Decorative Clay Coil Pot

How to Make

1. Firstly, make some clay slip by adding a little water to some soft clay and mix it with a fork.
2. Then tear off piece of clay and roll it into long ‘sausage’ shapes, the width of your pinky finger.
3. For the base of the coil pot, roll one of the ‘sausage’ shapes into a spiral.
4. Then using a modelling tool, smooth out the top.
5. Score and create texture around the edge of the circle base.
6. Then paint some slip over where you scored the clay.
7. Roll another coil and cut it to the right length. Do this by lining up the coil to the edge of the base, or on the coil below and trim the ends. You can cut the clay with a modelling tool.
8. Once it’s cut to length, you need to bond the two ends of the coil together using the scoring and slip technique.
9. Repeat this for 3 coils at the bottom of the pot.
10. Then, roll 6 clay balls that are the same size.
11. Score and add slip to the previous coil and place the clay balls evenly around the pot.
12. Then, roll out a long coil and use the score and slip technique. Position the coil on top of your pot and direct the coil over and between the clay balls to create a wiggly design.
13. Continue to build your pot using the same technique until the pot reaches your desired height then set aside to dry. You can smooth the coils with a little bit of water and a paint brush as you go.
14. When the clay coil pot is dry, paint with your desired colours.
15. Lastly, varnish your pot to create a shiny finish.

Top Tip

Position the joint in your clay coils at different points around the pot.