Tea Set Making with Esther Palmer

This two-week course is designed for potters who want to strengthen their throwing skills and explore new approaches to functional design. Consistent experience on the wheel is required, and participants must be able to confidently centre and throw pieces of 2 kg of clay on the wheel.

Working through the theme of teaware, you’ll experiment with how form, proportion, and thoughtful design choices influence both function and feel. Through hands-on making and observation, you’ll learn how to develop related forms that work together as a cohesive set.

During the first week, you will focus on wheel-throwing. Your teacher, Esther Palmer, will guide you through forming the components of a teapot, body, lid, and spout, and throwing matching cups off the hump. You will then move on to assembling your teapot, joining the thrown parts and refining details such as the spout angle, lid fit, and overall balance. Alongside the making process, you’ll discuss proportion, functionality, and how different handle materials can influence the design and feel of your pieces.

Midweek, we’ll take a trip to the coast to collect driftwood, which can later be used for handles. You’ll also have the opportunity to work with Hammered Art Design, the resident jewellery makers at Salemi Ceramics, to explore how to create metal handles in brass or copper.

The second week will focus on glazing and handle attachment. You’ll glaze your tea sets using Salemi’s house glazes and learn how to prepare and securely attach your wooden or metal handles. Through demonstrations and one-to-one guidance, you’ll gain confidence in combining different materials into a finished, functional tea set.

You will have the rare chance to immerse yourself fully in making, develop your throwing and assembly techniques, and explore new ideas without the distractions of everyday life.

Outcome

Design and create your own functional tea set, exploring the full process from throwing to glazing and the creative integration of mixed materials such as collected driftwood or metal.

Over the course of two weeks, you will:

• Throw and refine teapot bodies, lids, and spouts
• Throw matching cups off the hump for consistency and form
• Understand teapot mechanics: how the lid fits, spout design, and handle placement affect pour and balance
• Explore cross-material handle design, combining ceramics with driftwood, brass, or copper.
• Learn glazing and finishing techniques.
• Refine your sense of proportion, form, and design coherence across a set driftwood

Your Teacher

Esther Palmer is a London-based ceramicist specialising in wheel-thrown forms. She works across both functional and sculptural ceramics, exploring how form, touch, and process shape the way we experience everyday objects.

Over the past eight years, Esther has developed her practice through residencies and exchanges in Copenhagen, Latvia, and Mexico, and completed an MA in Ceramics and Glass at the Royal College of Art in 2024. Her work often draws inspiration from the landscape, seasons and natural cycles, reflecting an interest in transformation, and the connection between people and place and time.

Esther is based at Culford Studios in London, where she manages the studio and teaches throwing. She enjoys sharing her love of clay through a hands-on, process-led approach that encourages curiosity, patience, and play in making.

Arrival and Departure

We ask that you plan your arrival for Sunday. We have an included pick-up from either Palermo Centre (in front of Hotel Politeama) at 11:30 or Palermo Airport at 12:30. On Sunday afternoon (circa 16:30, subject to change), you will be welcomed to Salemi by one of our team members, who will take you on an orientation walk of the historical centre. This will be followed by a welcome apericena (light dinner) with a Salemi Spritz at one of our favourite local restaurants.

We will bid you farewell at the end of your time in Salemi with an included transfer to either Palermo Airport or Palermo Centre (Piazza Politeama), departing Salemi at 07:00 on Saturday morning.

**For pick-ups and drop-offs outside of these times and locations, please contact us for a transfer quote.