Mansagama

While on a stroll in the Philosopher’s Path the No1DP and I saw this pottery shop. We were both curious so we decided to check in and see what the people inside were doing. As it turns out this particular shop is not a pottery shop per se but people can actually create their own pottery. Turns out that two other people were just finishing up their bowls.
How it works: There are two preset options. You can either make a cup for 1800円 or a bowl for 2200円. The instructor/​owner will first take the pottery clay and make it into something that looks like a bowl or cup. You are then given the task to finish this into something of your own creation and make it any shape you would like. If you mess up he can shape your mess back into a cup or bowl again. Note for the English-​speaking tourist: yes he speaks English.
The No1DP encouraged me to try out pottery-​making as he wanted me to get out of my comfort zone (I am most emphatically *not* an art person) so he got me the cup course. I was given an apron and cabinet space to store my purse. The instructor guided me through the process and when I did mess up on one step, reshape my cup so that it still looked like a cup. I can tell you that pottery work is easier said than done. You have to put just enough pressure to get the cup to your shape and depth, and it is made harder that the wheel is always moving. What made this experience fun and quite therapeutic was that it was a nice Saturday afternoon in Kyoto with just the three of us and the pottery clay felt quite soft and mushy as I molded it.
After molding the cup to my liking I chose the lacquer colors and my signature. For an additional 1000円 they also ship internationally but it took about a month to finally get my cup (I did this 6÷20÷2015). The final result looks great.
This is a worthwhile souvenir to get in Kyoto as it’s nice to be able to get a souvenir that you can say you made it yourself.