August 2026
AUGUST 2026 | ISSUE #071
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Hello Potters
From the President
Thank you to everyone who volunteered or took part in the Einbunpin Festival in Sandgate. It was a wonderful success, and it was heartwarming to see so many people visit our stall and support the club. The festival also launched our new Australiana-themed fundraising magnets, with Jen B’s iced vovo magnet, our People’s Choice winner, proving especially popular. Although the iced vovos have sold out, we still have a fantastic selection of magnets available. You can find our next stall at Backyard Bonanza in Bracken Ridge on 23rd August — a lovely family-focused day out.
It’s time to submit your applications for the Et al Showcase. Please check your email for the application link and remember that entries close on 20th August.
We’re pleased to welcome two wheel tutors to the studio, with workshops now available in Helloclub. Amy is offering a two-part beginner’s workshop, while Sue is running sessions for throwers looking for fresh ideas and techniques. Sue will cover topics such as throwing with purpose, creating larger forms, lids, handles, and altering shapes. You can book one session or both. Sue joined the club this year and brings more than 40 years of pottery experience, along with extensive teaching knowledge. See some of her work below.
Bookings are now open for our public Creative Trail workshops. Visit our website for details and to book: workshops — Shorncliffe Pottery Club
As part of our ongoing focus on health and safety, we have set up a dedicated sanding area outside the studio with its own table and awning. Please use this area, as sanding is not permitted inside the studio.
Happy potting
Suzanne
Images courtesy Sue Goodwin
AUGUST
2nd – Sunday Social Flower Making
9th and 16th – Beginners wheel workshop
20th – Applications for Et al Showcase due
22nd – Wheel workshop with Sue (session 1)
23rd – Backyard Bonanza at Bracken Ridge (sales and volunteering opportunities)
29th – Wheel workshop with Sue (session 2)
SEPTEMBER
21st – Et al Showcase bump in (sales and volunteering opportunities)
22nd – Et al Showcase opens
26th – Et al Showcase event night
27th – Creating your goddess workshop
OCTOBER
4th – Et al Showcase closes
16th – Decorated drape bowl workshop (open to the public)
18th – Decorate a ceramic plate workshop (open to the public)
22nd – Mud to masterpiece pieces due
23rd and 31st – Making and painting a fairy workshop (open to the public)
23rd – Decorate teacup and textured plate workshop (open to the public)
24th and 25th – Studio open for Creative Trail (sales and volunteering opportunities)
24th – Prize giving and people’s choice for Mud to masterpiece challenge
25th – Decorated drape bowl workshop (open to the public)
30th – Studio open for Creative trail, twilight (sales and volunteering opportunities)
30th – Cup and plate workshops (open to the public)
31st and 1st – Studio open for Creative Trail (sales and volunteering opportunities)
Sunday Socials
FLOWER MAKING
For further info - hurry over to helloClub.
Date and Time:
AUGUST 2, 2026
9:30am - 1:30pm
Where
Shorncliffe Pottery Club Inc
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Wheel Workshop with Sue
Hi Members!
You may be interested in this wheel workshop.
Learning Outcomes:
Week 1:
• Throwing with purpose, considered shapes
• Bigger and Better
• Advice on throwing and ask anything
Week 2:
• Different Lid Styles
• Handles; Throwing knobs and Pulling Handles
• Throwing changing shapes to Square or other
• Advice on throwing and ask anything
When
Saturday 22 August 13:00 – 16:00
Where
Shorncliffe Pottery Club Inc
For further info - go to helloClub.
Euan Craig
International Wood Fire Potter
Live Demonstration
Saturday 26th September, 2026
Location: Pottery Barn
901 Dayboro Rd. Whitside, [Petrie Markets]
Brisbane 4503
9am – 3pm
Cost $90.00 pp
Watch internationally renowned wood-fire potter Euan Craig demonstrate the throwing of tea ware on the wheel — teabowls, cups, and vessels shaped by hand and informed by decades in the Mashiko pottery tradition of Japan. Euan wood-fires exclusively, and his work is defined by the unpredictable beauty of flame, ash, and scarlet flashing.
