A private podcast for students in the June 2026 session of COME TO CLASS with Amelia Hruby, PhD.
Hello, hello to everyone coming to class today. I'm so excited to record these extra bonus interviews for all of you so that you can hear from some of my favorite teachers. And in this one I am talking to Amber Faktor of Sunfish Ceramics. Amber, thank you so much for being here.
Amber Faktor:Thank you so much for having me. I'm delighted.
Amelia Hruby:I am also delighted to have this conversation with you and we're having it because you have been also teaching your own workshop on workshops. It gets very meta in your world which I love. Could you just kick us off today by introducing yourself to whoever 's tuned in and talking a little bit about your relationship to teaching?
Amber Faktor:Sure. So my name's Amber. Hello everyone. My pronouns are she/her. I am the sensitive soul ceramicist of Sunfish Studio.
Amber Faktor:I love alliteration as well, if you can tell. So I am sensitive souled. I am introverted. I am a mom to a four year old. I'm shy.
Amber Faktor:I'm neurodivergent. I'm a lot of slashes. And so that's sort of the lens that I bring to my world and my workshops and my teaching. So yeah, I run a ceramic studio called Sunfish Studio and workshops have become a big part of my business, you know, from many standpoints, whether that's marketing or income and things like that. Yeah, my relationship to teaching is really lifelong.
Amber Faktor:Like I often say that I come from a family of makers and bakers and growers and entrepreneurs, but there's also a lot of teachers in that mix. And so my family really always celebrated learning and curiosity and sharing of knowledge, you know, both within a traditional academic setting but also outside of that. I have memories of being a kid and playing school with my younger sibling where I was the teacher because obviously I'm the eldest daughter so I'm the teacher and I would make Alex sit and like do lessons and I would like usually teach like what I was learning in school and like make them do tests like sorry Alex. But I was one of those kids that I did actually really enjoy, you know, the learning component of going to school. Like I have good memories of going through the school system, you know, maybe the social side of things I struggled with, but like actually being and learning in a classroom is something, you know, I enjoyed.
Amber Faktor:And so I did consider at one point being a teacher and, you know, academia took me on another path, but it's interesting that I eventually did find my way back to teaching in a way that I never would have imagined because, I found ceramics later in life. I didn't go to art school. I don't have this like normal, in quotation, trajectory I suppose of some artists. So it's interesting that like, you know, I feel like teaching has sort of always been a part of me and a part of my life, but it's interesting how it sort of came full circle and now is a big part of my studio practice.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah. Oh that's so interesting to hear. I also was a kid who loved school and I mean that literally carried me all the way through a PhD. Just couldn't I leave wanted to stay there forever.
Amber Faktor:That was me too. Then got scholarships. I was like, you need to pay me you at a school? Okay, great.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah, yeah, same. I also excelled academically. And I also thought about being a teacher and I did teach in my graduate program a lot actually, more than is typical for PhD students. And really when I left academia it was because of my frustrations with those institutions not because of any like a dislike or even lack of enjoyment in teaching. I always really enjoyed teaching.
Amelia Hruby:That said, the type of teaching I have always done is very intellectual, right? Like I literally taught philosophy classes. I teach ideas, I teach some like processes that are very like digital and virtual but you are a ceramicist and you teach ceramics. You teach people how to make things with their own hands and the clay. And so I'm curious, could you talk a little bit about like how do you structure a workshop that can be hands on for participants?
Amelia Hruby:Like if you wanna walk us through a specific one that you've done or just more generally, how do you think about teaching when something's tactile?
Amber Faktor:Yeah, I mean, I think it might even be helpful to like go back a little bit to like the first workshops I taught because like when I first started doing ceramics as a hobby, people started asking me to teach them. And I was like, woah, woah, like, I'm still learning my craft. You know, I graciously declined. But it was like, you know, a couple of years of people asking and I sort of realized, like, it wasn't that they thought that I was like a master of my craft and wasn't that I like necessarily had, you know, I had skills to share, but they were looking for just the chance to try clay and have that experience. And because pottery can be somewhat of an inaccessible hobby to get into, I mean, the materials are very specific.
Amber Faktor:You need things like kilns and potentially pottery wheels. Like, it's not a hobby that you can just easily pick up and start. And so I realized that, you know, I was never gonna get the stamp of approval saying I was an expert and that I knew more than what these folks did. And I had access to this equipment. And, you know, was I gonna deny their chance to get their fingers into clay and find the joy and solace that I found within that.
