The super bowl is an exciting time of the year where you get to spend time with friends and family while rooting your team to victory. Join us in the studio before game day to get ready for the celebrations and fun!

The super bowl is often celebrated with fun watch parties. Whether you are hosting one at your own home or attending one elsewhere, pottery (and even glass pieces) make great serving dishes for your event. These pieces can be painted with logos or just in your team's colors and will be a huge hit at your party! Chip and dip pieces, platters, and serving bowls are just a few pieces that are incredibly useful for these events.

Painting pieces for your super bowl parties is great, but pottery pieces can also be used to support your favorite team leading up to the event and any other time of the year. Mugs may not be used as a food serving piece, but a mug with your team's logo is a fun way to get in the super bowl spirit when you're having your morning coffee. These are great for any sport and team that you support year round!

Get in the super bowl spirit ahead of time by celebrating and preparing with your friends and family in the studio! Create your own party pieces together and then use them all on the day of the game. Who doesn't want to enjoy the super bowl as many times as possible this time of year?! This is a great way to prep for your party and spend some quality time while doing so.

The start of a new year is an exciting time for so many reasons. It can mark the passage of time, while also encouraging new beginnings. We wish you a healthy and prosperous new year and hope you spend it doing things you enjoy with the people you care about!

The passing of another year can be meaningful for many different parts of life. Kids getting older, marriage, another year of life, and so much more. Custom pottery is a great way to look back on these moments in the future. Hand/foot prints, names, dates, and other ways of customizing make these pieces a keepsake to be treasured.

Self care is important year round, but the new year can be a great time to evaluate the areas of your life that you want to spend more time tending to. Self care comes in different forms for different people, so it can be helpful to reflect on what that means to you. Spend a couple of hours painting or working on a glass fusing project, either alone or with others, to relax and recharge. We have different projects in the studio that can help you slow down and are also great if you've made a resolution to be more creative or try new things.

This time tends to bring about resolutions and goals that can be worked on throughout the year. Resolutions take many forms and can just be seen as intentions for the new year. If your goal is to try new things or spend more time creating, we can help you with that. Reserve some time to create something special or try a new activity with us. Our studio assistants are always ready to answer your questions or walk you through something new. You can also sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date with classes and workshops that will be scheduled throughout the year (for both kids and adults)!

Give the Gift of Experience!
The holidays are quickly approaching and if you still have a couple names on your list, Hands on Pottery is a great stop to make for unique, creative gifts.  We'll help you pick out the right gifts for your loved ones!  Succulent gardens, mosaic kits, and watercolor kits are unique gifts that also provide an activity.  If you're not sure  what someone would like, a giftcard is a great option so they can pick their own project!

A gift certificate to the studio is the gift of experience, as your loved one can use it to choose from the array of options we have to create. You can choose to bring your artist in after the holidays with the gift card you give them and have a fun day creating together or allow them to spend some relaxing time creating when they choose to. Gift cards are a great last minute gift that offers a whole lot of options beyond the holiday season!

Succulent gardens are a fun option for kids and adults alike.  Take home kits come boxed (no wrapping required!), with step-by-step instructions and all of the pieces your artist will need to create them- including the succulents.  A great activity for a snowy day!

Mosaics are another great gift project that can be done both at home or in the studio. These can also be given as a boxed up gift!  These kits include everything you'll need, including grouting instructions, and leave the creative process up to the artist!  Just come in, pick the base shape and colors for your piece, and your gift is all set!

If you're giving a gift card, the bearer can come in to make a glass project, which range from candle holders and plates to necklaces and more. It's a fun and creative challenge, as the process is different from pottery painting. The artist can choose to create a specific image or design with glass pieces or make it more abstract. There is no longer time to create a piece in time to give as a gift this holiday season, but it is a great in-studio option that a gift card can be used for!

Last, but not least, pottery painting is always a fun choice for your artist and can be enjoyed by adults and children of all ages. There are tons of options, ranging in style and price, including seasonal items depending on the time of year. Pottery allows artists to get as creative as they'd like and lets little ones have fun too! Pottery takes about a week to go through the firing process before it's able to be picked up, so this is another great project that your artist can use a gift card for later.

Monogrammed pieces are fun to customize and make great gifts for many occasions. With the holidays coming up, this is the perfect time to start creating!

