Our First 2025 Classes Are Posted! Pottery Wheel, Handbuilding, One-Day Workshops, Weekdays And Weekends... Take Your Pick!
The holidays are fast approaching now, and as we work hard to make those as special as we can, we are looking forward to kicking off 2025 with a plethora of fantastic new clay classes to fit every schedule!
And we’re not wasting any time! Our first classes of the year, both wheel and handbuilding, start the very first week in January, so read on!
The holidays are fast approaching now, and as we work hard to make those as special as we can (we still have one 1-day ornament-making workshop left, a polymer clay workshop for adults and families, on Thursday, December 19, from 1:00–4:00 pm, so don’t miss out!), we are looking forward to kicking off 2025 with a plethora of fantastic new clay classes to fit every schedule!
And we’re not wasting any time! Our first classes of the year, both wheel and handbuilding, start the very first week in January, so read on!
Wheel classes starting in January:
The pieces in this photo are made on our pottery wheels and fresh from the kiln!
Whether you’ve never sat down at a wheel before or if you’ve already had plenty of experience but still need help with things like centering, pulling up walls, trimming or putting on handles, these pottery wheel classes designed for all levels of beginner are the ones for you!
Looking for something fun and different to do on Friday evenings? Then join Valya Boutenko for our first class of the year. This Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners course runs weekly from 5:00–7:15 pm, from January 3–February 28(with a week off for Valentine’s Day, which happens to fall on a Friday this year!).
Looking to shake the January doldrums with a weekend class instead? Then join Mary Tuttle on the first weekend of the new year. She’ll be teaching a Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners class on Saturday afternoons from 3:00–5:00 pm, from January 4–February 12. There will be plenty of fun to be had!
Would you prefer to save that fun to give you a little pick-me-up midweek as we roll into 2025? Mary will be teaching the same Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners class on Wednesday evenings from 6:00–8:00 pm, January 8–February 12. No better way to get past hump day!
Are you already comfortable with working on the wheel?
Next level fun!
Then join Valya Boutenko for Intermediate Wheel Throwing, Tuesday evenings from 5:00–7:15, January 7–February 25. This class is a good fit for students who can throw and trim complete vessels, with handles, unassisted. In this class you will practice throwing plates as well as elegant, rounded vases. As Valya writes, “Together, we will be tackling the more challenging forms and incorporating design elements that add interest and make our work shine.”
Handbuilding classes and workshops starting in January:
Shake off that post-holiday torpor with an intensive workshop starting the first full week in January!
Join our very own Cary Dahl for Handbuilding A Kitchen Suite – A Four-Day Intensive Workshop, from 9:00–12:00 noon, Tuesday through Thursday, January 7, 8 & 9, with glazing on Thursday, January 23. No prior clay experience required!
Have you ever wished your kitchen ceramics pieces matched each other? Or even better, that they were customized to your kitchen’s colors? Now’s your chance!
Over the course of four 3-hour sessions we will create several unique functional pieces using slab building techniques. Possible projects include a butter dish, spoon rest, pitcher, sponge holder and napkin holder (all food, microwave and dishwasher safe).
Would you rather spread out the fun? Then maybe a weekly course is more your style.
Absolute beginners are welcome!
Cary also will be teaching Handbuilding Basics: A Four-Week Workshop, running on Thursday evenings from 5:30–8:30 pm, January 30–February 20.
Students will explore some of the essential techniques of handbuilding, making several unique functional pieces to take home. You will build confidence working with both soft and leather-hard clay, and explore a variety of surface texturing and glazing techniques. Possible projects will include a serving dish, an angular vase, and a utensil caddy(all food, oven, microwave and dishwasher safe).
Whether you’re new to clay or have already done some handbuilding in the past, this class promises to be fun and to give you plenty of lovely pieces to take home!
Short on time? Well, this year we are also introducing our first one-day pottery workshops! And we couldn’t be more excited, because the first is a collaboration between Staunton Clayground and local specialty cut flower grower, Quince & Burdock.
Make a vase specially designed to showcase tulips in all their glory!
You may know Erin Wright from the Staunton Farmers’ Market, and now she is coming into our studio to partner with us for A Tulip Vase With A Hydroponic Tulip Bouquet: A One-Day Handbuilding Workshop. Choose from three possible workshop times, Sunday afternoon, January 26, 2:30–5:30 pm, Tuesday evening, January 28, 5:30–8:30 pm, and Wednesday morning, January 29, 9:00 am–12:00 noon.
Over the course of 3 hours, through a combination of slab and sculpture, you will build and decorate your creation with handmade flower motifs. You will choose a glaze color from several options, and pick up your glazed and fired vase, complete with tulips, in time for Valentine’s Day! Erin Wright of Quince & Burdock will be on hand at vase pick-up to provide you with your bouquet, talk about tulip care and answer questions about hydroponic gardening. Pick-up for all three sessions will be on will be on Wednesday, February 12, at 5:30 pm.
