The first thing that all the advice says is that you need to learn how to make a cylinder. This sounds quite simple doesn’t it? Here’s what I have found out in my first few weeks on the wheel.
1.It’s harder than it looks
Like most things, when you watch an expert doing it online, pottery (and most definitely throwing a cylinder) looks simple in theory. In practise, your first few times you will struggle. And that’s OK. You might struggle even after that. That’s OK too. I found myself looking Googling “Why am I rubbish at throwing?”. The answer I found – it takes a long time to be half decent on a pottery wheel. The more you can practise, the better you’ll get. Not rocket science, but if you’re squeezing in the hours where you can (like me) don’t beat yourself up.
2. Throwing classes are like gold dust (where I live anyway).
I’ve done a pottery class at my local college (the tutor was fantastic) – but this mainly focussed on hand-building. Probably mainly because they only have one working wheel. To find a class teaching wheel throwing in the West Midlands…well, rocking horse poo comes to mind. I found one eventually – and got prepped to book in. The course sold out completely in the 2 minutes it took me to get on there. I managed to bag a spot on a later course, but the follow-up courses were once again sold out, so I know I will only be getting help for 3 months. It seems crazy that there is so much appetite for classes, but nothing available. I have looked at alternatives but they are much further away for me.
3. You will struggle to centre at first.
You’ll also doubt that the clay is centred when it IS centred! There’s not really a secret to this. You just have to keep practising. I am still by no means an expert at this, but I am slowly finding it easier to centre. I’m hoping that when I DO get to class I can check that what I am doing is right.
4. You’ll make a lot of things you don’t really want
I mean, how many wobbly cylinders can any one person need? I think I am probably up to about 15 slightly off-centre cylinders that have made it to my ‘maybe fire this’ shelf. Not many make it through the next stage though…
5. Even if your cylinder works, your trimming may kill it
Every day is a school day…and it was only through trimming that I worked out the bottom of my pots were waaaaay too thin compared to the sides. Because I wasn’t worried about keeping these pieces, it was really helpful to see how thin I could trim and to have a go at trimming in footwells (I think that the right term). Don’t be precious at this point – take it as a learning exercise.
6. You’re likely to get a bit obsessed
You might feel the same, but at the moment it feels a bit like scaling a mountain…I’m constantly thinking about when I can next get on the wheel, how I can improve and what I want or need to do to create a finished piece next – and I get annoyed now when things get in the way of me making things. I am sure it will wear off, but I still feel like I just want to sit at the wheel and make stuff (more cylinders :D).
7. Don’t forget why you started.
When you’re trying to learn and feel like you might never be a decent potter, its important to remember why you started – to enjoy it!
Dawn Reed Pottery 
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