Amber Faktor:So I opened my studio officially in, I guess, 2018, and around then still had people asking me and finally I was like, okay, I will do a workshop. So I gathered a handful of people that I knew. It was a mix of friends and acquaintances, but people that I knew were going to be patient with me and figuring it all out. I gathered everyone in my little tiny studio and we spent two days just making little tiny dishes, like a really simple, straightforward project so that I could focus, you know, on learning. Like, how do how am I gonna do this?
Amber Faktor:And, you know, I made everyone really delicious food. We had a movement instructor in the group, so she led us on some nice stretches in between to take care of our bodies because pottery, you know, often you're sitting in weird cramped up ways. But it left me, like, really fulfilled and challenged, but also just so joyous. And I was like, oh, this is something that I wanna pursue. So then cue the pandemic.
Amber Faktor:So I think I taught one more workshop and then the pandemic happened. That sort of forced me to pivot and I started teaching online workshops, which I hadn't really expected to do, but that was sort of an interesting, interesting forced avenue I had to follow. But that workshop has really shaped all of the ones I've done since where like clay, yes, is the medium. Like I am teaching skills and I'm we're doing a project, but the meaning of our gatherings is running so much deeper than that. It's like encouraging people to be vulnerable, to be playful.
Amber Faktor:And for a lot of people coming and doing something creative like that is really scary. So I feel like, yes, there is this like sharing of knowledge and skills and me learning how to, like, put words to the actions of what my hands are doing, but there is also, creating a space for people to come and feel supported in digging into areas they maybe, you know, suppress or struggle with. You know, I see a lot of people with, you know, perfectionist tendencies coming up that are so hard on themselves. So over the years, I've sort of learned the prompts and the ways I can set up and structure my workshops to support people through that so that, you know, they're getting something a lot more out of my workshops than just a cup or a tiny dish.
Amelia Hruby:Wow. Oh, that's so interesting. So it's like people come to your workshops because they wanna learn pottery. But what you've learned is actually to get them from no cup to cup. The biggest hurdle is not the clay.
Amelia Hruby:It's it's the inner thoughts. It's it's like the inner critic. It's the perfectionism. How often I'm so curious, like when you're in workshops with folks, how often does somebody like totally fail to make anything with the clay? Does that ever happen where they're just like this just didn't work for them?
Amber Faktor:So usually the workshops that I'm doing, I gear towards beginners. I do often sometimes I'll teach an intermediate workshop, but where I live, there's just a really small pool of people. Like, there's 5,000 people on the entire archipelago where I live. So there's just not that many people to choose from. So I like to keep them accessible, beginner level.
Amber Faktor:And there is one time that I so a couple actually examples that I can recall. One where someone just really pushed themselves. They chose like a template that was very big. They were brand new to Clay. So it was like, as she was doing it, I was like, well, you are being very brave.
Amber Faktor:Like, power to you. Like, it's gonna it might crack in the kiln, but, like, she was like, I don't care. I'm here for the process. Like, she had the right mindset to be stretching herself, and it sure enough did crack into many pieces. It was a big it was a planter, so then it didn't matter because I epoxied it back together for her and it still had cracks, but it held soil, so it didn't matter.
Amber Faktor:But then I have had one workshop last year where I was teaching a kid's workshop at our local elementary school and they were making simple little cylinder vases, which normally is a very straightforward project. But the room we were in, this art room, had big beautiful windows, but it made it hot. It was a sunny day. So the temperature was really warm. The air was quite dry.
Amber Faktor:And so everything cracked as they were like forming the cylinders, taking the clay and turning it into a cylinder shape. Every single piece had a crack in it. And it was supposed to be little vases for Mother's Day. It was like, oh, it was so hard. And so that was really challenging as a facilitator to talk through that and try encouraging the kids to continue and how we could fix it.
Amber Faktor:And also like troubleshooting and sort of giving them the reasons why this was happening. So they weren't taking it personally. And I was quite proud because at the end what I determined or what I figured out to do was I have a friend who grows flowers and has dries flowers. So I got her to give me a big bag of, like, cut flower ends, like the little short stems. And so when I after I fired vases, which, like, every single one had a crack in it.