What a way to wrap up the month. And those are just our January offerings! If you’re busy the first month of the year, well, our offerings scheduled to start in February are already posted on our Classes, Courses and Workshops page.
While all of these are open to people ages 14+ (and the handbuilding classes welcome young people age 12+, as long as they are working alongside an accompanying adult), we have not forgotten about our smaller potters!
Our kids’ workshops for early 2025 are currently in development and will be coming soon, too!
So keep watching this space and, meanwhile, find a handmade ceramic mug, fill it with your favorite warm beverage (I’m opting for some spiced black tea!), and stay cozy! 🧡
There’s nothing quite like taking a sip out of a mug made with love 🥰
(Our members might recognize these glazes! A quick-dipped combo of Dappled light and Mediterranean Mist for the win!)
Our First Polymer Clay Workshop, Coming Saturday! Plus, Three New Pottery Wheel Classes Before The End Of October!
A One-Day Polymer Clay Workshop, Three Pottery Wheel Classes (Beginner and Intermediate) and Kids' Holiday Workshops. So much is going on at Staunton Clayground. Come clay with us!
November is less than two weeks away, but we have three new pottery wheel classes starting up before the end of October, plus our first-ever one-day polymer clay workshop! Read on to learn more! Plus, don’t forget about our upcoming kids’ holiday workshops! So much is going on at Staunton Clayground. Come clay with us!
A polymer clay “Desk Friend” made by Lainie Mabbitt of Second Stories Art, our newest instructor at Staunton Clayground!
November is less than two weeks away, but we have three new pottery wheel classes starting up before the end of October, plus our first-ever one-day polymer clay workshop! Read on to learn more!
The leaves are really starting to turn now. With this beautiful weather and fall colors, our town is really at its best! It is getting chilly though, so if you want to take a break for some indoor activities, our cozy studio has plenty of fun activities and gift-making opportunities for you!
Whether you have always wanted to try your hand at throwing pottery on the wheel and never had a chance or have you spent some time on the wheel but want an opportunity to gain confidence and hone your skills, our wheel classes for all levels of beginner potters are going to be a good fit for you! And two, both taught by the marvelous Mary Tuttle, are starting before Halloween!
Looking for a weekend class? As of today, we still have a few spots left in our Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners, taking place Saturday afternoons, October 26–December 7, 3:00–5:00 pm (with Sat., Nov. 30 off for Thanksgiving weekend).
Prefer a weeknight class to wind down after a long day? There is still limited space available in our Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners: Wednesday evenings, October 30–December 11, 6:00–8:00 pm (with Wed., Nov. 27 off for Thanksgiving week).
Everything you make in these classes will be ready in time for Christmas and the December holidays!
And the same is true of our next wheel class for intermediate wheel throwers, which is also starting before the end of the month: Beyond Basics On The Pottery Wheel with the fantastic Valya Boutenko, running Tuesday evenings from 5:00–7:15 p.m., October 29–December 17, 2024.
The class is a good fit for students who are somewhat familiar with working on the wheel, who can throw a basic cylinder and a simple bowl form.
Are you too busy right now to commit to a longer-form class? Looking for a one-day workshop? We’ve got that, too!
This will be the Staunton Clayground teaching debut of the incredibly original and versatile local artist Lainie Mabbitt of Second Stories Art. Join her for an Introduction to Polymer Clay – Make an Inspirational Desk Friend: Saturday, October 26, 9 a.m.–12 noon. Come and enjoy tea and cookies and a chance to make a one-of-a-kind gift, a “Desk Buddy” to brighten your desk or the desk of someone you love!
Last but not least, don’t forget about our new kids’ programming! There are still spaces in both of our upcoming kids’ workshops!
Build a Pinch-Pot Turkey! Saturday mornings, 10:00–12:00 noon, November 2 and November 16 (Ages 7–12) and The Penguins Are Coming! Saturday afternoons, 2:00–3:30, November 23 and December 7 (Ages 6–12).
So much fun to be had! And stay tuned, because we’ve got some special one-day holiday workshops lined up for November and December, perfect for family fun and gift-making! More news coming soon. Meanwhile, enjoy those leaves and some mulled cider! I think I’m going to go warm some up right now 🥰
See you soon at the Staunton Clayground!
Two New Pottery Wheel Classes Starting Next Week! Wed. & Thurs. Evenings (Plus a Saturday Kids' Class!)
If you have been waiting to jump on the pottery wheel, the time is now! We have two Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners classes starting!
The first will be on Wednesday evenings from 6:00–8:00 pm, and will run from September 18–October 23.
The second, will run on Thursday evenings from 5:00–7:15 pm, from September 19–November 14 (with a break for the week of Halloween, which falls on Thurs., Oct. 31).
There are still spots left in both of these classes, but don’t wait too long to claim your place! Sign-ups close on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at noon!
