire

Weeks five and six, and two trips through the kiln.

0°C3006009001,200 0 h2 h4 h6 h8 h10 h bisque, about 1,000°C glaze, about 1,240°C
A typical stoneware firing, as your pots go through it.

  1. Trim

    Week five: cut a foot.

  2. Bisque

    The first firing.

  3. Glaze

    Week six: dip, pour or brush.

  4. Collect

    Once the kiln has cooled.

Evenings and Saturdays in Leeds

Small groups, beginners only.

The six-week course
One weeknight evening a week. Next start: start date to be announced
Saturday tasters
One session at the wheel, no experience needed.
The studio
street address to come, Leeds
What to bring
Clothes you can get clay on.

Book a wheel

Tell us which, and we write back with dates.

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