Where are we? What do I need to bring? How long until my creations are ready? I've answered this and many more questions.

Where is the Pottery Studio?

You'll find us at 18 Market Street in Hexham opposite Lore, Mr Wolf and the Heart of Northumberland pub. We have people coming from all over Northumberland from Newcastle to Haltwhistle, Consett to Otterburn and beyond! Other than when workshops are running, the studio is a workspace for myself and other potters, because of this the studio is closed to the public unless you are booked on a course or have made an appointment.

When can I pick up my items?

Once you've made your wonderful creation, whether it's from the wheel or handbuilt, it will go into the drying room for at least four weeks and depending on the weather and humidity of the Grade II Listed building the studio is located in, possibly longer. This may seem like a long time but to try and prevent items from exploding in the kiln, as I can't guarantee they were made following the instructions we give them as long as possible. When dry enough it will go into the kiln for a day where it will heat up to over 1000c and then cool back down again. Your piece will then be glazed, left to dry and fired again for another full day. So please be patient, it may be 8 - 12 weeks before you're able to collect your item.

Will my item explode in the kiln?

Even the most experienced potter has the odd kiln disaster. It's not uncommon to close the lid of a kiln and then cross your fingers, toes and any other foldable body parts and offer prayers to the vengerful pottery gods in the hope that they will be merciful and spare the pieces about to be fired. I take every care to ensure your piece surives the drying, firing and glazing process but sometimes things simply explode, crack, warp and break. Please note things can explode with quite some force and in doing so will take out other items in the kiln, so if something does go, it can take a whole sessions worth of pots with it by toppling a stack or cracking other pots as the exploding parts hit them. This is also one of the reasons we leave things as long as we do before firing them.

Do I need to bring anything to a pottery class?

No, I provide everything you need.

How covered in clay am I going to get?

It depends, if you're booked on to a handbuilding pottery course then you should stay fairly clean, nothing a quick wash of the hands couldn't sort out. If you're doing a Wheel Throwing class, that's where the mess starts. You'll get an apron and have lots of towels on hand but spinning wet clay inevitable creates mess so just don't come wearing your sunday best.

How accessible is the pottery studio?

We've had lots of differently abled people join our pottery classes. That said the studio is in an old Grade II Listed building that's also quite small so unfortunately access isn't the best, especially for wheelchair users. There is a step into the building, which we are unable to use a ramp for as it would send people onto the road, there is also two smaller than average doorways to navigate to use the kitchen area to wash up, and the toilet is up a large and down a small step which we also don't have space to use a ramp for. We'll do our best to accommodate individual needs but please contact us in advance so we can discuss access with you should you have any concerns.

PLEASE NOTE WE DO NOT OFFER SESSIONS FOR CHILDREN UNDER 16 YEARS OLD.