Anyone who wants to learn pottery should take a few lessons to master the basic principles. Nowadays there are two ways to do that. You can sign up for a class on location – in a pottery studio in your area – or you can purchase a video course online. Not sure what you should choose? Let’s make the comparison.
Accessible
If you want to take an in-person pottery class, you have to find one that fits your schedule. And takes place in a location that’s not too farfrom home. With online pottery lessons you don’t have these worries: you do the next lesson when it suits you, from the comfort of your home.
Online lessons do have the downside that you have to provide your own materials. For anyone who’s not completely sure if they want to dive head-first into this new hobby, that’s quite an investment.
Fun community
The best pottery studios provide a warm, cosy environment, where all potters help and support each other. It’s the perfect atmosphere to both learn a lot and make some new friends at the same time.
You don’t get that benefit as much with online lessons, because you and your fellow students only talk to each other through messages and social media. Although we should point out that not every pottery studio has the wonderful atmospere we described, so there’s no guarantee really.
Your progress
If you take an in-person class, the instructor can come by your side and give your specific advice. And if needed, they can even take your hands and have you feel exactly how they do it. With an online lesson all you can do is send your questions to your instructor’s inbox. It’s less hands-on if you will.
But on the other hand, an in-person class doesn’t allow you to press pause on the lesson, because you’re still working on the previous step. And you also can’t rewatch that one step that you haven’t quite figured out yet, until you’ve completely mastered it.
Next chapter
Especially now that pottery has become quite popular, there are many pottery studios that offer classes for beginners. But what happens when you’re ready for the next step? Often that’s a bit harder to find. Potters who are ready for more, might be left wanting when looking at the classes available.
Online on the other hand, you can find a wide range of courses. How about a deep dive into the world of glazing? Or of decoration techniques? Maybe you want to laser-focus on how to create the specific shape of a teapot? There’s a course for that!
The choice is yours
Of course there’s isn’t any one correct answer: whether you should take an online course or find an in-person class depends on your situation. Or maybe you’re better off combining the two? Only one way to find out: try and see!