Amber Faktor:I was like, I mean, it's a vase, but it's certainly not gonna hold water for your Mother's Day bouquets. But I gave them this big bag of dried flower ends. And so the kids were able to make little dried flower bouquets, which like, then it doesn't matter that there's a crack in it. But yeah, I have certainly had those catastrophic disasters. But I think again, even when I'm marketing or when I'm doing the opening for my workshops, like, I try to put the focus on the process to, like Mhmm.
Amber Faktor:You know, yes, it's great if we have something come out of this that there's an end project, an end result, but that's not necessarily what we need to say that this is gonna be a successful workshop or a successful gathering.
Amelia Hruby:Oh, yeah. I think that's so powerful, and I'm really grateful you shared that. And it also really shows how much just live problem solving that you're doing, but also time you're putting in after. And I think this is something with Ceramics. If you're firing everything for them, it's not just that you teach the workshop, you got your money, it's over.
Amelia Hruby:It's like there are these other stages of the process, there's even more. I wanna hear a little bit more about design a workshop or structure it. Do you start with like, I'm gonna make this object with people or do you start with like, I wanna work with these people. And then when you get them in the room, I'm so curious of the details. Like, is the clay on the table?
Amelia Hruby:How long do you talk for before they get to touch it? Do they touch it right away? Like, I'd love to hear a little bit about how you think about designing a ceramics workshop experience.
Amber Faktor:Sure. When I first come to a workshop, I usually have a starting point in mind. And so if you break it down to a very much like, you know, who, what, where, when, why, how, I guess that's six. I usually have something in mind. So for example, I have a workshop coming up in a couple of weeks and it's spring, it's mother's day a couple weeks later.
Amber Faktor:And so I wanted to do something that really like embrace the season. And so I From that was kind of my starting point, I suppose. So from that, I was like, okay, what's a I wanted it to be a beginner workshop. So went for a simple project. So we're making little bud vases.
Amber Faktor:Just based on my capacity and whatnot right now, I knew I wanted to teach it in the town that I live because oftentimes I will travel to my neighboring communities and teach there. But just with my childcare and everything else that's going on, I was like, nope, I'm gonna keep it simpler in a way and teach locally. Meant that like that helped me sort of hone in on my venue needs. And then, you know, just kind of extrapolating everything else from that point. But having that sort of clear anchor.
Amber Faktor:And then always kind of rooting it back into that why, I guess that purpose of like, I want it to be playful and creative. And again, like those are sort of the language, that's the language that I'm using when I'm selling it and marketing it is, you know, come be creative, let go, be playful. You know, it's on a Sunday morning. So like come and sip tea and nibble on scones while you get your fingers in clay. So, you know, I'm always rooting into that purpose as well, but then also keeping that starting point.
Amber Faktor:So, this case, it being like a spring related workshop, like that sort of the anchor that I guide and make all of my decisions around. And then when it comes to setting everything up, I love So, I have everyone has their own little workstation. They've all got their tools nicely laid out, everything that they need for the most part. I usually make like a little communal table if I'm gonna be doing any like decorating with stamps or foliage to imprint. Any of the like kind of stuff that they would share as a group is sort of on its own table.
Amber Faktor:I've got I always have a spread of food because I think it's just like such a good easy Not easy, but like it's a way that I can make people feel comfortable and nourished. So I have my little like tea station and this little spread of food. And then I have their clay, you know, wrapped but on their station. And depending on the workshop and I often find especially when I'm teaching kids, I'll let them rip a little bit off of the side of the block of clay so that while I'm doing my introduction, they can be rolling it around in their hands because, right, that's part of working with the clay is it's so tactile. You wanna feel it.
Amber Faktor:Right? So I've done that with some adult workshops as well. It just depends on the timing and what feels right for the group and whatnot. But especially because I really put a lot of emphasis into my opening and my introduction. Like it's something that like if I'm teaching a two to three hour workshop, I will have a half hour set aside for my introduction.
Amber Faktor:It's something that I feel like I get a lot of really positive feedback from. And it's just something that I really like to sort of settle into things. So, I'm not only going over the logistics of like using the space and I like to go through like the stages of the clay. Like I'll have little examples of like, this is how it is that we're working with today, but like this is in a slip form when it's really watery. This is once it's gone through the kiln one time, like in what's happened in the ceramic process and chemically what's happened.
