A double pinch pot is two matching pinch pots joined rim to rim into one hollow form. The air trapped inside lets you paddle and reshape the ball without it collapsing, and from there you can cut it open or add to it. Good double pinch pot ideas include rattles, bird whistles, bud vases, lidded jars, piggy banks, small pitchers and hollow ornaments. Any sealed form needs a small air hole before it dries and fires. This guide covers how to make one and ten projects to try.
Research note: the method and ideas come from maker lesson plans (Skutt, AMACO), studio tutorials (The Pottery Wheel, Crafts Council UK with ceramicist Sam Andrew) and published firing guidance. We describe each project; we do not claim photos or test firings of our own.
What is a double pinch pot?
You make two pinch pots of the same size, let them firm a little, then score, slip and press the rims together. The result is a closed, hollow ball or egg. While it is sealed, the air inside works like a balloon: you can tap it with a wooden paddle, roll it, stretch it into an oval or push in a dimple and the walls spring back instead of caving in.
That is why the technique shows up in so many hand-building lessons. It gives you a round, even body that is hard to build any other way without a wheel, and the walls stay thin because each half was pinched separately. If you have not made a single pinch pot yet, start with our pinch pot guide.
Why a double pinch pot needs a hole
Clay holds water even when it looks dry. In the kiln that water turns to steam at 212°F (100°C), and the air inside a sealed form also expands as it heats. With no way out, the pressure can crack the seam or blow the piece apart, and the pieces can damage other work on the shelf. A small hole lets moisture escape while the piece dries and lets air and steam out in the firing.
- When to make it: once shaping is finished and the clay is leather hard, with a needle tool. ClayGeek notes you can also drill one in bone-dry clay with a small bit, gently.
- Size: clay shrinks as it dries and fires, so make the hole a little bigger than a pin prick so it stays open. A needle-tool hole is the usual size in classroom lessons.
- Where: somewhere that will not show, such as the base, under a handle or inside a design detail. AMACO's bird lesson pierces near the base and keeps glaze out of the hole.
- Cut-open forms: if you cut a neck, mouth or lid opening, that opening does the same job and no extra hole is needed.
How to make a double pinch pot step by step
- Weigh two equal balls. Halves that match in weight pinch out to the same diameter. A lemon or small orange size is easy to handle; The Pottery Wheel's pitcher demonstration uses about 1.5 lb (700 g) per half.
- Pinch both pots. Open each ball with your thumb, leave a base about 1/4 to 3/8 inch thick and pinch the walls up evenly to about 1/4 inch. Compare the rims often so both stay the same width.
- Firm them up. Set them rim down under loose plastic until they hold their shape, from an hour to overnight depending on how soft the clay was. The Pottery Wheel stops at soft leather hard.
- Score and slip the rims. Crosshatch both rims with a needle tool, fork or serrated rib and brush on thick slip. Our scoring and slip guide explains why both sides need it.
- Join and blend. Press the rims together with a slight twist, then drag clay across the seam inside where you can reach and outside all round. A thin coil pressed into the seam and smoothed adds strength.
- Paddle and shape. Tap the form all over with a flat wooden paddle or spoon to compress the seam and even the shape. Sam Andrew's Crafts Council tutorial uses paddling to knock out pinch marks and strengthen the join.
- Vent or open it. Poke the air hole, or cut the opening your project needs, before the clay firms further.
The Pottery Wheel describes a trick for pushing out dents: add a short coil, push a cocktail stick through it, blow gently into the form to raise the pressure, then pinch the hole closed. Wait a few hours after joining first, because blowing into a fresh seam can push it apart. Reopen a proper air hole before drying.
Double pinch pot ideas
1. Clay rattle
Clay: kiln clay. Skutt's Celebratory Clay Rattles lesson has students roll 10 to 20 small clay beads and let them air dry overnight, then drops them into one pinch pot before joining the second with score and slip. The teacher pokes an air hole with a needle tool, the rattle dries bone dry and is bisque fired, then painted. Because the beads dried first, they do not stick to the inside wall.
2. Bird whistle (ocarina)
Clay: low-fire kiln clay. Skutt's Class Whistle lesson joins two pinch pots from balls about the size of a small orange, shapes a bird, then pushes a craft stick into the tail to form a narrow windway and cuts a small rectangular sound hole where the windway meets the chamber. Test the sound before the clay firms and adjust the edge of the sound hole if it only hisses. Finger holes are optional and change the pitch. The windway and sound hole vent the form.
