Studio Floor

Clay is messy to work with, but all us potters love the medium. It can be hard to clean clay dust in a studio, but it should be cleaned as it isn't good for your lungs.

With all the work involved with making pots, decorating, firing, taking pictures, selling, shipping etc etc... there is little time left for cleaning the studio. when I set up my studio, I wanted to have a floor that was easy to clean. I had a concrete floor and I painted it with epoxy paint after etching and priming it. The result is really nice. You can see pictures of the process here.

Cleaning it is a breeze. To make sure I clean it on a regular basis, I clean the floor every time I do a glaze firing. Never Sweep! The clay dust would just rise up in the air. I just take a wet mop and move it around the floor. Then I take a squeegee and collect the messy water together and just pick it up with a big sponge. Done!

It has been more than 4 years since I painted my studio floor and the paint is still doing well. Only a few chips in one area where I tend to drop tools often. :)

I have been contacted by other potters too asking me what I have done with the floor. Recently I was contacted by Miri Hardy who lives in Puerto Rico. After some discussions, she finished her floor with soy based concrete stain and her floors look beautiful. Like a the surface of a terra cotta pot. It is always nice to see an artist's workspace. If you have links to pictures of your workspaces, put links in the comments. Along with me I am sure other artists would like to see as well. Here is my studio tour.