Amber Faktor:This is once it's glazed and I can pass those around and get people like involved in learning what the process is because then they do appreciate it a lot more, right? But then I also, with my introductions in terms of like getting everyone to introduce themselves, I really like to step away from the norm of like, you know, tell me your name and what you do. And I always start with what's called a magical question. And so this is a concept that I learned from Priya Parker, who is just an amazing gatherer, I suppose. And she has a book called The Art of Gathering, which has become sort of like one of my sacred texts that I just refer to all the time when it comes to teaching and workshops.
Amber Faktor:And a magical question is one that everyone wants to answer and everyone wants to hear each other's answers. So, I always try to like relate it back to the workshop somehow. But like an example would be like, you know, what's your favorite sign of spring? Like whatever season you're in. When was the last time you used glitter?
Amber Faktor:Or like I taught a workshop in the fall where we were making candlestick holders. And so I asked for like a memory about fire. Something related to what we were making. And it's really interesting because people sometimes answer with a one sentence answer or sometimes they'll talk for five minutes. And so I like to be able to have that space structured in so that if there are people who want to share, they can do so.
Amber Faktor:And it's always just like so fascinating that like once we get started, even the person who has given a one line answer, it might be enough, you know, something that they've mentioned in that answer is enough for someone across the table to have made a connection with and pick up on. And then they're just having these conversations that run so much deeper out of the get go than just like, you know, my name is Amber and I'm a potter or whatever. So that's something that's really important to me and I like to set aside that time for and be intentional about.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah. I mean, even the fact that you're choosing for them to introduce themselves and share is such an intentional choice. Right? Like, I have been to plenty of craft workshops with lots of people there where we did not introduce ourselves to each other. It was not a part of the workshop time.
Amelia Hruby:The workshop was structured like, says, here's what we're doing everybody, let me show you how, now you do it. And like hopefully you came with a friend or like hopefully there's somebody else there that you wanna talk to or you're like cool to just go solo. And so I just wanna highlight that like not only are those magical questions magic, but also it's a very intentional teaching and facilitation choice to bring people into the room to ask them to speak up, to say something, to share with each other. I also love that you think so much about nourishing the body, you know, through food, in previous workshops with, like, stretches, movement practices, and how we bring in like a sort of multisensory experience. That really has me wondering then how you teach online, which I know has been, at least during the pandemic, a part of your work.
Amelia Hruby:What types of ceramics workshops have you taught online? How has that worked for you?
Amber Faktor:So I've done a real range and including like both live Zoom kind of style, leading a workshop, which, you know, ends up being very similar to how I structure my in person workshops. But then I also do asynchronous ones where I've like recorded a tutorial and, you know, where it's like someone is buying like a kit and then it's I mail it to them, then they have their video that they can do at any time, like whenever works best for them. And, you know, I like that style in the way that like lots of different types of learners can enjoy it and you know that you can pause and rewind, slow something down, rewatch it, that sort of thing. But yeah, it's you know, even though there is that similarity, you know, going through the planning process is very similar, determining like where I'm stopping to do my demos, that kind of thing is similar. But, you know, there are certainly things that shift, you know, with the material considerations.
Amber Faktor:Like maybe I shift to using an air dry clay so that they don't have to worry about the finishing aspect of it. Yeah, planning for the what ifs of like, if there's a power outage, which again, where I live, it's like there's often big storms, so tech difficulties are aplenty. So how do I have a backup? So like whenever I teach something online, I always send like a step by step written instruction, like nothing fancy, just like this is your document with like step one, step two. So that if someone got disconnected, or for whatever reason couldn't watch the video, they could sit and do the project.
Amber Faktor:So that's really helpful. And then also like, you know, if it's something where I'm sending them like a little kit of supplies, I have, you know, a welcome letter that they unravel to that kind of breaks everything down. It tells them things like, you know, if you forgot this kit on your shelf for a year, this is how you rehydrate the clay so that you can do it now. And sort of that sort of thing. So it's tricky though, to bring that intentionality and purpose into an online setting.
Amber Faktor:And especially, I feel like with an in person workshop, I have full control over that environment. Right? Like, when you step through the door, you are stepping into like across the threshold really like into, you know, another world really is what, you know, I'm trying to create. And so I'm controlling the lighting. I'm thoughtful about the temperature, the sounds, the food that's there, how you're being greeted and how you're welcomed.