3. Bud vase
Clay: kiln clay if it will hold water. Make an egg shape, cut a small round opening at the top and add a short coil neck. Flatten the base by tapping it gently on the table so it stands. AMACO lists bud vases as one variation of its hollow bird form.
4. Lidded jar or trinket box
Clay: air-dry or kiln. Join and paddle a sphere, let it firm to leather hard, then cut it around the middle with a craft knife in a slight zigzag. The two halves fit back together because they were made and dried as one piece. Add a coil flange inside the lower half so the lid sits, and a small knob on top.
5. Small pitcher or jug
Clay: kiln clay. This is The Pottery Wheel's main demonstration: a double pinch pot body with an added coil neck, a pulled spout, a pulled handle and a foot ring. It is a bigger project, so use larger halves and give the joins time to firm under plastic before each new step.
6. Piggy bank
Clay: kiln clay. Paddle the sphere into a slightly long egg, add a snout, ears and four short legs, then cut a coin slot on the back. The slot acts as the vent. Our pinch pot animals guide covers attaching legs and other animal bodies built the same way.
7. Hollow ornament
Clay: air-dry or kiln. Small double pinch pots from walnut-size balls make round ornaments. Push a hanging hole through the top before drying; it vents the form too. Press texture in before joining or carve it at leather hard. Seasonal versions sit on our Christmas pottery ideas page.
8. Salt or pepper shaker
Clay: kiln clay only. AMACO mentions shakers as a variation of its hollow form. Poke a few holes in the top for pouring and leave a larger filling hole in the base that a cork or rubber stopper fits. For any food use, glaze with a glaze its maker labels food safe, fire to the stated cone and test the result.
9. Fruit, gourd or seed pod sculpture
Clay: air-dry or kiln. A paddled sphere becomes an apple with a coil stem, a pumpkin with lines pressed in from top to bottom, or a seed pod with a carved slit. These are good practice pieces because the form is forgiving and the decoration hides the seam.
10. Hanging planter or air plant holder
Clay: kiln clay for anything watered. Cut a wide round opening in the side of the sphere, flatten the base or add three small feet, and poke two holes near the top for a cord. Air plants need no soil; for soil, add a drainage hole underneath.
Shaping and seam tips
- Make a small mark across both rims before joining so you can line up the halves the same way they were pinched.
- Keep the seam damp while you work. A dry seam opens into a hairline crack later.
- Paddle lightly and often rather than hard once. Hard blows can split a fresh seam.
- Dry the whole piece slowly under loose plastic, especially if you added a neck, handle or legs.
Drying and firing
Double pinch pots dry from the outside in, and the inside surface dries last, so give them extra time. A kiln-clay piece is ready only when bone dry; it should feel room temperature against your cheek, not cool. Fire a bisque firing first to the cone your clay maker states, then glaze and fire again if you want a glazed surface. Keep glaze out of the air hole and off the base.
Air-dry clay will not burst, because it never sees a kiln, but a small hole still helps the inside dry. Expect a hollow air-dry piece to take longer than the 72 hours Crayola gives for its clay to dry completely, and keep it dry for life.
Common mistakes
- Halves of different sizes, so the rims do not meet. Weigh the balls.
- Joining pots that are too soft, so the form sags, or too dry, so the seam will not bond.
- Skipping slip and relying on water alone.
- Forgetting the air hole, or sealing it with glaze.
- Thick bases left from opening the ball. Check with a needle tool before joining.
- Food or water projects in air-dry clay.
Safety notes
A sealed hollow form can burst in the kiln and damage other pieces and kiln shelves, so always vent it and fire only bone-dry work, following your kiln maker's manual. Clean clay dust with a damp sponge; it contains crystalline silica, so never dry sweep, and wear a NIOSH-approved respirator when mixing dry materials. Read the glaze maker's SDS. We cannot promise a glaze is food safe on your pots: use a glaze labeled food safe by its maker, fire to the stated cone and test.
What you need
A double pinch pot needs only clay, a needle tool, a scoring tool, a slip brush, a sponge and a flat wooden paddle (a wooden spoon works). See our best pottery tools guide for a starter kit and our best clay for pottery guide for kiln clays. For single-pot projects, see our pinch pot ideas.
Sources: Skutt lesson plans "Celebratory Clay Rattles" and "Class Whistle: Bird Ocarina"; AMACO lesson plan "Flock of Birds"; The Pottery Wheel, "How to Make a Double Pinch Pot"; Crafts Council UK, "How to make a double pinch pot with Sam Andrew"; ClayGeek, "5 Ways to Prevent Explosions in Your Kiln"; Crayola air-dry clay drying FAQ. Specs checked October 2026.