Question 1

I wanna come to open studio!

Accepted Answer

Awesome! Fill out our open studio interest form, located at the bottom of this page, and we will get back to you!

Please keep in mind that if you do not have ceramics experience, we will direct you to a class. Open studio is unguided, and you need to know your way around a studio to do it at Pip!

Question 2

I wanna come to open studio, but I don't have experience!

Accepted Answer

How do I get started?

We recommend taking 3-5 beginner classes to get yourself familiar with the foundations. Teachers will go over the foundations of wheel throwing in each class, and if you ever find yourself a little ahead, our teachers are great in showing you ways to improve or push yourself.

I’ve taken a few beginner classes and want to work on my own, can I go to Open Studio?

As much as we would love to have you be apart of our studio community, there are a few more steps in the process that aren’t covered in your beginner classes. The biggest one is glazing. This step is so important as not only can it ruin your pieces but it can also damage our equipment. To get acquainted with glazing, we offer intermediate workshops every other Saturday morning that will get you started on glazing, trimming and making unique vessels.
We have a specific class for trimming and glazing. The in-person guidance and experience is much more helpful than online resources. After glazing and trimming, you can start looking into your own resources, handles and make more unique shapes but the intermediate workshops will also help you in those areas.

We recommend 2-4 intermediate classes, one of those slots dedicated to being the glazing/trimming class before going into OS. There is a lot going on behind the work of a ceramicist and it is not at all obvious. We are hoping with these guidelines that you will be set-up for the ceramic journey.
If you have any further questions or concerns please send us an email or come on in! Our whole staff is familiar with the foundations. We can either help you directly or guide you in the right direction.

Question 3

When are open studio sessions?

Accepted Answer

Studio times vary depending on private events...but our Phoenix open studio times are as follows:

Everyday: 9:30am-12pm, 1:30pm-4pm
Mondays and Wednesday: 6pm-9pm

Tempe open studio slots are:

Thu/Fri: 1:30pm-4:30pm, 5pm-8pm
Saturday: 10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm
Sunday: 9:30am-12:30pm, 1pm-4pm

Question 4

Do I need experience to come to open studio?

Accepted Answer

YES! Open studio is UNGUIDED. There are studio techs to answer questions about the studio, but they are not teachers. If you have ceramics experience from another studio, you are welcome to sign up!

Question 5

How much are sessions?

Accepted Answer

$45 for one session
$130 for four sessions
$220 for eight sessions

All firing fees and use of studio tools/glazes are included.

Question 6

Is clay included in open studio?

Accepted Answer

No, but we have  several types of New Mexico clay for purchase here!

Prices for our clay range from $24-$30 per 25lb bag. You are welcome to bring clay/glaze from another store, but keep in mind we BISQUE to cone 05 and GLAZE to cone 6.

You can store your personal clay on the shelves next to the sink in the studio for up to 1 month from date of purchase. Please note: we recycle all clay left on the shelves longer than 1 month.

Question 7

Are glazes/firing/tools included in open studio?

Accepted Answer

Everything made at Pip in an open studio session will be fired for no extra cost. Use of our glazes are included in your open studio time. Tools for community use are also included, but feel free to bring your own!

That said, we are not set up to be a studio for production potters. If you are producing more work than we're able to fire, we'll let you know and point you to some other, local firing resources.

Question 8

How long are open studio sessions?

Accepted Answer

Open studio sessions are three hours long. Anything you need to do to your pieces —throwing, trimming, glazing, etc.—must be done within the 3 hour time frame. (In other words, we don‘t allow a quick trim or glaze outside of booked studio sessions.)

Please be cleaned up and ready to go at the 3 hour mark.

Question 9

What are your storage policies?

Accepted Answer

Works in progress (WIP): store WIP on ware boards or bats, labeled with your name and the date. After 7 days, WIPs will be recycled.

Work that’s been fired: must be picked up from the open studio shelf within 1 month of the date it was unloaded from the kiln. After 1 month, fired work will be recycled.

Bags of clay: must be labeled with your name and the most recent date you came to open studio. After 1 month from the most recent date on the bag, clay will be recycled. 
We cannot store bags of clay at Culdesac!

Question 10

Do you have other questions?

Accepted Answer

Email kevin@pipcoffeeclay.com(kevin@pipcoffeeclay.com)

Open Studio FAQ

Open Studio Interest Form
Fill this out and we'll get back to you asap!

Open Studio FAQ

Open Studio Interest Form Fill this out and we'll get back to you asap!

Open Studio Interest Form
Fill this out and we'll get back to you asap!