Create Your Own “Dream Cup” in Clay

At this ceramics workshop in Kyiv, you’ll make your own cup from clay, shaping its body and handle, adding texture and painting your design by hand with engobes.

Your cup can be minimal or imaginative, with an unusual handle, raised details, lettering or small sculpted elements. What matters is making a cup you’ll want to use for your morning coffee or evening tea.

The workshop is suitable for beginners, so no experience with ceramics is needed. A KUST instructor will show you the basics of hand-building and help you at every stage.

What will your cup look like?

You choose its shape, size and character. It might be classic or asymmetrical, with an oversized decorative handle, botanical motifs, sea creatures or details you’ve imagined yourself.

During the class, you’ll be able to:

• shape a cup from clay;

• make and securely attach a handle;

• work with volume and proportions;

• add relief, texture or sculpted elements;

• choose a composition and colour palette;

• paint your cup with engobes, which are underglaze colours for ceramics.

No two cups are alike. Each one carries the marks of its maker’s hands and imagination.

Workshop Programme

One class — hand-building and painting

Duration: 2 hours

First, the instructor will introduce you to the clay, tools and basic principles of hand-building. You’ll shape your cup, make its handle, check that it feels comfortable to hold and add decorative details.

Once the form is ready, you’ll paint it with engobes. Choose your colours and create a pattern, illustration or freeform design.

The instructor will help you join the parts securely, refine the surface, work with colour and prepare your cup for drying and firing.

You’ll learn basic clay hand-building and engobe painting techniques, and discover how a piece of raw clay becomes a finished cup.

What happens after the class?

Your cup will stay at the KUST studio to dry slowly and undergo its first firing. The team will then coat it with clear glaze to protect the painted design and create a smooth surface suitable for everyday use.

After the final firing, you can collect your cup from the studio in approximately three weeks or arrange delivery by Nova Poshta.

What’s included

• A 2-hour class with an instructor

• Professional ceramic clay

• Engobes for painting your own design

• All necessary tools and materials

• Guidance with shaping the cup, handle and decoration

• Drying

• Clear glazing

• The necessary kiln firings

Price: UAH 1,000 for one person or UAH 1,900 for two. In the two-person workshop, each participant makes and paints their own ceramic cup.

Who is the workshop for?

The Dream Cup workshop is a lovely choice:

• for your first experience with ceramics;

• if you’d like to try hand-building with clay;

• for a creative break after work;

• for time with a friend or someone close to you;

• as a ceramics workshop for two;

• for an unusual date in Kyiv;

• as a gift for someone who loves making things by hand.

No experience is needed. The instructor will help you through each stage and bring your idea to life in clay.

A Creative Date for Two

Come with your partner and make two cups that are entirely different or designed as a pair. It’s a chance to slow down, work with your hands and keep a tangible memory of a day spent together.

After firing, you’ll each have your own cup for coffee, tea and small daily rituals.

The workshop takes place at KUST Ceramics Studio in Kyiv. You can also buy a Dream Cup gift certificate for one or two people.