One of the major reasons to take pottery classes in Washington DC is the fun attached to the whole activity. However, do you know you can make a living out of pottery?
In this article, you will learn how to make living selling pottery. Also, you will see a list of some studios where you can take the pottery classes in Washington DC.
Is Choosing Pottery as a Living Source a Waste of Money or Time?
No. Choosing pottery as a source of living is not a waste of time. It may start out slow at first, but then you will start meaning a good income.
On average, potters earn from their own studios and can make anywhere from $20 to $50 an hour. However, the amount they make depends on what they make.
On occasions like Christmas, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day, etc., your earnings are expected to increase.
People have earned over $40/hour during holiday season sales!
How to Make a Living Selling Pottery
Apart from those who want to make pottery just for fun, there are those who are passionate about pottery.
If you belong to that group who have pondered about making pottery their full-time job many times, below are the steps to take to make a living from pottery.
- Motivate Yourself and Build Confidence
- Gain Experience
- Strategize your Business Plan
- Set Up a Workspace
- Create Pottery Pieces
- Market your Brand
- Sell Your Pottery and Grow Your Business
Motivate Yourself and Build Confidence
Without motivation, dedication, and passion, you need not be told that it is impossible to achieve any goal.
Your approach toward pottery should be both optimistic and realistic. It is very important to keep in mind that once you have made that decision to become a professional potter, the ladder that reaches your dreams and aspirations is not one that is easy to climb.
Don’t know how to motivate yourself? The best way to motivate yourself is to find the actual cause of any demotivation, as well as procrastination, and tackle it.
Gain Experience
The next step to take in that bid to make a living out of pottery is to gain experience. Even if you know a little about pottery, there is never enough experience one can gain in any work.
How do you gain experience? You will gain experience by working for potters. You can become an apprentice of a potter whose work sells. Practicing what you have seen at work really helps.
Strategize your Business Plan
As you already know, the key to any successful business is strategy. Once you have started your own pottery business, you must think of a way to stand out.
There must always be some sort of competition. Originality is key. People will be attracted to your work if it is original. While being original, keep in mind what the popular demand is.
As part of your strategy, you can sell to retail shops, go for online delivery, set up a booth, and attend flea markets, roadside sales, and festivals to sell your products.
Set Up a Workspace
Setting up a workforce is necessary because it might not be easy doing all the work alone. Before this stage, some money must have been coming in.
Buy some glaze and underglaze sets. Work on your selling method. Have an option fr those who are selling for you on a commission basis.
Go online, and make a website or social media account where you sell your pottery pieces.
Create Pottery Pieces
You need to create some pottery pieces before your first order comes in. You don’t have to create many pieces.
If you get a bulk order, try to deliver on time or let the buyer know you can’t deliver on time.
Market your Brand
Marketing is very necessary. Find stores that are willing to sell your products. You can print flyers with your shop’s address written on them and paste them around your neighborhood.
Build your presence online.
Sell Your Pottery and Grow Your Business
Now that you’ve made a business plan, set up your workspace, created pieces to sell, and marketed them, it’s finally the time to sell & earn! Now, let’s look at the list of pottery classes in Washington DC.
The List of Pottery Classes in Washington DC
Below are the studios where you can take pottery classes in Washington DC.
- All Fired Up
- Hinckley Pottery
- District Clay Center
- Eastern Market Pottery
- Capitol Hill Arts Workshop
- Alexandria Clay Coop
- The Clay Queen Pottery
- ArtSpace
- Arlington Arts Center
All Fired Up
- Address: 3413 Connecticut Ave Washington, DC 20008
- Phone: (202) 363-9590
- Website: https://allfiredupdc.com/
All Fired Up is located in DC’s Cleveland Park neighborhood. It is a paint your own pottery studio that opened its doors in May 2004.
Since then, they have expanded to offer mosaics, canvas painting, acrylic painting, and glass fusion.
They have always believed that everyone should have access to making art. That is true at All Fired Up!
They have pottery that starts at $5, without any additional costs, but the average cost is $20-$25.
Hinckley Pottery
- Address: 3132 Blues Alley NW Washington DC 20007
- Phone: (202) 670-2726
- Website: https://www.hinckleypottery.com/
Hinckley Pottery offers different kinds of pottery classes in Washington DC, such as:
Adult Classes: They offer instruction for all skill levels. Wheel classes are ongoing and run for 10 consecutive weeks.
Each class is two-and-a-half hours long. You can start whenever there is an opening on a day and time that works for you.
The fee is $400. Hand building sessions are two-and-a-half hours long for 8 weeks and have fixed beginning and end dates. The fee is $320.
Try It Class: This class is available at selected times. The fee is not refundable.
It covers clay, the use of basic tools, and hands-on instruction. (There is a $20.00 fee to reschedule a Try It class.
Kids & Teens Classes: In these classes, beginners get solid grounding in pottery fundamentals, and more advanced students develop skills in throwing on the potter’s wheel as well as a variety of hand-building techniques.
Cost of clay, use of tools and equipment, glazes, and firing are included in the fee.
District Clay Center
- Address: 2414 Douglas St NE Washington DC 20018
- Phone: (202) 341-8269
- Website: https://www.districtclaycenter.com/
District Clay Center offers ten-week pottery classes in Washington DC. Adult classes are for ages 16+ and they offer classes for kids 12-15 on Saturdays. Below are some of their classes and their cost:
CLASS : WHEEL (adult, 14 students, 10 weeks) $345 & (adult, 8 students, 10 weeks) $365.
