Mount Ida Pottery
WHERE
Banbridge
What it’s like
Hand build or throw on the wheel at a Banbridge pottery studio where you shape your own clay piece from scratch.
This is a studio for making something with your hands rather than a soft play with clay bowls on the side. Two types of class are on offer: hand building, where you shape clay with your fingers and simple tools, and throwing, where you sit at the wheel and try to centre the clay before it wobbles off to one side. Both are proper craft skills rather than a quick paint-a-plate session, so go in expecting to concentrate.
Throwing especially rewards a bit of patience. It takes most people a few goes to get a pot that stands up straight, and that's part of the appeal rather than a flaw. Hand building is the gentler option if wobbly wheels and wet hands sound like too much fuss, and it still gets you to a finished piece you've made yourself.
Given the focus on actual technique rather than a drop-in activity, this suits older children and teenagers who can sit still and follow instruction more than toddlers looking for something to grab and bash. It reads as a studio experience first, a family activity second, so the classes ask for real attention rather than being a way to fill twenty spare minutes.
Plan your visit
What kind of classes do they run?
Hand building and pottery throwing on the wheel, both taught as proper classes rather than a quick paint-your-own session.
Is this suited to young children?
It leans more towards older children and teenagers who can concentrate through a class, rather than toddlers.
Do I need any experience to try throwing?
No, the classes teach it from scratch, though most people need a few attempts before a pot comes out straight.
Which class should we choose, hand building or throwing?
Hand building is the calmer option if you would rather avoid the mess and wobble of the wheel, while throwing is the one to pick if you want to try shaping clay as it spins.
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