Amber Faktor:Whereas in an online setting, like I have no control over that. I don't know if there's kids screaming in the other room or if there's a pile of laundry that's like, you know, in your line of sight that's making your eye twitch. Like, so that's something as a facilitator that is really tricky. Like how do I create that feeling of stepping into an intentional world and grounding into the purpose of the workshop when I don't have any control over that environment. So, something that I might do is like ahead of time, maybe do the magical question, but have it be like on the slide when someone comes into the Zoom room, can be on the welcome slide.
Amber Faktor:Like put in the chat your answer to the magical question, or like prepping them to bring a hot beverage in their favourite mug and say that like everyone's gonna hold up and show off their favourite mug. You know, just little ways like that to unite the group. But it is tricky because I also feel like oftentimes when I'm teaching online, there's a lot more people, right? Whereas when I'm in person, like my kind of sweet spot is around 10 people. So, you know, to sitter and go through everyone's introductions, if I have 24 people in a Zoom room workshop, like that's gonna take up the whole timeframe.
Amber Faktor:So how do we make those connections in a way that I don't have the control over the environment and the venue?
Amelia Hruby:Again, so much that you shared that I think is actually like really profound incredibly intentional. And it's definitely been interesting for me like I have pretty much, I don't do introductions on my Zoom calls when I teach anymore because of that point you said, like it takes so much time. And some of that is because mostly I teach in the context of an ongoing membership and so there are many touch points for people to connect. But there's something really special about moving a specific group who meets each other, greets each other, knows each other through material. And so much of what you were talking about, I just kept thinking about how much you are crafting and tending to the classroom, whether that be the space where you're hosting a workshop.
Amelia Hruby:It doesn't have to a literal classroom, mean the proverbial classroom, the metaphorical classroom. What is the world that we're opening together for this workshop? And that may be in your studio. It may be in a nearby town or it may be online. And you're thinking obviously about, like, okay, when this person is coming to this workshop, I don't know what room they're in, but we're gonna make that room their classroom.
Amelia Hruby:And how are we gonna do that? And how am I gonna guide this in a way? And I definitely think that question of, like, introductions or no introductions is incredibly important in how something is shaped. And also, I should give myself some credits. I do no introductions.
Amelia Hruby:I've moved everything to a chat where that has to have that functionality. And for folks who may be listening to this, they're like, yeah, I wanna teach rooms of hundreds of people. You're certainly not gonna do voiced introductions. Everyone's not unmuting and saying hi. So how do you do that?
Amelia Hruby:How do you really intentionally think? Is it 10? Is it 50? Is it 100? Is it 500?
Amelia Hruby:Those decisions also impact the proverbial classroom that you're creating. And it really matters what you wanna do. Right? Like I like to teach bigger groups. A lot of people would never wanna teach more than six people, know?
Amelia Hruby:So wanna maybe touch a little bit on that next because as you were talking, I kept thinking, wow, this is so wonderful. And then I kept thinking a little bit like, wow, I'm kinda tired just hearing about how all this takes. Like, you're doing a lot. Obviously, you are very invested in your teaching skills, style, experiences. And you said at the beginning, like, you're a self identified introvert.
Amelia Hruby:You're neurodivergent. Like, how do you do all of this without burning out? Like, how do you maintain your love of teaching in these, like, pretty intensive workshop styles and settings?
Amber Faktor:I think it's been a lot of trial and error over the years. I've been doing it a long time now. And I've had example weekends where I know I've done too much. And I think a lot of it, you know, down to thoughtful scheduling. Like I know that I need to keep my schedule spacious the day before and the day after, especially the day after.
Amber Faktor:Because even if I have a group of the most lovely humans, it still drains me as an introvert. Like doing anything social and forward facing drains my cup. It doesn't mean I don't like it. I love it. But I need then the time the next day to recharge.
Amber Faktor:So I'm keeping my schedule really flexible. Like, you know, even similar to how I prepared for this chat with you, like this is the kind of thing that is hard for me. Like, you know, so instead of doing a bunch of admin and bookkeeping like I'd normally planned this morning, I trimmed some cups in my studio because it's like a repetitive, nice calming task. I took myself for a walk. I, you know, made sure I fed myself a like hobbit breakfast at eleven so I or right before eleven so I wouldn't be hungry.
Amber Faktor:Like I took care of myself in a way and I think those are the things that I, you know, maybe not all of them, but I work them into what I'm doing for myself before and then after. I also am very mindful about my planning choices. So, I mean, we've already kind of touched on that, but you know, the group size and who is invited. Like I put a lot of care into making sure, trying to make sure that the people that are coming to my workshop are a good fit. So that I am not expelling more energy with like conflict resolution or like, or having you know, an intermediate workshop that a brand new beginner comes to because that can certainly, you know, bring its own challenges to my facilitation.
