Clay By The Bay Pottery Studios - San Francisco, California

K D

I took a 6-week intro class earlier this year with Diane and had such a great time! I've thrown several times in my life, and none of them really clicked -- until this class! Diane is an excellent instructor, is so patient, and truly has teaching down. I enjoyed my class so much with her and wouldn't hesitate to take another one with her!

Mary Higgins

Jasmine is a wonderful teacher. We had a lesson with a couple of true beginners, someone who had thrown pottery before and a couple who were obviously way beyond beginners and she related well with everyone. I am a beginner and she explained steps clearly and demonstrated every step so we could try on our own. I was in clay heaven. I lost my inhibitions and just felt free and easy and had so much fun. I want to do it again and again. If I lived in SF this would be my home away from home. Jasmine was able to make me relax and just enjoy the experience without anxiety. Thank you Jasmine!!! M from TN.

Santa Rimsevica

I took the Into to Pottery Wheel course. I enjoyed it and learned so much that I am continuing with the Next Steps course! My instructor Ricky was fantastic! Very kind, knowledgeable, answered endless questions and gave great tips and advice. His demos were easy to follow and understand as he is a great communicator and covered everything in great detail.

And I love the studio! I use it as often as I can to practice and create! As a student - you get access to it every day of the week! I’m so happy that I found this place and discovered this hobby of mine ☺️

Barbara Smith

I’ve taken 3 classes now (2 Intro, 1 Next Steps) at Clay by the Bay and love it! The Next Steps with Crimson was fantastic and she is just the best! She is so helpful, kind and gives you a lot of great advice. Her attitude made the whole class be much more friendly and fun than past classes which made it super fun. She clearly loves what she does and it shows in her energy! Highly recommend CBTB and definitely try to take a class with Crimson!

Julia Eger

I’ve taken two 6-week classes at Clay by the Bay, and it’s been a wonderful experience. The instructors are thoughtful and extremely knowledgeable. I seriously look forward to class as the highlight of my week. Also, getting to go into the studio outside of class time is also a huge perk because it’s such a positive environment. Crimson is an incredible teacher and brings such great energy to her craft and her students.

Natalia Paine

My fiancé and I are obsessed. We started with a beginner course in November 2022 and got the bug in a big way. We’re now on our 3rd course and swapping out any ceramic in our home with homemade pieces [see plate/bowl stack pre-glaze and large plant pot]. The classes are awesome because you get walked through new skills during the session, but you also get to use studio hours to practice on your own. The staff are great - very knowledgable and supportive, there’s an extremely well behaved dog that says hello sometimes, and it’s just all around a excellent vibe.

Sherry Guillen

I chose to take my first pottery class with this studio this past spring and ended the course extremely disappointed. As one reviewer pointed out, the class was not at the location that I originally enrolled in and lacked running water the first week.

I had a friendly instructor but it was their first time teaching a course and it showed. I wanted to extend grace to a first timer but I felt like the cost didn’t match the instruction I expected to receive. Several times, I heard people next to me ask what we were supposed to be doing. This lack of clear guidance was frustrating and made me dread going to class. I only kept going because I had already paid and I hoped things would improve. Unfortunately they didn’t and I left the class feeling pretty discouraged.

I also have to add that I didn’t find the environment of the studio very welcoming. I missed a class due to illness and when I called to see if I could makeup a class, the person was very short and sounded annoyed.

I think there are very talented people at this studio but I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone seeking a beginner friendly course.

Fortunately, I recently gave another studio a try and had the complete opposite experience. The environment was so friendly, positive, and encouraging that I’m now considering a membership.

Callie Welsh

I took the intro to wheel class and had a great time! Crimson was super patient with teaching beginners. Would recommend this class with 2 things in mind - you’ll likely have to take a few more sessions to feel comfortable (but it was fun regardless!) & there is a bit of out of class time work to do to stay caught up. I only wish the open studio hours were longer on weekdays so those of us with corporate 9-5 jobs could make it in more often