COMMUNITY CORNER
Welcome our new
Studio Attendantsmeet Julia and Jackson!
JULIA started as a student at our studio about 10 years ago. While she took a break from ceramics during Covid, she is currently enrolled in Glendale Community College pottery classes Julia is interested in building a career in ceramics and is looking forward to bolstering her technical skills while working with us.
Julia’s favorite thing to make is functional ware like mugs and bowls. She loves working with B Mix and Patsy’s Green.
JACKSON was introduced to ceramics in high school and is looking forward to learning more about the process from start to finish.
He is a working actor and is involved in film making and puppetteering Jackson enjoys rock climbing, tending to his bonsai, and learning about other art forms to hone his skills on stage
SCIENCE CORNER
Clay Matters
Here is a brief look at the clays we offer in our studio and what clay may be best for your project
Coleman Porcelain
This is the smoothest, whitest clay we have Porcelains are best for throwing delicate objects such as cups, small bowls, vases etc. Coleman has the highest shrink rate of any clay in our studio This clay will shrink, warp, crack, have a memory, and generally misbehave the most.
Why use it then? Coleman will also show off color of glazes the best, it will be the most transluscent, if thin enough, and has a wonderful body texture even with no glaze It is an all around great porcelain
Nara Porcelain
Nara is a more affordable and slightly less fussy porcelain, best for someone just trying porcelaing for the first time. It is slightly less white and transluscent than Coleman, but it is also slightly less prone to shrinking, warping, cracking, and general porcelain difficulties.
Porcelain Tips:
Water is your enemy here. Use as little as possible. Slow down! Take longer to dry pieces, don’t blow dry or dry in the sun Easy does it. Porcelain has a memory, if you bump a bowl and then fix it, the damage will become visible again after the firing
SCIENCE CORNER
B Mix
B Mix is a porcelaneous stoneware, meaning that it is somewhere in between a stoneware and a porcelain. This clay was designed to give you the best of both worlds: it is nearly as white as porcelain, but not quite as fussy when it comes to water use and drying. B Mix still has a fairly high shrink rate and has almost no translucency, but shows color very well. This clay is as smooth as porcelain and can present similar difficulties with cracking and warping. This is a good clay to try if you are not quite ready for porcelain, but would like to have a smoother, whiter canvas to work on Like porcelain, this clay is best for throwing small to medium functional ware, but can be used for smaller handbuilding if treated with care.
B Mix with Grog
This is regular B Mix with gritty grog added to reduce shrinkage and warping. It is not as smooth, nor as white, but it also doesn’t have the challenges of regular B Mix Still great with color, this clay can be used to make larger pieces and will tolerate handbuilding better.
Stony White
This is our best all around white clay. If you want regular clay, this is it. Stony White has a little bit of grog to give it body and reduce shrinkage Great for throwing and handbuilding and shows off color well.
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Granite
This clay is a Primadonna and is not for everyone. To get its signature gray color, Granite is comprised of part porcelain, part stoneware, and a bunch of gray stain thrown in It can be difficult to throw and is prone to cracking. This clay is best if you plan on leaving large portions of it unglazed to show off the gray body color
Soldate 60
Soldate is your all around work-horse clay. It is medium buff with a light speckle from the 60 mesh sand This is a clay you can beat up, torture, dry with a torch, whatever. It will perform great for throwing just about any size project and will do just as well for handbuilding and sculpture. The buff tone will show off glazes well, but will have a bit of a speckle.
Rod’s Bod
Rod’s Bod is very similar to Soldate, but a bit darker in color and with even more speckle. If you like variation and a bit of mystery to your glazes, this is a fun clay to try. Good, easy, all around body with medium/coarse texture and dark buff/light brown speckly color.
SCIENCE CORNER
Long Beach
Easy all around red/brown clay. This medium/coarse body can stand just about any beating It is great on the wheel, it is great for handbuilding and sculpture The rich reddish-brown color will truly shine in Reduction. Glazes susceptible to iron will look darker and richer on brown clays LB will show light speckling from the grog in the clay
Fat Red
This clay is smoother and finer than Long Beach, similar in texture to Stony White. It is a rich dark red-brown and does best in Reduction Glazes will look much darker on this clay and it looks great with no glaze as well. Due to its smoother texture, smaller and more delicate pieces can be made successfully Good for throwing and handbuilding alike.
