Uploaded September 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
When a pot has a particularly thin or delicate rim and it’s on the drier side, it’s more likely to crack if secured to the wheel with three lugs of clay or mechanical arms like found on a Giffin grip, equally, if the rim is finely trimmed and the clay is still relatively wet, it’s also likely to be deformed by the above.
In these cases, as I’d be lying if I said I’m always trimming my work when it’s the perfect consistency, I often use a sticky pad like this—a round of chamois leather works too, as does a thin pad of foam. It works nicely provided you press down firmly enough from above, (using a spinner in this case), yet I’d say it does lend itself to be slightly more technical trimming and it’s remarkably easy for everything to abruptly go terribly wrong, or rather, the pot flinging off centre and destroying itself. Hence why this isn’t a technique I’d recommend to somebody that’s new to trimming, in that instance pinning the bowl to the wheel with clay stuffed around the rim is a much safer method.
Thanks @diamondcoretools for the sticky pad and @kevin_scott for the super spinner.
#pottery #trimming #handmade #satisfying #tools #ceramics
When a pot has a particularly thin or delicate rim and it’s on the drier side, it’s more likely to crack if secured to the wheel with three lugs of clay or mechanical arms like found on a Giffin grip, equally, if the rim is finely trimmed and the clay is still relatively wet, it’s also likely to be deformed by the above.
In these cases, as I’d be lying if I said I’m always trimming my work when it’s the perfect consistency, I often use a sticky pad like this—a round of chamois leather works too, as does a thin pad of foam. It works nicely provided you press down firmly enough from above, (using a spinner in this case), yet I’d say it does lend itself to be slightly more technical trimming and it’s remarkably easy for everything to abruptly go terribly wrong, or rather, the pot flinging off centre and destroying itself. Hence why this isn’t a technique I’d recommend to somebody that’s new to trimming, in that instance pinning the bowl to the wheel with clay stuffed around the rim is a much safer method.
Thanks @diamondcoretools for the sticky pad and @kevin_scott for the super spinner.
#pottery #trimming #handmade #satisfying #tools #ceramics