And don’t forget, our first kids’ class is kicking off next Saturday, September 21, too! From 10 a.m.–12:00 noon on Sat., Sept. 21 and Sat., Oct. 5, kids ages 7–12 can make their very own pinch-pot pumpkin. What a great way to welcome the fall!
Hello, dear friends of the Staunton Clayground!
It’s almost mid-September and that means that our new fall classes are getting started next week! It’s hard to believe, but we are so excited that it’s finally time!
If you have been waiting to jump on the pottery wheel, the time is now! We have two Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners classes starting!
The first, taught by our brand new teacher Mary Tuttle, who we are very excited to welcome on board, will be on Wednesday evenings from 6:00–8:00 pm, and will run from September 18–October 23. Click here to read the details and register for this class!
The second, taught by Valya Boutenko, who we are so glad is staying on with us after a very successful first 3 courses at the Staunton Clayground this summer, will run on Thursday evenings from 5:00–7:15 pm, from September 19–November 14 (with a break for the week of Halloween, which falls on Thurs., Oct. 31). Click here to read the details and claim your spot in this class!
There are still spots left in both of these classes, but don’t wait too long to claim your place! Sign-ups close on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at noon!
Yes, all of those finished pots are pieces that beginner potters have made in previous courses at the Staunton Clayground!
And don’t forget, our first kids’ class is kicking off next Saturday, September 21, too! From 10 a.m.–12:00 noon on Sat., Sept. 21 and Sat., Oct. 5, kids ages 7–12 can join artist, art teacher and Studio member Christy Pilson to make their very own pinch-pot pumpkin. What a great way to welcome the fall! Click here to read the details and claim a spot!
We have playtime for kids, too! 😃
So grab your spots while you can! The fall is nearly upon us and it’s time to jump in and clay!
None of the classes in this email quite what you’re looking for? Check out our full list of fall classes here!
We’ll see you at the Staunton Clayground!
Our First Fall Classes Are Live!! Wheel, Handbuilding, Creative Collaborations, and More To Come!
Can you feel the autumn on its way? We sure can, and we can’t wait to get started! We’ve got a whole raft of handbuilding and wheel throwing classes and workshops, running from September through December!
Hello, dear Friends of the Staunton Clayground!
It has been about a month since our last blog post, and there is a reason for that––it has also been just a little over a month since the launch of our Studio Membership program, which, while keeping us very busy, has been wonderful! What a difference it is to have all of our spaces buzzing with activity all the time. What was a place of possibilities and dreams has now also become a place full of creativity and joy, and we’ve been loving every moment of it!
In addition to all of that good fun, we have been working hard to line up some great classes and workshops for you for the fall. We’ve got a whole raft of handbuilding and wheel throwing classes and workshops, running from September through December! There is so much to tell you about… so let’s start at the beginning!
Can you feel the autumn on its way? We sure can, and we can’t wait to get started!
Our fall roster of workshops will be kicking off with something we are very excited about! We will be running a collaborative workshop with downtown Staunton’s very own Burrow & Vine, starting on Saturday, September 7!
In Plant Pots and Macramé, over the course of four 2-hour sessions (Sat., Sept 7, and Sundays Sept. 8, 15 and 22 from 1:00–3:00 pm), you will first learn how to make your own handbuilt plant pot and then how to make a gorgeous macramé holder in which to display it.
In Plant Pots and Macramé, over the course of four 2-hour sessions (Sat., Sept 7, and Sundays Sept. 8, 15 and 22 from 1:00–3:00 pm), you will first learn how to make your own handbuilt plant pot and then how to make a gorgeous macramé holder in which to display it. The first three sessions, hosted at Staunton Clayground, will cover every step of the process, from rolling out slabs of clay and adding texture to them to assembling and, finally, glazing. During the final session, hosted in Burrow & Vine’s beautiful second-floor classroom at 10 E. Beverley St., you will make the macramé hanger. Spots are limited, so claim yours now! No clay experience necessary.
If you are looking to dive deeper into handbuilding than just one workshop, then you’re in luck, because we have two handbuilding classes starting in September, one on Tuesday evenings and one on Wednesday mornings, to suit different schedules.
In these two Introduction to Handbuilding classes, both first-time potters and those with some prior clay experience will explore some of the essential techniques of handbuilding, making several unique functional pieces to take home over the course of five 2.5-hours sessions.
Participants will build confidence working with both soft and leather-hard clay, and explore a variety of surface texturing techniques. Projects will include a platter, a birdbath with bird sculpture, an angular vase, and a mug! We only have room for six students in each of these, so don’t wait too long to grab your spot! No prior experience with clay required.
Have you been waiting for a chance to try your hand at wheel throwing? Well, you’re in luck, because we have a full roster of wheel classes running all the way through the holidays, five in all!
Beginning on September 18, you can join our newest wheel teacher, Mary Tuttle (Welcome, Mary!), on Wednesday evenings, from 6–8 pm, for the first 12-hour (6-week) Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners class of the season.
