August 26, 2024

What pottery has taught me about sewing – and vice versa


It’s a truth universally acknowledged that making your hobby your job… changes it somewhat. Don’t get me wrong: I still love sewing. But after a long week of thinking and talking about sewing clothes, I don’t often then have the urge to sew in my spare time, in the way that I once did. Especially in a world of social media where I’ll end up posting about what I make, any sewing is now associated with work. Which is great in so much as I love my work! But not so great in that sometimes I need to nourish my brain with creative things that don’t feel like work at all.

Enter, pottery. Folks, I am obsessed with pottery. I’m in that delightful stage where you just think about it all the time, re-living what you did that day, contemplating what you’re going to do the next, absorbing all the craft education content you can. I know that eventually the craft euphoria will burn out in my brain, but for now I’m riding those lovely dopamine waves.

Funnily enough, back in 2010 when I learned to sew, I was vacillating between a sewing class and a ceramics class. The main reason it didn’t end up being ceramics is simply because the classes are so hard to get into in my area. So, I took a sewing class, and the rest is history!  I started a company, had a baby, moved twice internationally, and, needless to say, life’s been hectic.

Recently, though, life settled into more of a groove, and I decided to give one more attempt to get into a local pottery class, and I finally hit the jackpot i.e. clicking “enroll now” the literal second the newsletter came out and lucking out that one person hadn’t already pre-enrolled and there was actually a space for once.

Since I started up, I’ve been constantly thinking “wow, this element is so like sewing clothes!” or “this is just like how I felt when I first learned this sewing technique”, so today I thought I’d share some of my ponderings from my potter’s wheel.

Your vision and creativity will always be way ahead of your skill when you start, and that’s OK.

Much as with sewing, there’s a learning curve when you start learning pottery. To be honest, I think pottery has an even steeper curve, because until you can get a pot off the wheel it’s hard to make any progress, whereas most people can sew two thing together if taught for a few minutes. But it’s undeniable that, as creative people, when we start a new hobby our ability to think of and design our pieces is way ahead of our actual physical skill. Ira Glass has a famous quote on this subject:

Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.

So with pottery, it was immediately obvious to me that there’s this big gulf between what my hands can physically do right now and the types of things I’d like to make. And instead of being frustrated by that, I’ve tried to lean into it. I’m not getting very attached to anything I make, in an effort to just experiment, practice and get my hand in. Naturally as soon as I think something might be “good” it goes AWOL.

My very first glazed pot!

It has reminded me so much of learning to sew. I got the sewing bug but for a reasonably long time (I’d say a few months) it was hard for me to create things that were that close to what I envisioned. Oh, the plans I had! But as with pottery, the only thing to do is practice: you can’t just sit around and think yourself into improving. And now, 14 years in, I can pretty much sew whatever I want! But if you’re a beginner, don’t fear – within a few months to a year max you’ll very likely be able to make things you love and enjoy wearing. You just have to bear with it during that early stage where your hands can’t quite match your creative brain.

One of my very first garments – a knit jersey tube!

It’s an overwhelming amount of information to process at the beginning.

During my first few months in the pottery studio, I constantly felt like I was about to do something wrong – put clay scraps in the wrong bucket, break the wheel, pour the glaze everywhere. There was just too much I was meant to know and take in. The community studio I work in has notes and samples up on the wall everywhere, intended to help with little reminders (don’t put bisque in the recycle buckets! Here are the 684 possible glaze combinations on 3 clay bodies!) but it was total overload for me.

It took me back to learning to sew: suddenly all these new machines, tools, terms and techniques being thrown your way. No wonder many people give up quickly! It’s hard to know where to start and what to focus on when there’s apparently a never-ending stream of things you’re meant to understand (for what it’s worth I feel exactly the same about gardening now…).

With that in mind, I took a deep breath and just told myself to go with the flow, absorb what I could and take small steps. Once I’d seen the whole process through from beginning to end, a lot of things made a lot more sense to me, and now, occasionally, someone newer than me in the studio will ask a question and I actually know the answer! Look at me, the expert (strongly not, very much no).

And sewing is the same: if you can, start with an easy beginner guide (*ahem* my “learn to sew” book Sewing the Curve), begin with a simple project, and go from there. Don’t get distracted by the apparent mountain ahead of you – making a simple cotton top will make you feel victorious, so focus on that! Appliques and sergers and edgestitching can wait.

It make you see the world in a different way

Before I learned to sew I never gave a second’s thought to how clothes were made. I’d literally never seen a sewing pattern, or anyone sewing clothes, and if you’d shown me a sleeve pattern piece I’d probably have thought it was something related to a leg of ham (I mean to be fair, it really does look like that). Once I did, it was like having a whole new perspective on the world. And once I learned to fit, let’s just say no crowd or TV show is now safe from my fit evaluation goggles 😀 Life’s so much more interesting when you have these new perspectives, even down to when I travel and now discover new areas of cities and meet new people because I always seek out the fabric district.

