Thank you for your insight into what is needed for a small home studio. I am doing the same for exactly the same reasons as you. Excellent tips on keeping the place clean as my studio will also be in my house and I do not like a mess or dust. Your pots a beautiful given your experience. I have about the same experience but far less skill.

Thanks for the kind words! Having a home studio allowed me to progress much faster, so once you have your studio set up I am sure you will improve rapidly! Good luck!

Hi! I don't know too much about home pottery. I was just wondering how you make it without having a kiln?

@@mridul7639 There are community studios and potters around that offer firing services, often calculated by weight or volume.

@@twelve.80 Oh cool! :)

Now that is dedication! Also such a genius idea. I never even thought about throwing in the bathtub. I quickly looked up The Cink and it looks like a great system, might look into it in the future. Enjoy the new space, sounds like it will be a massive upgrade!

@@twelve.80 I am waiting to have a good overhead light installed so that I can finally use my wheel again since moving into this bigger apartment. Due to the lockdown, I couldn't get it installed, but soon. I will let you know how I like using my Cink. I have it all set up and ready... can't wait!

Love this!

Thanks for letting me know! Feedback like yours keeps me motivated in making more!

You are very welcomed! Happy to help.

Thank you!

Glad I could help!

Thank you! I am mixing my own glaze and still working on recipes, but I think a video on the tools and steps would be a good follow up to this home studio video. Will definitely film it when I mix a batch.

Thank you so much!

I think pottery is one of those hobbies that you can make some money on the side without taking away the fun, even if its just to fund the hobby itself.

Glad you enjoyed it!

Thank you so much for the kind words, and welcome to pottery!

Glad you found it helpful! Good luck with the studio.

Thank you!

Thank you! Glad the video was helpful for you. Good luck with the classes!

Just searched for the wheel model & wasn’t expecting it to be over $1k

That's great to know! Have you done any classes?

Carpet would make it a whole lot more difficult! I have heard people with smaller wheels throw in their bathtub haha.

I Highly recommend it!

Very good video, thanks. I have a question about a so-called ‘plug in’ single phase kiln. Is it safe to put one in my house (with adequate ventilation) and is it safe to use a a short (5m) extension lead with it?

I am planning to make a new clay trap, but this is the website I used as my reference, should give you a pretty good idea on what you need. stephaniehammill.com/home-made-sink-clay-trap/

Thank you!

Definitely something I want to talk about in the future, although pottery is one of those things where your material is limited by your location as shipping heavy clay around is expensive, clay and material used in pottery are often mined in the local area or near by. What I have access to in Australia would be different to the US for example. Although I mix glaze from scratch so I could go into more detail in that area as the base material are similar enough the recipes would be useable anywhere.

So glad!

I have used the speckled version of the C6W and its great to work with, but I am firing in high fire so I had to switch to a high fire clay instead. Make sure you are firing at mid fire or else things will slump or warp.

@@twelve.80 Ah ok, I was looking at white. Still unsure of the speckled but would be good to experiment! Thank you! :)

Thanks! It’s not something I have ever tried, but when I get my own kiln I might look more into it.

Thank you for the kind words! And that is such a great idea! I will definitely do that, can easily be a whole series too as there are just so many beautiful work out there. Re wheel, I bought mine straight at my local pottery supply store, just went in and picked it up, its about 40kg so took a bit of effort haha Mine is a Shimpo VL Whisper, I just had a quick search and looks like it can be bought for $1250 USD which is a lot cheaper than what I paid but I am in Australia.

Thanks! I am using a Sony a6500 for the main shot and canon 5d mark 4 for the close up. I am also a photographer and do a bit of video so I have quite a bit of gear.

So I bought the easy bat starter set and a bunch of the smallest inserts. Although I don't use the full set as it's too bulky. I will do a video soon explaining my set up since a lot of people ask about them.

That's a great idea, next time I will try pouring out most of the water and put the sediment into my reclaim bucket instead.

Thanks! It is a dry wall or plaster board repair panel. Here is the link to the ones I get in Australia, I am sure you can find something similar if not the same at your local hardware warehouses. www.bunnings.com.au/gyprock-530-x-530-x-10mm-mini-plaster-repair-panel_p0730734

I don’t tend to recycle the clay on the trap as there are lots of other bits like hair and dust in it from cleaning. And there also isn’t a whole lot of clay there, so I clear it out when it gets filled and throw it away.

