Coiling Method

Pat some clay flat to make a base. The base can be placed inside a small rounded dish or shallow bowl (Hopi potters call this a puki).

Pinch a rim around the edge of the base and wet it.

Roll some clay between your hands into snake-like strips, called coils.

Place a coil around the rim of the base. Very slightly wet the top of that coil.

Stack coils one on top of another, wetting in between layers. The puki will make the base easier to turn as you add coils.

Smooth out the coils by scraping the sides of the pot, inside and outside, with your fingers or a smooth tool.

Examples of the coiling method

Slab Method

Roll some clay out with a rolling pin into a large, flat, even piece, called a slab. Or, slice one with wire, like cheese, from a large lump of clay.

Let the slab dry a little.

Cut the slab into five pieces for the box you are making.

Choose where you want the slabs of clay to join together to make your box. Make small lines or grooves on those edges using a sharp tool, like a fat needle. This is called scoring.

Very slightly wet these edges. The wet scoring will keep the pieces together.

Join the bottom and the sides of the box. Trim off any clay that sticks out past a joined corner.

Examples of the slab method

Pinch Method

Roll some clay into a ball small enough to fit in your hand.

Place the ball in one hand.

Press the middle of the ball with the thumb of the other hand, making a bowl shape.

Turn the clay as you continue to press it, making the bowl larger and making the sides of the bowl thinner.

Tap the bottom of the finished pot lightly on a table or add a small flattened piece of clay, called a foot ring, to the bottom of the pot. This will enable the pot to stand on its own.

Examples of the pinch method

Method to Sand Mold a Medallion

Model a medallion out of clay.

Press it into wet sand.

Remove the clay medallion. The shape of the medallion will be imprinted in the sand.

Pour liquid clay into the sand mold.

Let the clay dry. The dried clay will be the same shape as the original medallion.

(Piece molds for hollow 3-D objects are technically far more complicated, with many intermediate steps)

Examples of the mold method

Wheelthrown Method

Put a lump of clay in the center of the potters' wheel.

Splash a little water on your hands and the clay.

Begin spinning the wheel. Keep the wheel spinning as you make the pot.

Center the clay on the wheel by pressing with both hands on the sides of the lump. When the clay stops wobbling between your hands, it is centered.

Press both thumbs down slowly and carefully into the center of the lump, making a bowl shape with the clay.

Hold your hands steady by pressing your forearms against your ribs or the frame of the potters' wheel. With one hand inside the bowl and one hand outside, your hands should be pushing against the ball of clay in between them, making it thinner, wider and taller. This is called "raising the wall." The movements of the hands determine the pot's shape.

Remove the pot from the wheel by pulling a wire under the pot while the wheel is spinning slowly; lift the pot off carefully.

Examples of the wheel method