With pottery, yep, same thing has happened. Do you realize QUITE HOW MANY THINGS are made of clay?! Honestly I’d never given it a second thought before. I fully expected to make mugs and pots and bowls in my class, but pretty quickly I looked around me and saw the unbelievable range of things folks were making from ceramics, and started seeing them everywhere. So many things in the kitchen, but also bird houses! Tiles! Garden stakes! Sculptures! Paint palettes! Lamps! Toilets! And not only can you make pretty things, you can make functional ones too (again, remind you of sewing?). I now have a grand plan to make a whole set of little containers for my work desk, specifically designed for the myriad needs I have (sewing tape holder being essentially, obviously).

Pottery and sewing are truly multi-disciplinary

When I explain to people why I love sewing, a point I always return to is how many different aspects there are to sewing your own clothes. There’s designing them (whether that’s from scratch, pairing patterns and fabric, or hacking), understanding and choosing fabric, the physical handiwork skill of using machines and tools, and then the fun that is being able to wear your final creation. I’m a woman of many constantly shifting interests, and sewing’s always given me so many different things to experience.

And so, too, pottery! Making ceramics has definitely pushed me much more into the 3D world (as much as clothes are three dimensional, they are ultimately made from two dimensional fabric), but once again there are so many different aspects to practice and master: working on a wheel, hand-building with clay, trimming, surface decoration (possible at three different stages of the process), glazing and so on. Sometimes I feel more inclined to working on surface decoration techniques – of which there are SO MANY – and other times I focus on creating the forms and trying to get the hang of regular wheel throwing (so much harder than it looks), but there’s always something new. Whether you like constantly switching between all the different facets, or mostly focusing on one, both pottery and sewing are great for keeping your mind and hands occupied.

A cup of tea in a mug I made!

I could go on (and probably will at some point), but I hope you found this a little interesting – have you tried doing pottery, or another craft, and found parallels with sewing? I know several sewists who are also potters, and it’s a whole new way of connecting that I love!

15 thoughts on “What pottery has taught me about sewing – and vice versa

  1. Terri Miller says:

    First of all, love the color of your first pot and how your tea mug came out. Thanks for this, it spoke to me. I tend to be a perfectionist and that stops me in my tracks frequently. Much like not getting the sound I want from a musical instrument. I won’t give up on either, music or sewing, I love them both too much as a way to express my creativity.

  2. Julie says:

    Jenny – you need to watch The Great Pottery Throw Down – Channel 4 in the UK – hopefully you can find it though I’m sure you have already. Love your mug! I’m about to go down a weaving rabbit hole having just bought a loom and booked a weaving class in the autumn. Do I need another obsession – absolutley not! But I cannot wait!

  3. Roxann Burns says:

    I love this blog post and your work is fantastic. It is just the thing I needed to hear today. Thank you!

  4. Judy Kauffman says:

    My sister is an aspiring ceramics artist and we talk often about the similarities between sewing and pottery. My other passion is knitting, and it is exactly the same! My hands could not create what was in my mind (or in the pattern, LOL) for quite a long time. It took all the patience and persistence you write about. And, there is absolutely nothing in the world that is so satisfying as the moment you sew a beautiful, complex garment, or turn the heel of a color work sock. It is these moments that keep me eternally inspired to learn more about sewing and knitting!

  5. francescapia says:

    I love this post, and I love what you’ve created. You are always so inspirational. I love sewing but sometimes feel like a production machine because I make stuff for my sister, for the house, and very occasionally for a friend. And since I feel like I have to sew everything, sometimes it’s a bore and feels like work, not creativity, even though I usually get into the flow… In brackets, I recently bought a couple of non-wired bandeaux bras from a big famous underwear company after having made my own well fitting and comfortable non wired bras for a few years. I knew they have access to materials I don’t, which is why I did it. And I’m really pleased with them, because they work and will be great under strapless or skinny strapped dresses. But it was really hard to talk myself into buying them!

    I have sewn and knitted and crocheted since I was a kid. A few years ago I decided to take up weaving on a rigid heddle look. Supposedly to help with my yarn stash – ha! Now there’s the excuse that yarn on a cone is easier to use, ie more yarn stash. The cycle has been the same as yours, and I love the way you wrote about it. Now, I find it so relaxing when I get into the rhythm. Only problem is, now I want to make fabric to sew!