Have you always wanted to try your hand at throwing pottery on the wheel and never had a chance? Have you spent some time on the wheel but want an opportunity to gain confidence and hone your skills? Over the course of six 2-hour sessions, this class will focus on helping you to set achievable goals and make them into a reality! If you’re a little too busy to start in mid-September, this same Wednesday-evening 12-hour class will run for second time, so check out Pottery Wheel for All-Level Beginners starting on October 30! Absolute beginners welcome!
(Yes, these photos are all actual pieces made by actual Staunton Clayground students in prior wheel classes! How cool is that?)
Are Wednesday evenings not good for you? Not to worry! We have more options. You can join one of two more Pottery Wheel for All-Level Beginners classes on either Thursday evenings or Sunday afternoons (a time we’ve had multiple requests for).
Come and join instructor Valya Boutenko and learn to throw functional pottery on the wheel. Students will try their hand at centering clay and throwing basic forms such as cylinders and bowls. The class will focus on mastering simple throwing and trimming techniques and will cover pulling handles for mugs as well as glazing techniques. First-time beginners are welcome here, as well!
(Yup! These are all our students’ creations, too! Isn’t that awesome?)
Are you ready to level up your wheel skills? Valya’s popular Beyond Basics On The Pottery Wheel class will be running on Tuesday evenings again this fall, starting on October 29.
Beyond Basics is an intermediate class for students who are somewhat familiar with working on the wheel. The class is a good fit for students who can throw a basic cylinder and a simple bowl form. In this class, students will practice throwing plates as well as elegant, rounded vases. Together with Valya, they will be tackling the more challenging forms and incorporating design elements that add interest and make the work shine.
The good news? If you attend any of our classes starting this fall, everything you make in them will be ready for pick-upbefore the holidays!
The better news? We have even more workshops in the works! We are working on two polymer clay workshopsbefore the end of the year, one for adults in October and one for kid-and-adult pairs in December. Look out for more about the first one in coming days! We are also working on a second collaboration with Burrow & Vine, and another co-workshop, this time with the Art Hive, Staunton’s “creative reuse and art center!” These will both be happening in the fall, and even more creative partnerships will be launching in 2025!
The best news? KIDS WORKSHOPS’ ARE FINALLY COMING! Yes, we are finally going to be rolling out our first workshops especially and exclusively for kids! We have partnered with some truly amazing local children’s art teachers to develop a series of fall and winter workshops, one in late September, two in October and one in November.
Keep watching this space, because news about all of those upcoming adults’ and kids’ workshops will be getting posted in coming days!
We are so excited for this marvelous fall and our very first holiday season!
See you soon at the Staunton Clayground. Let’s clay!
Three New Wheel-Throwing Classes Starting in July! Two For Beginners, One "Beyond Basics"
Staunton Clayground has three new wheel classes starting in July! Two for beginners and one for going beyond basics on the wheel. We are also welcoming two new teachers, Valya Boutenko and Mary Tuttle. Check out the post to see all the details!
Hello Friends of the Staunton Clayground!
We are so excited that so many people in our community are so eager to learn to throw pottery on the wheel, and we want to make sure that you can! So, we have added 3 new wheel classes, all starting in July! The first two are for beginners of all levels:
Two different time slots, two different formats, two different teachers!
The first, which will be held on Wednesday evenings, from 5:00–7:15 pm, for eight weeks starting on July 24, for a total of 18 hours, will be taught by Valya Boutenko, who is joining us for the first time as a teacher with this class! Click here to learn more and claim a spot!
The second will take place on Saturday afternoons, from 3:00–5:00* pm, on July 27, August 3, 10, 17 and 24 (*except for the Aug. 10 session, which will run from 5:00–7:00 pm; a break for Labor Day weekend is built into the schedule). This twelve-hour course will be taught by another brand new member of the Staunton Clayground team, Mary Tuttle. Here’s the link to read the details and grab a place in this class!
We are very happy to welcome these new instructors to our team!
The third class, Beyond Basics On The Pottery Wheel, is an intermediate class for students who are somewhat familiar with working on the wheel.
Designed and taught by Valya Boutenko, whose pottery is featured in the photos!
The class is a good fit for students who can throw a basic cylinder and a simple bowl form. In this class we will practice throwing plates as well as elegant, rounded vases. Together, we will be tackling the more challenging forms and incorporating design elements that add interest and make our work shine. Also taught by Valya Boutenko, it will run on Tuesday evenings, from 5:00–7:15 p.m., July 30–Sept. 17 (18 hours and eight weeks in all).
We hope you will jump in and enjoy these classes! After all, a cool clay studio is a great way to beat the heat during those dog days of August (or July… or September)!
Meanwhile, we’re already hard at work planning out a super-fun roster of fall courses and workshops! Stay tuned!
See you soon here at the Staunton Clayground! 😃
Handbuilding Workshop For Ages 10-18 and Wheel-Throwing Workshop for Experienced Potters, Both Starting Wednesday, July 10!