CLASS: HANDBUILDING (adult, 8 students, 10 weeks) $345.
CLASS: WHEEL: Beyond the Basics–Intermediate Intensive WITH JILL ROSS MELTZER (adult, 8 students, 8 weeks, 3 hours each class) $365.
Online Handbuilding with Jon: INTRO TO HANDBUILDING. 4 weekly classes. Mon, 7-9 pm, Cost: $160.00.
Eastern Market Pottery
- Address: 225 7th Street Southeast, Washington DC, 20003
- Phone: (202) 544-6669
- Website: https://easternmarketpottery.com/
Eastern Market Pottery is a teaching studio that offers instructor-led classes for adults on weekdays Monday through Thursday.
They offer the following classes:
- Monday: 7:00pm-10:00pm, $300 for 8 weeks
- Tuesday: 6:30pm-9:30pm, $300 for 8 weeks
- Wednesday: 9:30am-12:00pm, $260 for 8 weeks
- Wednesday: 6:30pm-9:00pm, $260 for 8 weeks
- Thursday: 9:30am-12:00pm, $260 for 8 weeks
- Thursday : 7:00pm-10:00pm, $300 for 8 weeks
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop
- Website: http://www.chaw.org
- 545 7th St SE Washington, DC 20003
SG St
Capitol Hill
They offer the following classes:
Beginners Wheel Throwing: All wheel all the time! Students will have valuable time on the potter’s wheel to experience the processes of centering, opening, and pulling/shaping the clay. Monday, 6:30-8:30pm. Tuition – $310.
Intermediate Wheel Throwing: Learn, practice, and perfect basic to advanced ceramic skills. Wheel throwing and hand building and finishing techniques will be covered. Tuesday, 6:30-8:30 pm. Tuition – $350.
Intermediate/ Advanced Pottery: Demonstrations focus on more advanced throwing techniques- lids, throwing off the hump, platters, and coil throwing, as well as, instruction in techniques like sgraffito, relief printing, and working with stains. Class includes glaze instruction and advanced slip techniques and materials. Thursday, 6:30-8:30 pm. Tuition – $350.
Alexandria Clay Coop
- Website: http://www.alexandriaclaycoop
- 2389 S Dove St
Alexandria, VA 22314
Classes at Alexandria Clay Coop are informal and kept small (8 students max) to allow instructors to provide each student with individual attention as needed.
Classes are 3 hours long, and extra studio time is included for all classes during open studio hours at no extra charge.
Open studio is held on Tuesdays from 4-10 pm and Saturdays from 12-8 pm.
Classes are open to students age 15 and up or to students 12 and up if a parent is also taking the class.
Their 9-week class is open to students of all levels and will teach students how to create hand-built pottery using various techniques such as slab construction, coil pots, extruded clay, pinch pots, and more. Fee – $300
The Clay Queen Pottery
The Clay Queen Pottery has some of the top pottery classes in Washington DC and is located in Alexandria, Virginia’s historic DelRay neighborhood. It is a magical place where potter Renee Altman and her students create masterpieces in clay.
Pottery classes are for all skill levels. You will learn how to make pots on the wheel and to finish them by trimming and glazing.
Discussion and instruction will include techniques, aesthetics, and design.
During class there are demonstrations. Because people progress differently, individual instruction is the most effective way to teach.
Different levels are all mixed into each class so there is always somebody to help if the instructor is busy with somebody else.
A private studio has the luxury of not being tied to semesters or 101 classes.
Fee: $340 for a ten-week session, one class each week. This fee includes Saturday studio time and all materials and firing.
First-time students pay an additional one-time fee of $20 for tools if they don’t already have their own. Find out more about their location and classes.
ArtSpace
- Phone number: (202) 332-0220
The rich variety of programs at ArtSpace are offered all year round and are taught by amazing working artists and experienced volunteer teachers.
These individuals are deeply passionate about their craft and eager to share their talents with others.
ArtSpace offers pottery studio rental at $150.
Kiln & Co
- (703) 255-7155
- https://www.kilnandco.com
- 455 S Maple Ave Falls Church, VA 22046
Kiln & Co offers paint-your-own pottery classes as well as wheel classes.
With ceramic bisque for paint-your-own pottery, they have a wide selection of unique pieces to keep you coming back and when you’re there, they have an astounding collection of tools, stamps, decals, and glazes to challenge your imagination.
Arlington Arts Center
- Phone number: (703) 248-6800
- 3550 Wilson Blvd Arlington, VA 22204
Both beginners and experienced artists will find engaging classes at AAC.
Classes for school-age students introduce techniques, including drawing, painting, clay modeling, collage, and more.
In keeping with research suggesting the value of art in early childhood education, AAC offers its My First Portfolio program for preschoolers. Working alongside their caregiver, young children hone cognitive, sensory, and motor skills, and explore their creativity with age-appropriate art activities.
Some Tips to Prepare for a Pottery Classes in Washington DC
Wear clothes that can get dirty, clip fingernails short, and tie back long hair. Go with an old towel for wiping your hand. Are there other pottery classes in Washington DC that should be on this list? Please share with us.