Amber Faktor:I'm very sensitive to my environments. And so I am very thoughtful about the venues that I choose. I don't want overhead fluorescent lighting because that is just I just am not gonna be a good teacher in that environment. And then I also you know, the frequency of the workshops that I teach. Like I at this point in my life, I'm only doing like six to eight a year.
Amber Faktor:And that feels like a good amount. And partially that's restricted again by like, I live in a really small place. So I have seen there is a bit of a cap of like, you know, if I tried to for a while to teach one a month and like that was very quickly I realized too much. So being thoughtful and mindful about like how many I'm actually able to fit into my schedule for the year. And then even things like what time of day, like I don't want to teach a night workshop at this point in my life.
Amber Faktor:Like I prefer, you know, during the day. So I feel like I make choices that are like, I mean, somewhat selfish, but also it's supporting myself so that I can show up as a good facilitator. And I feel like an example I just that popped in my head is that this past winter, I was doing a market because I sell my wares in person at a market, and it was like a pop up style shop where you didn't have to be there the whole time, you just had to like go set up and then leave your stuff up for the day. And it was in a neighboring community and I knew I'd wanted to do a workshop around that time. So I was like, perfect, I'll be super efficient.
Amber Faktor:I'll teach a workshop on the same day. I'll go set up at the market. I'll go teach the workshop. I'll go take down the market. Oh my goodness.
Amber Faktor:It was not the right choice. Like that was definitely a lesson learned there because I just had so much going on in my brain that by the time I like did the setup and had seen a bunch of people and, you know, was chatting with other makers and I went to teach my workshop, my brain was so scattered that when I went to start doing my first demo, I like had to stop and pause because the words were just not coming out. I was just like not I just wasn't finding that connection between my mouth and my hands. And so I stopped. I like physically stepped back from my table.
Amber Faktor:I took two like very noticeable big breaths and was like, I'm sorry, like my brain is busy. I'm gonna try that again. And yeah, you know, it was still a wonderful workshop, but like my It was hard for me as a facilitator. And so it was a good reminder that that was too much. So I know now that next winter I'm not going to do that.
Amber Faktor:Yes, it was efficient, but like it And it took me days to recover from that, right? Like it was, you know, instead of just having one day that I could just chill and recharge, it was quite a few days to actually be able to bounce back from that. So I think, you know, it's not only creating spaces and workshops that I would want to attend as an introvert, as someone who's sensitive soul, who's shy and all the things. But yeah, creating the gatherings and workshops that support my own needs, my capacity, my childcare, you know, as well as the people that are coming. I want them to feel cared for as well, but I also need to be cared for if I'm gonna keep doing it long term.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah, I really appreciate that example you shared of sort of finding yourself in a moment where it's not working and then stepping back, taking the breaths, like announcing that you're giving yourself space to find presence, to reconnect, to reenter the room in a certain sense, and then going again. I think that it's it's so simple and powerful. But often when we're standing in front of the literal classroom or just, you know, the only one talking in the Zoom room and we start to trip over our words and we can panic and, like, you know, it can really be hard to support ourselves through those moments. I was just at a concert where, like, the singer messed up a few times, and she was so chill about it. She was just she was just, like, laugh and keep going.
Amelia Hruby:And, like and I loved it. I was like, that's how it is. Like, it's not a big deal. You don't have to be perfect. But it was so nice.
Amelia Hruby:Like, I've been at other shows where people sort of make a mistake, a noticeable one, and they obviously panic and freeze, and the the room goes silent. And everyone's like, what do we do? And I think that, like, the best thing we can do as teachers and facilitators is model tending to ourselves and not going into panic spirals when we're not perfect at it because our students aren't gonna be perfect at it either. That's why they're students. But like you said in the beginning, like we don't have to be masters of the craft, PhD level whatevers to teach it.
Amelia Hruby:And in fact, the people who are the PhD level whatevers said as myself, someone with a PhD, often are not that great at teaching beginners, because it's really hard to go that far back in skill level. So I appreciate so much of what you shared. And I do wanna ask you one final question that I didn't prep you for, but just feels like it's sort of come up around the edges of what you've shared about tending to yourself, caring for yourself, teaching workshops in your business. And so I guess I just I wanted to ask you a little bit about like, pricing. Are your workshops a profitable part of your business?