If you or a young person you know is looking to beat the heat next week, then we have two workshops starting on Wednesday, July 10, that might just be for you! The first is a coil plant pot workshop for young people age 10–18! It is co-taught and co-hosted by Staunton Clayground and Art Hive, with the collaboration of artist and master gardener Jacques of Mottainai. The second is a surface decoration workshop for wheel throwers with Nicole Eyerman Hill. Sign-ups close on Monday, July 8, at 5pm, so claim your spot while you can!
Hello, Friends of the Staunton Clayground!
We hope that you all had a fantastic July 4!
Here at the Staunton Clayground we have been super busy getting everything ready for our Studio Membership Program launch, which is happening this week! We’ve been gearing up for this since the day we opened, and it’s hard to believe it’s finally here. We’ve had a great response and are very excited to welcome our first official members into the studio tomorrow morning!
Amidst all of that excitement, we’ve also been hard at work trying to make sure there is a great selection of classes and workshops for you all to enjoy throughout this long hot summer. After all, on these hot, hot days, where better to be than in a cool pottery studio with your hands in wet clay?
If you or a young person you know is looking to beat the heat next week, then we have two workshops starting on Wednesday, July 10, that might just be for you!
Come clay! Cut off for sign-ups is Monday, July 8 at 5 p.m., so claim your spot!
The first is a coil plant pot workshop for young people age 10–18! It is co-taught and co-hosted by Staunton Clayground and Art Hive, with the collaboration of artist and master gardener Jacques of Mottainai and is our first (we hope of many) such collaboration within our area’s great arts and creative community. Attendees will make and decorate clay coil pots inspired by indigenous artists, and then learn how to use them to plant and care for a plant of their own. Read more details and get your tickets through Art Hive at this link and don’t miss out on this hands-on experience where art meets nature!
The second, Vases & Carving, is a workshop for slightly more experienced wheel throwers. If you can throw a simple 4-inch cylinder on your own, then this workshop is for you! Nicole Eyerman Hill will walk you through the process of crafting wheel-thrown vases meant to be carved and faceted to create unique surface decoration.
Sign-ups for both of these will be closing on Monday, July 8, at 5:00 p.m., so don’t miss your chance to come and join in the fun!
Looking for a different sort of handbuilding experience? Then look no farther than two more workshops, both for ages 14 and up, starting on July 16 and August 9, both are taught by a special guest instructor, local artist Janly Jaggard.
Special handbuilding workshops by local artist Janly Jaggard, right here at Staunton Clayground, this summer!
Still not quite what you’re looking for? Well, stay tuned, because we are getting ready to post 😃 three new pottery-wheel classes with two new teachers 😃, all starting over the next few weeks, two for all-level beginners and one for intermediate wheel throwers. Stay tuned, because we’ll be getting you all of the details, right here, over the next few days!
Stay cool, stay safe, and keep watching this space!
Membership Q&A Open House Reminder! Plus, 2 Spots Left In Beginner Wheel Class Starting Tuesday, June 25
Staunton Clayground is getting ready to launch its Studio Membership Program next month! A special Open House is happening this Saturday, June 22, from 11–3, for the express purpose of answering all of your questions about memberships, classes and anything else you might want to know.
See the new member space, enjoy refreshments and door prizes for 3 lucky winners, who will get a discount on their first 3 months of membership!
Also, last call for sign-ups for our next All-Level Beginner Wheel Class, starting Tuesday, June 25. 2 spots left!
Things have definitely been heating up at the studio, and not just because of our kilns 😁
We have been hard at work not just setting up a ton of great classes (taking place inside where it is nice and cool 😉) but also getting ready to launch our Studio Membership Program next month! And July is just around the corner, so we wanted to remind you about our special Open House happening this Saturday, June 22, from 11–3, for the express purpose of answering all of your questions about memberships, classes and anything else you might want to know about what we’re up to!
We are very excited to show you our new member space and tell you all about what we’re planning. Not only that, but there will be refreshments and door prizes for 3 lucky winners, who will get a discount on their first 3 months as members! Come down and see us! Tell your friends! RSVP on Facebook, if you like. We can’t wait to see you there.
Also, our wheel classes have been filling up fast, but there are still 2 spots left in the Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners class starting this coming Tuesday, June 25! It will run Tuesday evenings, 5:30–8:30 pm for 5 weeks.
Come down and clay!
Grab Your Spot In Our Bowls & Underglaze Workshop Starting June 18 - Part Of Our Wheel-Throwing & Surface Decoration Series
Grab your spot in our Bowls & Underglaze wheel-thrown pottery workshop, starting June 18! If you are a mid-level beginner or higher, then this three-day workshop is for you! Nicole Eyerman Hill of @eyerman.art will teach participants how to expand their portfolio of decorative techniques beyond simple glazing to create wares that can still be functional and food-safe! The workshop will take place from 5:30–8:30 pm on Tuesday, June 18, Friday, June 21 and Friday, June 28.