Dark Brown
This is our darkest clay body and is the closest we get to black. Medium coarseness clay body, similar in texture to Fat Red or Stony White. Good for throwing and handbuilding. This clay will affect glazes dramatically, some for the better, some for the worse, but will also look great with no glaze.
JEWELRY MAKING WORKSHOPS
Explore the world of wearable art with our latest offerings of jewelry workshops — where creativity meets craftsmanship! Whether you're a curious beginner or an experienced maker, each session is a hands-on adv behind stunning, one-of-a-kind pieces creators, and leave with something bea
JEWELRYMAKING:CHARMSWO WITHANGIQUINCY#49063
18andup
Saturday,August8th2026 10AM-1PM
JEWELRYMAKING:FLORALPENDANT WORKSHOPWITHANGIQUINCY#49064
18andup
Saturday,September12th2026 10AM-1PM
WORKSHOPS ARE HELD AT THE MANHATTAN BEACH ART CENTER 1560 MANHATTAN BEACH BLVD.
STUDIO NEWS AND REMINDERS
REGISTRATION REGISTRATION
Resident registration opens August 10, 2026
Non-Resident registration opens August 24, 2026
NEW CLASSES NEW CLASSES
Advanced Projects
Mondays 1:30pm - 4:30pm Thursdays 6:30pm - 9:30pm
Advanced Projects
This is a class designed for intermediate/advanced level students to flex their creative muscles and take deeper dives into special techniques. This class runs in 5-week seminars (2 per session) with every seminar focusing on a particular technique such as surface decoration, Nerikomi, glazing, soft or hard slab construction, and more.
Students must be comfortable wheel throwing or handbuilding basic shapes (such as a mug with handle, trimmed bowl with foot, or lidded container) independently. Students will be introduced to the theme technique and encouraged to encorporate it into their regular work.
Please remember, registration for both 5-week seminars will open at the same time a the beginning of each session If you plan on taking both seminars, please sign up as soon as registration opens as space is limited.
GLAZE OF THE WEEK
Oink! This adorable piggy went to the market wearing Toby’s Pink Nose and was fired in Oxidation. Thank you, Michelle, for adding this whimsy to our studio!
Maybe Michelle’s piglet can visit this amazing village by Christine S?! I don’t think anyone could blow those houses down. Glazed in MB Celadon and Temmoku and fired in Oxidation.
Beautiful sgraffito by Gilbert. Not 100% sure on the glaze, but if I had to guess, I’d say the piece was painted with black slip, carved, then glazed in clear or another transparent glaze. Fired in Oxidation.
Sunday
FALL 2026 SCHEDULE
Open Lab
9:00 - 1:00
Open Lab
1:00 - 5:00
Ceramics Class (Noah)
5:30 - 8:30
Open Lab 9:00 - 1:00
Advanced Projects (Eilen) 1:30 - 4:30
Teens Class (Alan) 4:30-6:00
Ceramics Class (Chris) 6:30 - 9:30
Advanced Wheel (Lowell) 10:00 - 1:00
Hand building (Lowell) 1:15 - 4:15
Teens Class (Kate) 4:30-6:00
Ceramics Class (Alan) 6:30 - 9:30
Ceramics Class (Joe) 10:00 - 1:00
Ceramics Class (Joe) 1:00 - 4:00
Kids Class (Kate) 4:30-6:00
Ceramics Class (Alan) 6:30 - 9:30
Open Lab 10:00 - 2:00
Open Lab 2:00 - 6:00
Advanced Projects (Eilen) 6:30 - 9:30
Ceramics Class (EM) 10:00 - 1:00
Ceramics Class (EM) 1:00 - 4:00
Kids Class (Kate) 4:30-6:00
Ceramics Class (Kathyn) 10:00 - 1:00
Ceramics Class (Kathryn) 1:00 - 4:00
CLAY LIST AND CHARACTERISTICS