Thank you! The bat I use is called EasyBat, I bought it from Northcote pottery in Melbourne. I think it is made of masonite, also I modified it slightly as the original version was too bulky for my taste.

dear Ali Ceramics oh awesome! Thanks I appreciate it a lot!

I will look into it when I get a chance to make another. I have since decommissioned my home clay trap as I moved my studio out to 1280.

Absolutely, I have been meaning to change the one I have so there is a tap at the end. Here is a design I have found that would be suitable for any location with or without a sink. www.emmapuddickpottery.com/newsandmusings/making-a-clay-trap

@@twelve.80 Amazing thank you for taking the time! :)

I don't have a kiln myself, instead I take it to a pottery supply shop that has a firing service. If you have a look around you area you might be able to find something similar, that way you can do your creating at home and fire it else where.

And also I found studios charge around £80 for a 70cm*70cm rather by weight near where I live in London, which put me off 😭 and the class I joined only fire things that I made during the classes...

@@jl9386 The clay trap is pretty easy to build, the hardest part is drilling a hole in the containers. Spraying water would more likely help than cause problem as any moisture would help trap the dust. That seems pricy but from the sound of it that might be the price for hiring a small kiln instead of a big communal firing. Maybe ask your teachers if they know any where that might be more suitable. Alternatively maybe check any local pottery social groups where other potters might be happy to rent out some kiln space or they might know studios that does communal firing.

It's called easybat and its made in Australia.

Definitely recommend trying some hand building first, home studio is a big commitment and I have had people who always wanted to do pottery but once they started realise they hated it.

It's not something you can pick up overnight, but also I don't think it takes that long to get to a point where you can make things that you can use at home. My suggestion for people who are interested to start is always to check out your local studio or schools for classes, a beginner throwing class that runs for 6-8 weeks will be a great starting point, and you should be able to make things for yourself by the end of it. And if you fall in love you can continue the class and maybe think about getting your own setup.

There's always hand building, which you can do at home watching KZfaq videos, and doesn't require a wheel. Lots of good teaching on KZfaq, which is really helpful during this pandemic thingy while so many studios are closed.

@@catherineyoung3889 That is so true, I always recommend hand-building to people who are curious and can't go to throwing classes. Great way to get a feel for clay.

Yeah absolutely, just make sure you give the area a good clean with a wet sponge and mop after each session than there shouldn't be an issue.

It depends on how much clay is on it, if there is a lot then you can soak it in a bucket to get most of the dried chunks out then put it in the washing machine.

@@twelve.80 Thank you for the tip!

I have been meaning to make a video on it, but here is a design I will be using for my next one. www.emmapuddickpottery.com/newsandmusings/making-a-clay-trap

Thank you! Dust is always a on going concern for pottery so it's good that you are being conscious about it. With clay in general you would buy it mixed with just the right amount of moisture that you can use it right away. As long as there is moisture you don't beed a respirator, but that's why you should clean up with a wet sponge or mop so that the water traps all the dust instead of releasing into the air. The reason pottery shop sells respirators is when you are dealing with dry ingredients, such as mixing glazes. When you are handling powder form of anything you should wear a respirator as even just tipping a cup into another cup would cause dust to fly out into the air, and that's why a air purifier would also help as fine particles linger in the air for a long time. But if you are just starting out and only using commercial glaze which would already be mixed with water, you don't have to worry as much about respirators. Just make sure you clean up any wet clay before it dries completely.

@Davo Rebo You can definitely throw pots outside, but I wouldn't recommend leaving your wheel and equipment exposed to the element, even under cover. But in terms of mixing dry ingredients for glaze, you can definitely do it outside for extra safety, but still wear a respirator. Also maybe not on a super windy day where contaminate could fly into your mix.

@Davo Rebo I think that would be a good idea, if I have a garage I would set up in there too, just makes cleaning up easier and not have to worry as much.

If you are in Australia we are actually developing our own bat system with 200mm and 150mm inserts.

Thanks! It’s called easy bat and most likely you can only get in Australia. I use a bat mate underneath and never have issue with wobble. Clay goes in the whole a little but mostly wet slip, and never bad enough that it requires cleaning during a throwing session and it tends to come out with the small bat insert when taking out a finished piece. I have been thinking about manufacturing my own to sell, love to know what you look for in a bat system.