We’ve got so many classes and workshops starting this month, and the next one is scheduled to launch just a week from today! We are calling potters with some wheel experience to join our next three-day wheel-throwing and surface decoration workshop, Bowls and Underglazes!
If you can throw a basic 4-inch cylinder on your own, then this workshop is for you!
The talented Nicole Eyerman Hill of @eyerman.art will teach participants how to expand their portfolio of decorative techniques beyond simple glazing to create wares that can still be functional and food-safe!
The workshop will take place over three days, from 5:30–8:30 pm on Tuesday, June 18, Friday, June 21 and Friday, June 28.
That first session is just a week away, so, if you’re interested, now is the time to grab your spot.
More fun is coming soon, so keep watching this space!
Wishing you a great week!
Last Call For Sign-ups for "Mugs & Sgraffito" Workshop, Plus, Opening Reception at the BSSS Gallery Tonight!
Last chance to sign up for Part 1 of our 3-part wheel-throwing and surface decoration workshop series, “Mugs & Sgraffito,” starting on Tues., June 11. Saturday is the last day to sign up, so don’t miss your chance! Also, don’t miss tonight’s Opening Reception at the BSSS Gallery for ceramic art exhibition “Volume and Solitude”. Meet the artists and learn about their craft! 5:30–7:30 pm at 22 W. Beverley Street.
We hope you’ve had a fabulous week. We started our first All-Level Beginners Wheel-Throwing Class on Monday and are very happy to be off and running (or spinning 😁). We’re also excited for the coming week, when we’re going to launch our first workshop of the three-part surface-decoration series being taught this summer by Nicole Eyerman Hill.
In sgraffito technique, a colored surface layer is carved or scraped away to reveal the clay beneath, thus creating the design
The first part, Mugs & Sgraffito, is set to begin on Tuesday, June 11. This workshop is designed for potters with some wheel experience, so if you think this could be the one for you, now is the time to grab a spot! Sign-ups close at the end of the day on Saturday, June 8, so don’t miss your chance!
Also, we wanted to remind you that this evening from 5:30–7:00 is the Opening Reception of Volume and Solitude, a really wonderful exhibition (and we can say that because we’ve been there!) at the Beverley Street Studio Gallery(located inside the Co-Art Gallery space at 22 West Beverley St. in downtown Staunton). Check out the Newsleader article about it that was published this week! The exhibition is curated by our very own Janly Jaggard. Don’t miss your chance to meet the artists tonight!
Wishing you all a lovely weekend!
New Pottery Wheel All-Level Beginner Class Added! June 25–July 23, Sign-Ups Now Open!
Sign-ups are now open for a brand new 15-hour Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners class, starting on June 25! It will consist of five three-hour sessions, running on Tuesday evenings from 5:30 to 8:30, June 25 through July 23. Space is limited, so grab your spot now!
It certainly has been an eventful few weeks since our first Open House back in April. Our very first Intro to Clay classwrapped up last week and our first two handbuilding workshops are in full swing, with students’ pieces from both just about ready for the final step, glazing!
“What about pottery wheel classes?” you might ask. Well, the first two Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginner classes we posted both sold out well before their start dates, so we are very happy to announce that we have just managed to schedule an additional one!
cue drum roll
Sign-ups are now open for a brand new 15-hour Pottery Wheel For All-Level Beginners class, starting on June 25! It will consist of five three-hour sessions, running on Tuesday evenings from 5:30 to 8:30, June 25 through July 23, and be taught by Nicole Eyerman Hill. You may know her work from seeing her booth at Art in the Park or from seeing her page on instagram.
We are doing our best to understand what it is that everyone in our community is most interested in and plan our future classes accordingly! If there is something specific you or a friend is interesting in learning and it is not already among the Staunton Clayground class and workshop offerings, drop us a line and we’ll see what we can do. We want to know what it is that you want to learn!
Meanwhile, if you see a past class that makes you wish you’d been there, no worries. We plan to offer repeats of our popular classes in the future.
In other news, a lot of you have been asking about when we are going to open up our studio for memberships. Well, we are working now on hammering out the final details of our membership program! We are planning a special open house geared specifically towards answering all of your membership questions. We’ll have the date nailed down in the next few days, so keep watching this space!
Meanwhile, we wish you all a marvelous weekend!
New Modular Workshop Series Coming in June & July! Surface Decoration for Wheel-Thrown Vessels: Take One, Two or All Three
Get ready for an exciting series of three modular nine-hour workshops with local potter and Staunton Clayground instructor Nicole Eyerman Hill (@eyerman.art), focusing on different surface decoration techniques applied to wheel-thrown work. Pick just one, two or take all three in a row to develop and add a whole new portfolio of creative skills to your pottery creation (15% discount on a future class or workshop for people who sign up for all three classes!)
