Pottery Classes Near Sandy, Utah
The Clay Hole is a community pottery studio in Draper, about five miles south of Sandy and straight down I-15. Wheel throwing, hand building, slab molds, glaze and firing, all on one monthly membership.
Membership is the only way in. There are no drop-in classes and no single sessions, which is the part most people want to know first.
The drive from Sandy
Sandy sits just north of us on the same freeway. From most of the city it is a short run south, and the last turn puts you on the frontage road past IKEA and Living Spaces.
- Head west and get on I-15 south.
- Take Exit 289, Bangerter Highway.
- Head west on Bangerter and take the 200 W exit.
- Right on 13490 S over to Pony Express Rd, then past IKEA and Living Spaces. We are on the left.
From the Shops at South Town it is about four miles. From the north end of Sandy, nearer 9000 South, it is about six. Ten minutes or so when I-15 is behaving. Longer at five o'clock, like everything else in the valley.
Crescent View is the closest TRAX stop on the Blue Line, and it is still about three miles from the door. There is no useful walk from any station, so plan on driving.
When you get here
Parking is shared with a few other businesses in the lot. Any spot that is not marked reserved for one of them is yours, and it is free. We are the next building north of Living Spaces, just down the frontage road from IKEA.
A big room, and everything in it is included
The studio runs to nearly 10,000 square feet. Membership covers the room, the equipment, the classes and the glaze. You buy clay by the bag and you pay for firing by the size of the piece. Nothing else is metered.
- Four instructors working the room in every instructed class, so nobody sits stuck for twenty minutes.
- 150+ underglazes alongside the glaze wall, plus dipping buckets on the higher levels.
- Bisque firing is free. Glaze firing is 5 cents a cubic inch, $4.80 minimum.
- Clay starts at $28 a 25 pound bag, and the discount grows with your level.
- Your own shelf to leave work on, which is the thing home potters never have.
Four levels, one monthly price
Every level gets the same studio, the same equipment and the same glaze wall. What changes is how many instructed classes are included, how much shelf you get, and how much comes off a bag of clay.
| Level | Monthly | Classes included |
|---|---|---|
| Green Level | $145 a month | 4 classes a month |
| Yellow Level | $170 a month | 5 classes a month |
| Purple Level | $200 a month | 6 classes a month |
| Black Level | $275 a month | 8 classes a month |
Open studio time is on top of the included classes, at every level. Clay discounts run from nothing on Green Level up to $6 off each bag on Black Level.
The part we would rather you read now than find out later
There are no drop-in classes and no single sessions. Membership renews on the 25th of each month and cancelling has to happen before the 24th. Fired work has to be collected within two weeks of the kiln being unloaded. And the cheapest level shows you a real fraction of what a busy month here looks like.
If that list makes membership the wrong shape for you, it is better to know in the first minute than in the fourth week.
When the studio is open
| When | Hours | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Monday daytime | 10:30 AM to 2 PM | Instructed class |
| Monday to Thursday evenings | 6:30 PM to 10 PM | Instructed class |
| Friday evening | 6:30 PM to 10 PM | Open studio |
| Saturday and Sunday mornings | 10 AM to 1:30 PM | Open studio |
Doors open 15 minutes before a session starts, and the studio closes for fourteen holidays a year. The full list, with this year's dates, is on the class schedule page.
Other pottery near Sandy
We are not the only option near Sandy, and for some people we are not the right one. Here is what else is close.
- Paint your own
Color Me Mine Sandy
51 W 10600 S, right in Sandy. You pick a piece that is already made, paint it, and they fire it. Different thing from making the piece yourself, and a much easier evening if that is what you want.
- Make your own
Cottonwood Clay Studio
7587 S State St in Midvale, the closest place north of us to get on a wheel. Classes run Monday through Friday. Their open studio time is for people enrolled in a current class.
We could not find a studio inside Sandy city limits where you make the piece yourself. If we have missed one, tell us and we will add it to this page.
What people from Sandy ask
How far is The Clay Hole from Sandy?
About five miles, depending on which part of Sandy you start from. From the Shops at South Town it is nearer four, and from 9000 South it is nearer six. The drive is almost all I-15, and it usually takes about ten minutes.
Can I take a single pottery class instead of joining?
No. Monthly membership is the only way in. Pottery takes weeks to finish a piece, and a one night class sends you home with wet clay and no way to fire it. If you want a single evening rather than a membership, Color Me Mine in Sandy or a one-off class in Salt Lake City will serve you better.
Do I need my own tools or clay?
No tools. Membership covers the wheels, the hand building tables, the slab molds, the glaze wall and the classes. Clay is bought by the bag at the studio, and firing is charged by the size of the piece.
Do you take beginners?
Most people who join have never touched a wheel. Every class has instructors working the room, and there are lessons for everything else online.
What are the class times?
Instructed classes run Monday through Thursday evenings, plus Monday daytime. Friday evening and both weekend mornings are open studio. The full schedule is on this page.
Is there parking?
Yes, and it is free. The lot is shared with a few other businesses on Pony Express Road, and anything not marked reserved for one of them is fair game.
What happens if you join this week
You pick a level, sign the waiver, and turn up to your first class. Somebody shows you where everything is, you get a shelf, and you put your hands in clay the same night. Most people who join here from Sandy have never touched a wheel.
- Nothing to bring. What to wear is covered on the what to wear page.
- The first day page walks through the whole first visit, in order.
- Free lessons for everything else live in Clay Hole University, whether or not you ever join.
Questions are quickest by text. The studio line is 385-241-5528. We are at 12896 S Pony Express Rd, Suite 100, Draper, UT 84020.