Wheel Talk

Ryan & Becca share lots of good news to start off this episode. Ryan made a large purchase that Becca is ecstatic about! Becca shares a financial business win & some exciting new work that is coming out of the kiln. Ryan also dives deep into his first outdoor show of the year at the Covington Farmer's Market in Northern Kentucky. It was a great learning experience and adjustment to see what the new reality of shows looks like.

Listener Questions
Send us questions so we can answer anything you've been thinking about on a future episode. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

Ryan & Becca share their insights about balancing what you love to make and what will sell. They don't have to be mutually exclusive, but it's up to you to find that balance. We share some experiences of pieces we love selling and others that we've made over time that haven't brought us the most joy. As we progress, we're finding ourselves narrowing in more and more on only spending our time making items that make us happy & it shows as we sell them to our customers.

Listener Questions
On this episode:
- Who do you both look up to in pottery? Who are your heroes? How have they influenced your work?

Send us questions so we can answer anything you've been thinking about on a future episode. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

We're 6 weeks into the new normal during the stay home orders due to COVID-19 & sharing how it's going in Washington & Kentucky/Ohio for each of us. Becca is struggling with Washington unemployment & Ryan is shifting his selling methods as shows are cancelled. Enjoy a candid informal conversation about where we are mentally, physically, & financially during this time. We share some online sale successes with real numbers this episode too.

Listener Questions
Send us questions so we can answer anything you've been thinking about on a future episode. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

Ryan & Becca get into all the details about kiln venting. They share how they've vented (or not vented) their kilns over the years and options you have in your own studio. There are a range of options from cheap do-it-yourself to more professional set-ups. Either way you go, we highly recommend venting your kiln in some way. They also share their process for opening their bisque & glaze kilns after firing. Check out the resources below that we reference during this episode. Stick around to the end for some 'heated' discussion between Ryan & Becca about Ryan's inconsistent kiln temperatures from top to bottom.

Kiln Venting References:
Kiln Vent Guide: How & Why to Vent Your Kiln (Ceramic Arts Network)
https://ceramicartsnetwork.org/daily/clay-tools/ceramic-kilns/how-and-why-to-use-a-kiln-vent/
DIY Downdraft Vent
https://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-a-Downdraft-Kiln-Vent/
https://www.bluewillowstudio.net/get-your-hands-dirty/to-vent-or-not-to-vent

Listener Questions
On this episode:
- What's the best clay for hand building and which is best for throwing?

Send us questions so we can answer anything you've been thinking about on a future episode. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

On this quick episode, Ryan & Becca go into mailing lists & why you should have one. Neither of us send out emails frequently, but having a list of your own will give you something to fall back on when you need it. Build your list early on and slowly add to it. Keep your emails fun, informative, & not always trying to sell something.

Listener Questions
On this episode:
- How did you get into clay?

Send us questions so we can answer anything you've been thinking about on a future episode. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

On this episode, Becca & Ryan chat with their friend in clay Rebecca Prowse from Gravesco Pottery in Indianapolis, Indiana. Rebecca shares all the things about running a  production pottery studio, selling private label, wholesale, how she prices her work, and more. We're so happy to have such a wealth of knowledge available to talk & laugh with us and we hope you enjoy this really fun, informative conversation.

Find more about Josh & Kari here:
Instagram - @gravesco
Facebook - Rebecca Graves Pottery
Website - gravescopottery.com

We hope to bring you more of these interview style episodes in the future as we hang out with other makers inside and outside of the clay medium. Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback or who we should interview next!

Listener Questions
Send us questions so we can answer anything you've been thinking about. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

On this episode Ryan & Becca answer a couple listener questions to get us started. They also dive into the difference between handbuilding and wheel throwing while Becca has been focusing a lot more on handbuilding recently. As primarily production potters, they go through some ways Becca has made handbuilding more efficient and why she's been challenging herself again in her making. Ryan may be getting swayed a bit to incorporate some handbuilding into his studio too...

Listener Questions
On this episode:
- Let’s talk finances. What is your annual salary you pay to yourself? How did you come to that number? What tools do you use to save money for an emergency fund?
- I’m a beginner and my pottery class has been cancelled for while and I have no access to a kiln. But, the good news is that I have my wheel and small studio space set up at home. Any tips on preserving greenware until it can be fired and projects to work on while I wait for my studio to open?

Send us questions for our new segment so we can answer anything you've been thinking about and need an answer to. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

On this episode Ryan & Becca answer a listener question at length related to building confidence in yourself to commit to something you feel insecure about. We all have to continually get better in our craft, business savvy, mindset, and more as we progress. Some of the best situations to ramp up the speed of your learning and progression is to jump into a task that you don't feel you are ready for. We hope you enjoy this different episode from us and send us more questions like these that aren't so black and white with their answers.

Listener Questions
Send us questions for our new segment so we can answer anything you've been thinking about and need an answer to. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

On this episode Ryan & Becca break down some options for studio equipment on a budget. There are a lot of options for you to save money since this business requires a lot of materials over the years. Get creative with your solutions around the studio and save some bucks. Let us know your favorite cost saving idea that you're proud of. We also answer a couple listener questions.

Listener Questions
On this episode:
- How do get the opening the correct size for an olive oil bottle or soap pump?
- As a beginner potter working out of my 1 bedroom apartment closet, did I hear correctly that Becca started in a 1 bedroom apartment? If so, how the heck?

Send us questions for our new segment so we can answer anything you've been thinking about and need an answer to. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback on future topics to discuss and help us improve!

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel

On this episode, Becca sits down for a chat with Joshua and Kari Heim, owners of Gebharts Florals and JH Pottery Works. We talk about how they do not kill each other, parenting while owning small businesses, the rules of Hungry Hungry Hippo's, and how owning two different businesses (pottery and florals) work together to create different revenue streams to supplement family income.

Find more about Joshua & Kari here:
Instagram - @jhpotteryworks    @Gebhartsflowers23
Facebook - JH Pottery Works    Gebharts Floral Barn and Greenhouse
Website - www.jhpotteryworks.com    www.gebhartsfloralbarn.com

We hope to bring you more of these interview style episodes in the future as we hang out with other makers inside and outside of the clay medium. Thanks for joining us and we would love to hear your feedback or who we should interview next!

Listener Questions
Send us questions for our new segment so we can answer anything you've been thinking about and need an answer to. Send those through Instagram @wheeltalkpodcast or email us at [email protected].

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespotterystudio

Email us any questions or topics you'd love discussed:
[email protected]

Support the show on Patreon for as little as $3 per month: https://patreon.com/Wheeltalkpodcast

Follow us on Instagram:
@wheeltalkpodcast
@rdceramics
@5linespottery

Visit our website:
www.wheeltalkpotcast.com
Wheel Talk YouTube Channel