Why You Should Keep a Pottery Journal (And What to Track)

You make a mug you love. Two weeks later you cannot remember the clay weight, the trim profile, or which satin white sat over which brown. That forgetting is normal. It is also expensive.

A pottery journal turns lucky wins into repeatable recipes. This post explains why the habit matters and what to write down without drowning in paperwork.

The pain is real (and universal)

Beginners and experienced potters both lose details. Studio days are noisy. Hands are wet. Someone asks a question mid-throw. The kiln results arrive days later when the process memory has already faded.

Common “I wish I had written that down” moments:

The exact starting weight for a mug that felt perfect
Whether the glaze was two coats or three
Which clay body shrank more than you expected
Why one bowl rim felt better than the twins

Weighing helps only if the number survives the session. That is the heart of The Case for Weighing Your Clay.

What a pottery journal is for

A journal is not a diary of feelings (unless you want that). It is a lab notebook for craft.

It should help you:

Repeat successes
Diagnose failures faster
Plan sets and commissions
See progress over months, not vibes

Anatomy of a good project log

You do not need a novel. You need consistent fields.

Identity

Project name or number
Date started
Form type (mug, bowl, cylinder, test tile)

Clay

Clay body name
Starting weight
Target finished size if you have one

Process notes

Forming method (wheel, pinch, coil, slab)
Key moves that mattered (“slower second pull,” “compressed floor twice”)
Attachments and timing (handle at leather hard, lid fit notes)

Surface

Underglaze or slip notes
Glaze names in order
Application method and thickness

Firing

Bisque and glaze cones or studio program names if known
Shelf notes if relevant

Result

What worked
What to change
A clear photo

Good photos help more than paragraphs. See Photographing Your Pottery Well.

Minimum viable journaling

If full logs feel heavy, start with five lines per keeper piece:

Clay + weight
Form
Glaze stack
One process note
One result note + photo

That tiny habit still beats a perfect system you abandon.

Paper, phone notes, or a pottery app

Paper is tactile and fails at search. Generic phone notes scatter across grocery lists. A dedicated pottery tracker keeps projects, clay, and glaze history in one place.

If you want the tactical stage-by-stage version, read How to Document Your Pottery Projects Like a Pro. For glaze-specific systems, use The Best Ways to Track Your Pottery Glaze Results. For a product built around this workflow, see The Best Pottery App for Tracking Your Projects, Clay, and Glazes.

How Claybook fits the habit

Claybook is designed for the notes potters actually need: project logs next to lessons, practice history, and studio tools. You can capture a weight after throwing, add glaze results after the kiln, and find them later without archaeology.

The goal is not more admin. The goal is fewer mystery pots.

Takeaway

Keep a pottery journal because memory is a terrible kiln assistant. Track identity, clay weight, process, surface, firing, and results. Start small if you must, then tighten the system as your work gets more intentional.