The Beginner's Guide to Hand Building

Cobb’s second book, published in 2022, grew out of the video tutorials she began making during the pandemic for home potters working from their kitchen tables. It focuses on projects you can complete with minimal equipment and space, covering both functional pieces like scoops and soap dishes and sculptural work like miniature animals and plants.

Where Mastering Hand Building is a broad technical reference, this book is more project-driven and casual. Each project is self-contained, making it ideal for people who want to jump straight into making things rather than studying techniques first. Cobb’s friendly, conversational tone carries over from her popular online teaching, and the step-by-step photography is clear and well-paced. At 176 pages, it complements rather than replaces her first book.