What Is Pottery Throwing?
Pottery throwing — also called wheel throwing — is the process of shaping clay on a spinning potter's wheel. The word "throwing" comes from the Old English word thrawan, meaning to twist or turn. When you throw pottery, you use your hands and centrifugal force to transform a ball of clay into a symmetrical vessel.
It's how the vast majority of round ceramic pieces are made: bowls, cups, mugs, plates, vases, and jars. Every culture on every continent has used the potter's wheel. And the fundamental technique hasn't changed in thousands of years.
Why Pottery Throwing Is So Addictive
Ask anyone who's thrown pottery and they'll tell you the same thing: once you get the feel for it, you can't stop. There's a meditative quality to working at the wheel — the spinning motion, the wet clay, the focused concentration. Your phone disappears. Time slows down. It's one of the few activities that fully absorbs your attention.
Stephen Jepson, who taught ceramics at UCF for decades, has watched thousands of students fall in love with the wheel. At 93 years old, he still throws regularly. That's the kind of skill pottery throwing is — you never outgrow it, and it never gets boring.
The Pottery Throwing Process
Centering
The foundation of every thrown piece. You slam the clay onto the wheel head and use steady, braced pressure to bring it into perfect center. If the clay wobbles, nothing else works. Centering is the skill that separates beginners from intermediate potters — and it's where good instruction matters most.
Opening
Once centered, push your thumbs into the top of the clay mound to create a hole. You're establishing the floor of your piece — leave about half an inch of clay at the bottom. Go too thin and you'll throw through the floor. Too thick and the piece will be heavy and crack during drying.
Pulling the Walls
The magic step. Squeeze the clay between your inside and outside fingers and draw upward. The walls rise. Each pull makes them taller and thinner. Three to five pulls is typical for a mug-sized piece. Use consistent pressure and steady hands — this is where the clay becomes a vessel.
Shaping
Now you define the form. Press outward for a bowl. Keep straight for a cylinder. Collar inward for a vase neck. Use ribs to smooth the surface. This is where your personal style emerges — every potter shapes differently, and the wheel responds to the lightest touch.
Trimming
After the piece dries to leather-hard (usually overnight), flip it upside down on the wheel and trim the bottom. Carve a foot ring for stability. Clean up tool marks. Trimming transforms a heavy, rough bottom into something elegant and finished.
Common Pottery Throwing Challenges
- Clay won't center — Usually too little water or inconsistent pressure. Brace your arms against your body instead of using muscle.
- Walls collapse — Too much water weakens clay. Pull faster, use less water, and support the outside wall with your other hand.
- Uneven thickness — Your hands aren't aligned. Keep inside and outside fingers directly opposite each other.
- Piece flies off the wheel — The clay wasn't centered, or you caught an edge. Slow down the wheel for shaping work.
- S-cracks on the bottom — Poor compression of the floor. Press the floor firmly with a rib after opening.
Equipment You Need for Wheel Throwing
A pottery wheel (tabletop models start at $150), a few pounds of clay, a wire cutter, a sponge, a wooden rib, and a bucket of water. That's it. Stephen's video lessons work with any wheel — tabletop or full-size, electric or kick wheel.
Learn from a Master Potter
Stephen Jepson spent his career teaching pottery throwing at the University of Central Florida. His students ranged from complete beginners to advanced degree candidates. Now 93, he's distilled those decades of teaching into video lessons that take you through every step of pottery throwing — from your first centering attempt to confident, repeatable forms.