Wood fire potter | Born in Australia | Made in Japan
TICKETS INFO
Unused Clay For Sale
Come down to the shed if you want to pick up a clay bargain. One of our longterm members, Gayle, is moving to Melbourne to be closer to her daughters and has a lot of unused clay at bargain prices for sale. Including:
Northcote’s Cool Ice mid fire porcelain, 10kg $30
Keane’s Iron stone, 10kg $30
White Raku, 2.2kg $5
Buff Raku [BRT], 9.1kg $10
Walkers 10, 7.45kg $12
Walkers 10, 6.44kg $10
PB103, 3.58kg $8
Northcote Cone 6, 3.64kg $5
Keane’s Dark Matter, 10kg $30
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MAGNETS EXPOSÉ
AND THE WINNER IS…
Iced Vovo by Jen B. - truly delicious
Mud to Masterpiece Challenge 2026
Shorncliffe Pottery Club Inc
The Mud to Masterpiece challenge details are confirmed, so it’s time to roll up your sleeves and start creating!
This year’s theme is animal sculpture, with prizes for realistic and abstract interpretations across beginner and experienced categories—so whether your creature is lifelike or wonderfully weird, there’s room for it. For full details, see the poster or the copy displayed in the studio.
Please deliver sculptures to the studio by Thursday 22 October for judging the following day. The works will be displayed at the studio during Saturday’s creative trail, when votes will be collected for the People’s Choice Award and prizes will be presented. From Sunday, pieces may be taken home or, at the member’s choice, made available for sale during the creative trail.
Current Clay in Stock
We have a large range of clay in stock, all at great prices. Just ask your supervisor next time you are at the pottery shed.
Blackwattle Earthenware Paper White
SES
White Raku
Blackwattle Pottery Natural Speckle
Keane’s Ceramics Midfire 33
Keane’s Stoneware 33 KC575
Sculptural Fine
Cone 6 White
Clayworks Yellow Stoneware YG
Chris’ Light Speckle
Walkers Stoneware 10
Feeneys Clay FFB
Feeneys BRT
Feeneys BRS
Clayworks RGH
Keane’s Red Earth
Clayworks Granite
Keane’s Toast KC582
Feeney’s Red Raku
Blackwattle Terracotta
Keane’s Dark Matter
And don’t forget, we now stock
a large range of Amaco and Mayco glazes.
Plus a comprehensive range of Kiwi underglazes to try.
We have popped all of the published tips, hacks and techniques onto the ‘Tips’ page on our club website so that you can search easily.
Is Pottery Good for Anxiety?
Pottery is incredibly good for anxiety. The rhythmic, tactile nature of working with clay acts as a form of meditation that keeps you in the present moment. Studies show that just 45 minutes of clay creation can significantly lower your levels of cortisol, the body's primary stress hormone.
How Pottery Relieves Anxiety
Tactile Engagement: Working directly with your hands grounds your attention, which pulls you out of racing thoughts or rumination.
Biological Shift: Physical molding and repetitive movements help regulate breathing and calm your central nervous system.
Embracing Imperfection:
Learning that clay can be reshaped and accepting that not every piece turns out perfectly teaches psychological flexibility and trust in the process.
Different pottery techniques offer unique benefits for mental health:
Wheel Throwing: This technique requires intense, undivided focus. The steady rhythm of centering clay is excellent for those looking to quiet a restless or anxious mind.
Hand Building: Techniques like pinching or coiling offer more freedom of expression. This is ideal if you are looking to process emotions without technical pressure.
From a therapeutic standpoint, the mechanics of pottery alone are powerful, according to experts. “The centering in wheel work really helps people focus in, especially people who are traumatized, extremely depressed or anxious,” says Julia Byers, a leading art therapy scholar and a recent distinguished fellow at Northeastern University’s Global Resilience Institute.
Our Committee
President: Suzanne Bell
Vice President: Melina Wales
Treasurer: Sandra Roveda
Secretary: Laura Ogden
Committee Members:
Rebecca Mason, Steve McConnell, Jen and Taylor
Newsletter Editor: Ed Trost
edtrost1961@gmail.com
email: shorncliffepotteryclubinc@gmail.com
follow us on
website + instagram + facebook
…Until next month…
HAPPY POTTING!
© Shorncliffe Pottery Club Inc