Get ready for an exciting series of three modular nine-hour workshops with local potter and Staunton Clayground instructor Nicole Eyerman Hill (@eyerman.art), focusing on different surface decoration techniques applied to wheel-thrown work. Pick just one, two or take all three in a row to develop and add a whole new portfolio of creative skills to your pottery creation (15% discount on a future class or workshop for people who sign up for all three classes!). Participants must already have experience with the wheel (be able to throw a 4-inch-tall cylinder unassisted). First workshop kicks off on June 11, so grab your spots now!
Students will first focus on making mugs with a design and shape that lend themselves to sgraffito decoration. They will then move on to learning how to use this technique to decorate their vessels, using a variety of carving tools on colored slips and underglazes applied to the surface of the clay body.
Students will focus on making bowls with an interior surface adorned with painted-on underglaze. This is a fun and practical way to add decoration to the inside of a bowl while still allowing it to be used as functional tableware, if desired, since the underglaze is then sealed with a layer of clear mid-fire glaze to make it water-tight and food-safe.
Students will focus on throwing small vases with slightly thicker than usual walls, making it possible to carve out faceting or other designs once the vessels are leather-hard. This is an interesting way to add interest to the surface of any piece, and can be done either on plain clay as a way to show off the effects of particular glazes or in combination with colored-slip or underglaze decoration applied before clear-glazing.
We hope you’ll come and clay!
Looking for something to do next week? Speaking of workshops, there’s still one spot left in our Sculptural Slab Creations workshop, starting this coming Tuesday. This is a handbuilding workshop that is suitable for people with no clay experience as well as returning potters.
Stay tuned for more upcoming classes & workshops, coming very soon!
Meanwhile, a lovely Memorial Day weekend to all of you from all of us at Staunton Clayground.
Open House Tomorrow From 12–5 PM! Plus, we still have spots available in our Intro to Clay class, starting Monday evening!
Come celebrate the opening of the Staunton Clayground pottery studio at our Open House! There will be a chance to win a door prize of one pottery class or workshop, tour our studio, see live wheel throwing demos, enjoy refreshments by Pizzeria Luca and Magdalena Bake, and, in honor of Earth Day, paint your own ceramic garden stake. Plus, there are still spots available in our first class, starting Monday! Let’s clay!
That’s right! It is finally time for our Open House! We are officially opening our doors for business, and we can’t wait to share what we’ve been working on with you!
Come celebrate the opening of the Staunton Clayground pottery studio at our Open House tomorrow from 12–5 pm! There will be a chance to win a door prize of one pottery class or workshop, tour our studio, see live wheel throwing demos, enjoy refreshments by Pizzeria Luca and Magdalena Bake, and, in honor of Earth Day, paint your own ceramic garden stake (we’ll fire it for you for pick-up later).
Still wondering how to find us? We are located in “The Cellar” at 123 W. Frederick St., with our main entrance around the back of the post office building. Free parking spots for “The Cellar” are available in the lot at 116 N. Lewis St. There is also plenty of on-street parking nearby, and we are just a few blocks’ walk from the public parking lots (also free on weekends) at the Wharf and on South New St.
In other exciting news, our first class, “Introduction to Clay,” co-taught by Cary and Jennifer, is kicking off next week, on Monday evening, to be precise!
An Introduction to Clay: Basics of Wheel and Handbuilding will consist of nine 2-hour sessions (18 hours total): Monday and Thursday evenings, from 6:00 – 8:00, (April 22, 2024 – May 20, 2024)
“Come and learn the basics of working with clay! If you are an absolute beginner or haven’t been back to the pottery studio since that class you took in school, then this course is for you. The goal of this pottery class is to learn the basics of functional pottery and have several pieces to show for it by the time the course has concluded. Over nine 2-hour sessions, students will experiment with hand building using slabs and molds and with using the wheel to make basic pottery shapes such as small cups, bowls and mugs.
Everything we make will be functional and oven, microwave, dishwasher and food safe!”
We’ve got a whole bunch of other classes lined up, too, with more coming soon. Please don’t forget to visit our online shop or our Classes, Courses & Workshops page and check them out!
We hope you can come and see us! We are more than ready to finally invite you to “Come and clay!”
See you soon!
More New Wheels, Glaze Making, Our First Kiln Firing and... Just One Week To Go Until Our Open House!
We have unboxed our last wheels, bisque fired all 300 test tiles, mixed up all 8 of our colored glazes… and our Open House is just one week away! Now to glaze all those tiles…
It has been a very busy week here at the Staunton Clayground! We have been working like mad trying to get everything ready for our Open House next weekend and first classes after that, which we are so excited about! (Don’t forget, our very first “Intro to Clay” class starts on Monday, April 22, and there are still spots available! More on that below.)
Let’s clay!
First off, we unboxed and set up our new member wheels, a Shimpo Whisper and a Speedball Clay Boss. They have larger wheel heads (14”) and can handle more weight, and having them means that members will always have a guaranteed space to come and work in, separate from any ongoing class (if you recall, we have a bank of 9 wheels for classes already set up and ready to go)! Aren’t they enticing? I can’t wait to take them each out for a spin, pun fully intended ;-)
Studio Manager at work!