  6. Leigh says:

    the Modern Quilter’s guild has a ceramicist as a judge this year at Quilt Con

  7. Katherine Merkel says:

    I started sewing at my mother’s knee at the age of 6, but started to get serious about sewing when I was 12. I saved up my babysitting money, bought a pattern and fabric, and a few tools, walked across town to my aunt’s house, and just followed the directions in the pattern! It turned out fine, except I didn’t know diddly about interfacing, under stitching, finishing seams etc. But I kept at it, and my dad bought me a Vogue Sewing Book when I was 13. I gobbled up every word, and soon I was making ALL my clothes through high school. I had no idea what career path I wanted to take, and since I loved math, I figured, “Math major”. After a year in college as a math major, I realized I did not like the professions it would lead me to. I took a semester off and took cooking classes at a technical school in town, and the other class members I think were getting sick of hearing me talk of nothing but sewing!!! One took me aside and said if I REALLY wanted to design, make patterns, do couture sewing etc, that I should attend a private school in town with an excellent reputation! I got a tour the next day AND signed up for classes in two weeks! It took me 6 years to graduate due to getting married, building a house, and having a baby starting in my 3rd year! But I learned SOOOO much! In my junior year, I began doing custom sewing. And after graduation, worked for 2 clothing manufacturers in town. I did pattern making and pattern grading. My husband had a business, and he kept needing my help, and 2 more babies came, so I was really busy, and had to put my aspirations on hold. Eventually, as the kids got older and more self sufficient, I was able to start my “official” custom sewing and alterations business, which I did till I was 65 years old! I belonged to a professional sewers association which helped me learn the ins and outs of creating custom bridal gowns. When I retired, I took some time off sewing to care for my dad who had Alzheimers. I still sewed a little, but once he passed, I decided to sew for myself again. It was great therapy during the grieving process. It was at one of our Association conferences, that I met Jenny Rushmore, and since I was VERY PLUS sized, I started using Cashmerette patterns. You would think that after all the schooling and business, that I would know all I needed to sew for this very curvy body, but those things were not taught in Design school! So I bought my first Cashmerette pattern, and now I have over 80 Cashmerette patterns! I have learned SO much from Jenny and her team, that I have vowed to make every single one in order to use up the huge stash of beautiful fabrics collected from travel all over the world. Batiks from Bali, silks from Hong Kong, Wools from Ireland and lots of Liberty cotton lawn when it London. Every year the Association held a conference in a different part of the US and Canada, and inevitably I would come home with a suitcase full of fabric purchased in those cities! We are celebrating our 50th wedding Anniversary on Saturday, Aug. 31st, 2024, and I am making the Dewey dress in a gold lame’ since the 50th anniversary is called your Golden anniversary! Thanks to Cashmerette, I have my sewing mojo back, and spend four to ten hours a day sewing wonderful clothes and the joy it brings me daily keeps me on an even keel emotionally. My husband encourages my sewing because of how happy I am when I join him after a day of sewing!! Thank you Jenny!

    1. Leanne C says:

      Thank you Kathleen for sharing! Such an inspiration!

  8. Bernice says:

    loved the glaze on your first pot.

  9. Lee Ann says:

    OMG thank you for this share. So insightful–
    Love your first glazed pot and beautiful mug. They are art!
    Love reading everyone’s posts.
    Thank you, Jenny.

  10. Rebecca Jee says:

    I’m six weeks into my pottery course at uni and really feeling allllll of what you say here! Perfect timing to read this 🙂 Thank you!

  11. Anne Scanapico says:

    My next door neighbor is a pottery artist. She does classes in her garage. She taught me a little but it just wasn’t my cup of tea.
    I’m happy for you to have that experience again, it certainly lets you remember how it is to be a beginner.

    My question is: will you be selling some of your pottery as a casual thing and not a real business because your designs are awesome. The colors beautiful. Congrats

  12. winnie says:

    love your post. I have so many hobbies, started selling doll clothes when I was 3, learned to crochet at that time, knitting when I was 4. made all my clothes and used sewing as a relaxation from school by the time I was 12. now working on quilting as well as clothing and craft items. I feel like I can do anything. I began to take ceramics classes in my early fifties and loved it, so hard to find classes that are open. so I am sewing, quilting, knitting, gardening and dreaming of more pottery. all of this is fantastic.

  13. Leanne C says:

    Love what you made. Love the quote. I am a serial crafter, and am so thankful for the reminder to keep at it. When our aspirations do not meet out taste, that is normal. Persistance will prevail! What a good reminder to keep trying! You do your best and your best just gets better!

  14. Wendy McEwan says:

    It’s exciting, but also scary, to learn a new skill as an adult. I remember the buzz I got when I started learning to sew, but also the disappointments when things didn’t turn out as I hoped. Now, if I want to learn something new, I go for it. Most recently I decided to write a play. I submitted a couple of pieces to a local youth theatre company, and they weren’t selected, but the teacher gave me some great, detailed feedback. He advised me to write a (very) short play and get it performed in front on an audience. He gave me “permission” to go ahead with the production even if the script wasn’t very good. I found a cosy spot in the library and, to my surprise, I wrote a first draft in just a couple of hours. As it happens, I *am* pleased with my work. Rehearsals start next Thursday, ready to perform at a scratch night in a couple of weeks.

    Learning is a skill in itself, and now I know that the initial frustration is just part of the process. If I can find the time, I might even enrol in a pottery class.

Let me know what you think!