Around the Valley: With Karen Huwe

In March, my sisters and I took a basket weaving class at The Refinery in Walla Walla. At that time, I saw people using the pottery wheel, and in my Around the Valley article about our basket-weaving class, I said, "I can see the clay flying as I speak."

On Saturday, October 28, we decided to give the pottery wheel a spin. Our instructor, Jess, met the sisters in the studio for a two-hour session. We signed up in September to reserve our spots, as only six pottery wheels exist.

We took seats by the wheel and covered our legs with a towel as we assumed the clay would be flying. Jess started from the beginning, telling us the parts of the wheel, the tools we would use, and the speed we should use while creating our projects. The wheel uses a pedal similar to a sewing pedal.

After clear instructions, we put clay on the wheel bat and got the wheel spinning. We soon found out how wet to have our hands and how much pressure to put on the clay to mold it. Like any handmade art object, each project turned out a little differently. One might look like a bowl, cup, or even a Harry Potter hat.

Esther, Sandra, Janet, Joan, and I had a great time learning to "throw" clay, and it did not go "flying" as I thought it would. After the initial step-by-step project guided by Jess, we had the chance to make another project on our own. It was a fun day at The Refinery. Check out the website to take a class at refineryww.com. Ready, set, throw.