The holidays are the perfect time to create personalized pieces for decorative use or use with food, as all of our glazes are food, dishwasher, and microwave safe.
Wedding plates are very popular whether they're made as a gift for the actual wedding day or years later. They're great for anniversaries and other special occasions like buying a home as well. Monogrammed pieces are just as special as holiday gifts as they are on the day of weddings, anniversaries, or any special occasion that they symbolize.

A few techniques can be used to personalize your creations. One option is to use stencils that we have available in the studio. The most effective way to use stencils is to trace them onto your piece with pencil and then use a thin brush to paint over the image you've traced on.

Another great option is to print your letter or image and trace it onto your pottery. This requires one more step, but gives you the freedom to choose from any font you find online and change the size to best fit the piece you're working on. Once your image/letter is printed, the first step is to lay tissue paper over the top and trace it onto that. The tissue paper is then positioned on the piece and traced over with a permanent marker that will bleed through to the pottery. Finally, just like with the stencils, use a thin brush and your color of choice to paint over the image you've traced.

Stop into the studio and let us help you create some gifts you will be proud of!

Hand print pieces painted for the holidays are fun, useful pieces that can be used for years to come. They also serve as a memory of the stage of life the child was in when the pieces were made. Ornaments, tiles, plates, platters, and more can be printed with your child's hand or foot and themed for any holiday or season!

Hand prints on plates and platters make great Thanksgiving tableware and decorations. There's still time to make pieces for your table at this year's Thanksgiving celebration!

Give the gift of creativity this Hanukkah! Handmade pottery make great keepsakes for loved ones. Gift certificates are also available for the artists in your life to paint or bring in little ones to make hand/foot print creations this year.

Now is the perfect time to start holiday hand print pieces that make lifelong keepsakes. Hand print pieces are great for gifts, decoration, useful holiday dinner platters, and a memory of your child during the time it was made.

Glass fusing is a fun project with a totally different process from pottery painting. Even though we've had it in the studio for a few years now, we're always adding to and improving upon it.

Every glass project starts off with a flat base of clear glass. From there, you are free to choose the shapes & colors of glass from our selection to create your design. You can make a specific image or create something more abstract, as seen in the second glass square from the bottom in the picture above. The glass can be shaped to help you achieve your desired look by using special glass tools we have in the studio. Your design becomes the second layer of glass which covers the entire surface of the base. 
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Check out the above picture to see how the steps progress from an empty base (middle bottom)to a full fledged design (middle top), and how you can make your own unique layout!

When your project is complete, we put it in the kiln to be fired. Any piece that you want to remain flat will go through one firing and any piece that you want to be three dimensional (candle holder, bowl, plate, etc.) will go through a second firing to be shaped on top of a mold.

We always have studio assistants available during regular studio hours to help you through the glass fusing process.  We also offer times of special instruction with a dedicated project. These classes are tons of fun and allow you to work with other people who are creating the same type of project. We provide instruction in a group setting that guides you through, but still allows you to use your creativity.

Our next two glass classes are part of our 2019 winter camp sessions for kids! They will take place on Saturday, December 7th and Monday December 30th. We will be making glass fused present plates on the 7th and glass fused fish tanks on the 30th. This is the perfect opportunity for your kids to learn glass fusing in a class setting.

There will also be six other camp sessions that include pottery painting, clay sculpting, water color, and canvas painting (projects pictured below). These are also open for sign ups now! Follow us on Instagram @handsonpotterystudio to stay up to date with our future glass workshops and other events.

As the weather cools down, our time outside is limited and doesn't include as much greenery as the summertime. Succulent gardens are a great way to bring some natural elements into your home during the colder months of the year. These amazing plants purify the air and thrive inside year round with minimal care and also serve as a decorative piece to display.

Succulent gardens are loved by children and adults alike. There's no limit to the ways the various decorations can be set up. Whimsical and seasonal gardens are fun to create, while others prefer to keep them more simple by using less decorative elements.

Choose the characters, stones, sand, moss, and other decorations. Slowly water your garden with 1/4 cup of water or set one ice cube in the garden just once or twice a month. Let the soil dry out completely between watering and give them 4+ hours of sunlight a day.

Garden making parties are fun for all ages! We walk through the steps together, but the fun and creativity of the layout is completely up to every artist. Succulent garden and BYOB with friends, make one individually, or create whimsical gardens for a child's birthday party.

We are so excited to be hosting seasonal paint and sips in the studio! Sign up with friends or come by yourself and make new ones. These events are BYOB so you can relax with snacks and drinks as you're guided through the painting steps. We had a blast at our most recent paint and sip in September and are looking forward to our November event!

