5 Essential Pottery Studio Tools and Equipment for Artists

Following on from a previous blog, where I spoke about getting started with pottery making and some of the basic pottery tools and supplies you need, I’m going to explore some of the more professional tools that I find invaluable. Here is a list of the 5 essential hand tools that I use every day in my studio - they are also the most common tools you would get to use if you were to do pottery classes.

Basic Pottery Tools and Supplies

Rolling Pin

This is the most essential of all my pottery tools, you can’t make a flat slab without a rolling pin! I use a heavy wooden rolling pin, about 50cm long. This allows me to roll out a slab large enough to cut out 4 or 5 mug shapes but not so large that I can’t handle the slab effectively. With my large rolling pin, I use two wooden slats, laid on either side of the clay, as a thickness guide. Slabs that are one-quarter inch thick are just right for my mugs. You can also get rolling pins with thickness guides that screw onto each end of the pin, giving you more options for slab thickness; I like to use a 6mm guide for my ceramic earrings.

Serrated Rib Tool

As a hand builder, nearly every piece of pottery I make requires separate slabs of clay to be joined together. The serrated rib tool is invaluable for this. I use it to score lines into the edges that are being joined together, which are then moistened with a vinegar-based slip before being pressed together. The scored lines help to create a rough surface, which the vinegar slip makes sticky so that the clay binds together well. An example of this can be seen if you look closely behind the handle of any of my Irish pottery mugs; you may be able to see a seam line running from the base to the lip of the mug.

Rubber Rib Tool

Sometimes known as a kidney, this is a (strangely enough!) kidney-shaped rib made of thick rubber. I use this rubber rib to smooth out my clay slabs after they have been rolled out flat, getting rid of any roll marks or fingerprints. Rubber ribs come in different levels of firmness; I use a softer rib to smooth out the inside of my bigger fruit bowls. They are great to use if you want to give your handmade ceramic bowl a rounded shape; I use the rib on the inside to gently push out the flat sides of the bowl into a more rounded shape.

Needle Tool

A needle tool is a sharp pointed tool that is normally used to measure the thickness of a pot’s base that’s being made on a pottery wheel. I like to use my needle tool to carve images into nearly leather-hard clay. All the images of swimmers you see on my pieces are made in this way – once the image is carved into the clay, I paint the pot with a black underglaze, which is wiped back to reveal the highlighted image.

Carving tools

I have a large selection of pottery carving tools, both wooden and metal. These are great for handbuilding as they allow me to manipulate and shape the clay, smoothing joins and adding texture to pieces.

Find the Best Pottery Supplies in Ireland

All these tools, and so many more, can be found at any good pottery supplies shop. I always get all my tools and supplies from Morna in DBI Pottery Supplies in Cork. As you explore the art of pottery, remember that quality hand tools, pottery wheels, and supplies are the foundation of your craft. So, whether you're a seasoned ceramic artist or just beginning, these tools will be your companions in shaping and sculpting your vision.