@@twelve.80 oh man, that would be amazing!! (Makes it’s world wide pleaseeeee I’m from the US) I’ve never seen that shape before and wondered where I could get my hands on. Bummer it’s only in Australia, but just gota look forward to your launch!

Good news: It’s available to ship to the states..!! 🎉

That’s good to know, it’s a bit heavy so hopefully shipping isn’t too costly. Also I have just launched my shop a few days ago! You can check it out on www.dearali.com.au

I can't find the original page I found the design on, and it was kind of tweaked as I made it, but here is a tutorial for a similar design that I would use if I was making another one. www.emmapuddickpottery.com/newsandmusings/making-a-clay-trap

Would you consider doing a video about it ?

Mines are from bison tools they are tungsten ones that are sharp, hard but brittle so have to be careful not to drop them.

@@twelve.80 Thanks! Will check them out.

The kiln is a little bit trickier, and it's best to speak to an electrician to see what you can do in your space, the power you have access to will be the main restriction in what kiln you could get. 99% of the time you will need some sort of electrical work done as typical circuits won't have enough power, and will need a dedicated high amp dedicated circuit for the kiln. For example, if you have a single-phase connection you will only be able to use a smaller kiln, what size will be determined by the amperage you could get.

Don't know where you are, but in some areas there are public studios where you can get your work fired until you can afford a kiln. It enables you to focus on learning how to throw pots first before learning all the chemistry and physics involved in firing and glazing, which is a substantial investment of time and trial and error, apart from the financial investment for the kiln and its installation. When you are ready, in some places you can buy a kiln second hand, but most of these are not going to be automatic kilns, but kiln sitters, which will be yet another learning curve. I speak from my own experience! As a renter, I don't own my home, so I had to get permission to install a kiln and pay the electrician to convert a dedicated spa circuit and add an outlet.

@@catherineyoung3889 Yeah I have been using firing services but the turnaround is just too slow to do any testing. So starting my own studio is the most logical step for me.

The ones with the wooden handles? They are Bison studio's trimming tools. bisonstudios.com/

@@twelve.80 8:09, 8:12 ~ i'll take a look thanks!

Alumina in clay isn't toxic, the problem with clay is prolonged exposure to silica dust, but with proper cleaning, ventilation, and the help of air purifiers the risk is greatly reduced. Alumina dust is less harmful and considered to be nuisance dust, so you don't want to be breathing in a ton of it but compare to silica it is much less of a concern.

Clay is very location-dependent, so what I have access to here in Australia would be different from the rest of the world. But if you ask any pottery supply stores they will be able to recommend beginner-friendly clay. Just make sure you let them know if you are looking to throw or hand build, as they have different characteristics.

Absolutely, I used the design from link below, mine is slightly different just because of the size of my containers and my clay trap is a stand alone unit instead of being connected to the sink/pipes. It should be pretty straight forwad if you follow the website. The only main thing to make sure is each bucket should have a lower drainage than the previous so it flows in the right order. stephaniehammill.com/home-made-sink-clay-trap/

They are called easybats made in Australia. Although I don't think they are sold overseas.

@@twelve.80 thank you for replying anyways, I’ll hunt for some U.K. based ones, they seem excellent. I’m also dealing with a small studio space so this design would be ideal. Really appreciate you making this video i found it very helpful! X

@@jencoxon6460 You might already be aware of this, from what I have heard hartley and noble bats seems good.

That’s amazing, how hot can you get it in a barbecue?

@@twelve.80 I never measured it but its enough to completely bisque fire it, when I need hotter I blow the fire with a heat gun and it can get to a bright orange, probably 1100C°

I wipe it down with a sponge and bucket, or if it’s really messy I wash it in the sink over a large bucket. All the clay and water goes in the clay trap once done. I also throw relatively clean so the mess isn’t too bad.

Clay trap as in the bucket? Do you reuse the bucket with the clay and water?

The buckets that filter out lumps of clay. I scope out the clay once it starts to build up a bit and put it into the bin.

I would highly recommend taking classes first, pottery is very hands-on, and often it's hard to know if you are doing something right or not without seeing and feeling in person. Equipments are also not cheap so it's best to figure out of you actually enjoy it before investing in a home studio.

My dog’s name is Ali and the whole business idea started off as a joke of making an all white ceramic shop as she’s a Samoyed and is all white. It kind of stuck and I thought I will just go with it as I wanted the business to be a brand and not me personally.