We recommend painters arrive ten to fifteen minutes early to get situated before instruction begins. Our instructor will walk you through the steps so you'll end up with a piece that you are proud to put on display. Snacks, drinks, and socializing are encouraged throughout the process!

The whole entire experience is fun and relaxing, but one of the most exciting parts is seeing the completed paintings. Our instructor will guide you step by step through the painting, but we give you full artistic license! Many parts are customizable so you can take creative reign on your project.

Join us for our next event on November 7th from 6:00-8:00PM! We will be joined by Amy Cantor with Young Living Essential Oils. This night includes a lesson in essential oils along with painting instruction. This event in particular differs from other paint and sips because you will be able to incorporate the aroma of an essential oil into your painting if you decide to. We're excited to create this 'Give Thanks' piece just in time for Thanksgiving!

You can sign up in studio or by calling, or click the link below to register online.

With the holiday season right around the corner, it's time to start planning your parties! Our party room is the perfect place to host your next get-together. Whether you're looking to spend time with family, friends, or co-workers, this area of the studio provides a private space where you can create together. For the rest of September, we are waiving our party room fee ($35) when you book a party for the months of November and December. This is the perfect opportunity to schedule a night of painting, glass fusing, or succulent garden creating in time for holiday giving!

Looking to make a set of holiday dishes and want to get the whole family involved? Reserve the party room for your family and let everyone contribute to a piece of the set! You can let each painter pick their own colors or choose a color scheme for everyone to use to unify the pieces, while still keeping the individuality of each person's unique design. Matching sets are fun to create, but you can also choose to have everyone make their own pieces. The holiday season is a great time to get your family together in an environment where all ages are encouraged to relax and be creative!

The holidays are a wonderful time to celebrate the work your team has done throughout the year. Our parties provide a relaxed and creative environment and can even serve as a great team building event. Food and drinks are always allowed in the studio, so bring your favorites and enjoy your time together! Pottery painting, glass fusing, glass painting, and succulent garden creating are all fun ways to bring the office together outside of work.

This season is filled with cheer, but all of the running around and planning can be stressful. Schedule time to relax with friends- bring snacks and we'll take care of the rest! Making art with the people in your life is a great way to relax and spend time together- and cookies and ornament painting are a fun combination! Create holiday gifts or something for yourself without the added stress of organizing and cleaning up. Our party room provides a private space of the studio and we take care of the cleanup so you can focus on making art spending time with good friends.

Call or stop in during the rest of September to book your November and December events without the party room fee! 216-292-4844

Can you hear the wedding bells? It's that time of the year when it seems that there is a wedding or anniversary to celebrate every other weekend.
Skip the  gift cards and get the special couple a personalized, sentimental and timeless gift: a handcrafted wedding plate! We have so many artists coming through the studio creating wedding plates, platters, and even matching mugs for newly weds. These heart warming keepsakes are so special because they are all functional (food safe, microwave, and dishwasher safe) as well as designed specially and hand painted by someone meaningful. So we collected a few of our favorite wedding designs to inspire and spark creativity for your next loved ones wedding! 

Love these designs but not feeling creative? Think they'd be perfect for you're favorite bride to be? You're in luck!  These to designs above are easily customizable with the couple's names and date of the wedding!  Hands on Pottery works with an amazing artist that creates these 2 masterpieces!  If there's something else you have in mind, our artists will work with you to create something you'll love!

Matching mug sets are a cute and unique wedding gift!

There are so many ways to design a wedding plate whether it's the newly weds last name, a picture of their engagement, a cartoon of the couple, or a classic design on a platter. The styles range from cute and quirky to clean and classy! Our studio assistants can help you every step of the way from the brainstorming process all the way to the color choosing. We have our 'print, trace, and print' technique to help with tracing specific designs and lettering, we have fun stamps, and a large selection of stencils to give you all the tools you need to make a phenomenal piece of art. We even have a writing request option. If desired, when you're done painting background and designs, one of our artists will help you with intricate writing to finish off your masterpiece. We love to help!

A great idea for bachelorette/ bachelor parties, wedding receptions, and family get-togethers.  This takes a bit of planning ahead of time, as the pieces need to be painted and fired before signing.  Then, a special paint pen can be used for all the guests to sign hassle-free.  The final step is baking this paint on in your oven at home.  It makes a great gift for the bride and groom or as a memento of a special wedding anniversary, as each person can leave a personal message on the special day.