Then we started in on preparing our line-up of glazes! Jennifer got suited up and, over two days, got all eight of our colored glazes mixed (she actually used a drill with a mixer attachment, but the whisk was more photogenic).
Meanwhile, Cary has been hard at work finishing making kiln cookies, a task we’ve both been hard at work at for weeks, sometimes with the help of friends and family! For those of you who don’t know much about pottery firing, kiln cookies are not nummy treats, although we certainly could have used some of those more than once over the last couple of weeks!
They work kind of like coasters with a mug of tea: you put your glazed pieces on them while they’re in the kiln, because if the glaze runs down and drips, this way you end up with molten glass-like gloop on the disposable cookie instead of on the big, much-harder-to-replace kiln shelf.
Then we got to unload the kiln!
Cary got to lift the lid. It was an exciting moment, since this was the first firing we’d ever gotten a chance to do in our new studio!
Can’t wait to start dipping these in our brand new glazes!
Needless to say, we were as close to jumping up and down as we could be in a confined space filled with fragile equipment :-) In the end, all but one tile made it and now we are ready for glazing!
It’s going to be a very fun and busy weekend! With lots more to do before the Open House, just one week away!! We can’t wait to see you there! Not sure how to get there?
Just drop us a line if you still have any questions about how to find us!
And remember, our very first class, an “Intro to Clay,” starts on April 22, the Monday after our Open House. It will cover the basics of wheel throwing and handbuilding, and will be co-taught by Cary and Jennifer. There are still some spots left if you’re interested, and don’t forget to check out the rest of our class line-up for spring and summer. There are quite a few already, but we’re still adding to it! New and exciting workshops are still coming!
So keep watching this space!
Our Class Line-Up Is Here And Our Online Shop Is Open For Business!
Here at the Staunton Clayground we are unveiling our initial line-up of classes for Spring–Summer 2024 and our online store is open for business, so you can claim your spot. We can’t wait for you to come and clay!
Today is a very big day for us, because we are finally unveiling our initial class line-up and opening our online store for business! Read on to learn more!
More in-depth info about all of these classes and workshops described below is available on the Classes, Courses & Workshops page of our website, and our shop is now open, so head on over if you are ready to claim your spot! You can also see how all of these things fit together on our brand new Upcoming Classes & Events Calendar page.
We’ll be kicking things off in April with An Introduction to Clay, where participants will learn the basics of both handbuilding and wheel throwing, the two main forms of pottery creation. This evening class, starting the Monday after our Open House (taking place on April 20!), will consist of nine two-hour sessions and it will be co-taught by Cary and Jennifer.
Next up, in May, we will have a six-hour handbuilding workshop, Slab Geometric Vases, taking place over the course of three days. For this one we are very pleased to introduce a new addition to our team, fantastic local potter Nicole Eyerman Hill (you might know her from her booth at Staunton’s Art in the Park, 2023 edition). You can learn more about her on our Staff & Instructors page!
This will be joined on our calendar by a twelve-hour handbuilding workshopstarting the week after Memorial Day, this one entitled Sculptural Slab Creations. Our very own Cary Dahl will be leading this exploration of the basics and possibilities of slab building to help you develop and complete projects that can be either functional or ornamental. Your imagination is the limit!
Nicole returns in early June to teach an eighteen-hour Intermediate Wheel Throwing class on Wednesday evenings over the course of six weeks.
Not feeling quite ready for intermediate wheel? Our Studio Manager, Jennifer, will be leading eighteen-hour Pottery Wheel for All-Level Beginners courses twice over the course of the summer.
Remember, you can read more about all of these on the Classes, Courses & Workshops page of our website!
(All of these classes and workshops are designed for adults (age 14+). We are definitely planning to include workshops for younger people and children going forward, but including those in our initial line-up has proven to be a bit more than we could organize to start. Bear with us! Over the coming months we plan to expand our offerings to include plenty of things for kids as well.)
Meanwhile, we are hoping to add more workshops and classes before the summer is out, so keep watching this space!
Let’s clay!! 😀
Wheel Unboxing Day!
We unboxed our first nine wheels today and plugged them in. It was a beautiful thing to see them spin! Can’t wait to play…
It was a long time coming, but the electric for our main bank of nine wheels was finally ready, so at long last we got to have our first unboxing day! Oh, what fun it was to set them all up and see them spin!
Our nine new pottery wheels are plugged in and ready to go!
The bank includes four student wheels on each side, capped on the far end by the teacher’s wheel. We will have three additional wheels for members, too, in a dedicated area, although members will be free to use these ones as well when no classes are going on.
We can’t wait to play! We finally got our running water… which is great news! Still waiting on some other furniture and equipment. Should be coming soon.
Watch this space!
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