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Activities / Terracotta / Terracotta Pottery

Terracotta Pottery

Hand-Built Terracotta Pinch Pot: Shape, Dry and Fire

Level
Intermediate
Duration
2 - 4 hours (plus 1-2 weeks drying and firing)
Budget
₹60 – ₹300
Age
12+ (adult supervision)
State
Pan-India

Materials

  • Terracotta clay
  • Firing at a local potter or community studio
  • Acrylic paint and a brush, if you want to decorate the fired pot
  • Wooden board or mat to work on
  • Sponge, bowl of water, cloth, plastic bag, newspaper
  • Comb, fork, leaf or stick for patterns

Steps

  1. Set up a work board and keep the clay wrapped
    Put a wooden board or a plastic mat on a table you can leave a little messy. Keep a bowl of water, a damp sponge, a cloth and a small stick or comb beside you. Cut off a fist-sized lump of clay, about 400 g (14 oz), and keep the rest wrapped tightly in a plastic bag so it stays soft. Wear old clothes, because clay marks cloth. Common mistake: leaving the clay open to the air, which turns the surface hard and cracked.
  2. Wedge the clay about 20 times to remove air bubbles
    Press the lump on the board with the heel of your hand, pushing away from you, then fold it back over and turn it a quarter. Repeat about 20 times until the clay feels smooth, even and the same softness all through. Air pockets can make a pot burst in the kiln. Test it by cutting the lump in half and looking for holes, and wedge again if you see any. Common mistake: skipping this step.
    Tip: If the clay sticks to your hands it is too wet, so knead it on a sheet of newspaper for a minute to dry it out.
  3. Roll a ball and press your thumb into the centre
    Roll a ball of clay the size of a small orange, about 7 cm (3 in) across. Hold it in your palm and push your thumb into the centre until about 1 cm (half an inch) of clay remains at the bottom. Check the depth by feeling with your other hand from the outside. Common mistake: pushing right through the bottom. If that happens, squash the ball and start again.
    Tip: Use your thumb of the stronger hand, and rest the ball in the other palm.
  4. Pinch and turn to thin the walls to 6 to 8 mm
    Keep your thumb inside and your fingers outside. Gently pinch the wall between them, then turn the pot a little and pinch again, working in a slow spiral from the bottom to the rim. Aim for walls about 6 to 8 mm (a quarter inch) thick all round. Press lightly, because hard pressing cracks the clay, and if the rim starts to crack, dab it with a little water and smooth it with your finger. Rushing makes thick and thin patches.
  5. Shape the pot, flatten the base and smooth the rim
    Tap the pot gently on the board to make a flat base so it will not wobble. Press the walls outward from inside to widen it, or squeeze them in a little to make a rounder pot. Smooth the rim with a wet finger by running it round slowly. Hold the pot up at eye level to check that it is even, and fix any lopsided side by pressing it gently from the inside.
  6. Smooth the outside with a damp sponge
    Wring out the sponge so it is damp, not dripping. Wipe it over the outside and the inside in slow circles to remove finger marks and small cracks. The clay looks slightly shiny when it is smooth. If a crack remains, press a little soft clay mixed with water into it and wipe over. Common mistake: too much water, which turns the clay to mud.
    Tip: Work in short sessions. A pot that has dried a little holds its shape much better.
  7. Decorate while the clay is still soft
    Press a leaf, a comb, a fork or a stick lightly into the outside to make a pattern, such as a row of dots or lines about 1 cm apart. To add a coil round the rim, roll a snake of clay as thick as a pencil, scratch both surfaces where they will meet with a fork, dab on a little water and press the coil on. Smooth the join with your finger. Do not press too deeply, or the wall will become thin.
  8. Dry the pot slowly for one to two weeks
    Cover the pot loosely with a cloth for the first 2 days. Then uncover it and leave it on a shelf away from direct sun, wind and heaters, turning it a little each day. Slow drying stops cracks. The pot is dry when it turns pale and no longer feels cool to your cheek, which usually takes 1 to 2 weeks. Do not lift it by the rim, since a dry pot is fragile.
    Tip: Put a plastic bag loosely over the pot if the air is very dry or windy.
  9. Have a local potter or studio fire it in a kiln
    A kiln needs training and safety equipment, so do not fire the pot at home. Take the dry pot, wrapped in newspaper, to a local potter (a kumhar) or a community pottery studio and ask for a bisque firing, which is the first firing at about 900 to 1000 degrees C. Ask when to collect it. If you used air-dry clay instead, skip this step and move on to the last one.
  10. Finish it natural or paint it, and clean up
    A fired terracotta pot has a warm orange-red colour. Leave it natural or paint it with acrylic, using a size 6 brush, for a decorative planter. Unglazed clay is slightly porous, so line it with a saucer if you plant in it. Clean up with a damp cloth, not a dry brush, because dry clay dust is bad for your lungs. Never rinse thick clay down the sink drain, because it blocks the pipe.

Sustainability

High - clay is a natural material and a pot can be reused for years; firing needs fuel, so use a community kiln where possible

Safety

Dry clay dust irritates lungs, so use a damp cloth, not a dry brush, to clean up; clay dries skin; firing needs a kiln run by a trained potter, and should not be done at home; wet clay is heavy