The Mad Potter

We’ve been to the Mad Potter a few times with both children and older adults. Our last visit was a trip with the grandparents as an after Thanksgiving activity when the weather outside wasn’t great. Everyone had a fun time picking their pottery, colors and designs. There is minimal support/​advice/​teaching from the staff, but that is part of the fun. Each piece ends up being unique and show the creativity of the individual. We’ve never felt rushed and always found space to do our projects.
Highly recommended.

We visited Mad potter as a play date with friends. They have plenty of options to paint. The price on the pottery you pick is what you pay for painting and the firing of the piece.
They offer kids birthday parties although the room looked fairly small so I would suggest for a smaller party. What I was disappointed in them
Not having was a guided «how to» type class. Maybe they have separate classes for special pieces and cover this, but for what I could tell it was up to you and you’re
Artistic abilities. I’m not that artistic so I would’ve enjoyed a guided class. It’s definitely a great idea for gifts for family or even teachers.

This is a great place for adults, it’s fun, a lot of selection of pieces, the place is well stocked and tidy. It is not for well behaved, quiet, autistic children. The staff are impatient with questions and we were treated very rudely. I was actually asked «what’s wrong with him?» Sad because this had great potential for an incredibly creative child.

I’ve been here once, for a girls night event. It was great place for clean fun, without alcohol involved. We were able to bring in snacks and chit chatted while we painted for a couple of hours. I don’t recall children being around, so maybe it was quieter later in the evening on a weekday.
Here is how it works:
You pick the piece that you want to paint. There are hundreds of things to chose from bowls and plates, to ornaments and figurines. They supply the pens, markers, tape, stencils, stamps, rulers, brushes and paint. Everything seemed a bit expensive, but keep in mind that you only pay for the pottery piece, no studio or painting fees are involved.
After we painted our pieces of art, we left them there and they glazed and fired them. About a week later I stopped back by and picked up my artwork.

I’ve visited the Mad Potter several times and each time I have had a different experience.
First time was my sons birthday party. The party room was not as large as I had hoped and with parents hanging around talking it made for even less room. The kids had a blast picking out and painting their pieces. The staff was helpful and seemed to enjoy dealing with the kids.
Second time there was a large party with food, etc in the main area. Seating was limited but my son and I were pointed to a table next to the large party. Gotta love the parents who talk, talk, talk and pay no attention whatsoever to their children barreling through a ceramics shop. My chair was constantly bumped by their children and the conversation was loud and overbearing. I would say they forgot their manners, but from the way their children behaved, it was obvious they had none. The staff did it’s best to tame the little brats so the other people who are paying to paint could enjoy their evening. I actually felt bad for the young ladies that evening.
Third time was to paint Christmas ornaments and it was allot of fun. My son loved making his own ornament for the tree and while I thought $ 19.99 was a bit over priced for a piece, the fact that he did it himself and it’s something I shared with him and will keep forever made it worth it.
The prices are a bit steep, but the price covers paint, firing, etc. I do look forward to taking a class or two because I am horrible at painting. My son goes nuts when he knows we’re heading there for some us time.