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Make a Basic Coil Pot

By Beth Peterson, About.com

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Create the Bottom of Your Pot

Create the bottom of your pot by pressing out a pancake of clay then trimming it to size.

Create the bottom of your pot by pressing out a pancake of clay then trimming it to size.

Beth E Peterson

Compress a wad of clay into a ball. Flatten the ball on a canvas working surface, making the thickness as even as possible. This wafer should be about 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch thick. Trim away the outer edges, using your potter's needle or wooden trimming tool. For your first coiled pot, I recommend you work with a bottom that is no more than 2 to 2 1/2 inches in diameter.

Carefully lift your pot's bottom in order to release it from your working surface. Smooth the edges by lightly rolling it, as if it were a wheel, on your working surface.

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