Amelia Hruby:Are they something where you're like, I just I break even on them, but I do them for these other reasons? How do you think about sort of all the the money and finances involved in this?
Amber Faktor:I love talking about this side of it. So all of the above. I try out of those, you know, six to eight workshops a year, will try to do some where I am trying to make a profit. Know, I'm always trying to cut even because I don't want them to be a loss necessarily, but I am trying to have them be, you know, a solid income source for my business. But that being said, in order to get them to be that, they need to be set at a price which is on the higher end.
Amber Faktor:And so, you know, again, like I found that I couldn't run one a month at the price that I was charging. You know, if I had halved that, maybe I could fill one a month, but then I'm either losing money or not covering my costs. So for example, the one that's coming up in a couple of weeks, like that is one that I am selling at my higher price point. I have a little spreadsheet that I can plug all my numbers into and figure out like, okay, you know, based on my materials, based on how much time I'm putting in, and I have it, you know, pretty well dialed now in terms of like knowing how much time I'm putting towards my marketing, how much time have to put towards finishing things. Right?
Amber Faktor:Like, that ends up being a big labor cost is, like, once stuff gets back to my studio, it's going through the kiln twice, which, you know, that's an expense. And then just, you know, I'm touching it multiple times throughout the process. Like, so every time I'm touching it, I need to be paying myself for that. Right? So, so that's sort of where I start from if I'm if I'm actually trying to sell it as a you know, for a profit or at least, trying to.
Amber Faktor:And then I also always try to offer a couple a year that are at a more accessible price point. So I, you know, either do that by just deciding that, you know, I'm gonna either just try to cut even or take a little bit of a loss if need be. Sometimes I will apply for local grants. So I've got a few different over the years where I get different arts grants. And in those cases, I can't be making a profit, you know, they're, they're covering the expenses and materials, but to me, it's a way to offer the workshops to people who maybe wouldn't have the financial means to attend my usual workshops.
Amber Faktor:So it's giving, you know, it's opening that up to a wider array of folks. And then, you know, ideally maybe also just building that trust so that if they do want to do more workshops with me in the future, they've done one already and they know that it is worth that money in a way. Right? Like, you know, I do put a lot into those workshops and I'm not making a big profit off of that. Like it's, you know, there is a lot of thought and time that goes into each one.
Amber Faktor:And so I think that once, once people go to one, I have a lot of repeat workshop folks, which is amazing and I'm very grateful for. And then, you know, within that six to eight, you know, I usually do a couple for the kid, like the different schools and stuff through the year as well. And in those cases, I'm certainly trying to keep the cost as low as possible. And in those cases, know, I'm working with the teacher and what their budget is, you know, usually they have a grant. So I'm choosing projects and things that fit within their budget.
Amber Faktor:So yeah, I would say it's like a pretty wide spectrum and yeah, different models that I've tried out over the years, but I'm trying to cover all the bases, I suppose.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah, yeah, I think that's so helpful to hear. And I like that you're thinking about the workshops in different ways and these different sort of models of, I don't know, revenue generation. There's like the workshops that are, this is the higher end of my price point, I wanna make money off of this, it's gonna be a profitable workshop for me. This is something that I'm doing to be more accessible, maybe I wanna get some more people in, maybe I wanna get some new people in, and so we're gonna do different type of projects, lower cost, for expense wise and ticket price to come in wise. Or this workshop is that's gonna be funded by a grant, this is one that's gonna come from teacher funds.
Amelia Hruby:I think that to me, different sort of pricing models also map onto different parts of the marketing ecosystem or the sustainable marketing cycle, right? Like is this a grow, a nurture or a sell workshop, right? We have the ones that are the sell. This is like the moneymaker. At least two a year need to be profitable.
Amelia Hruby:That's gonna keep things afloat and make me feel good about doing them. And then two a year are nurture. They're a little lower cost, but they're bringing some more people in the door to my studio. After they do that, maybe they're gonna come to the more expensive one next. Maybe they're gonna buy some things from me because they realize they never wanna make their own ceramics again which is mostly the my
Amber Faktor:experience. Totally.
Amelia Hruby:Every time I've made a mug, I've been like, please let me never make a mug again. I would rather pay for the mugs. It is not for me. I have this one cursed mug I made in a workshop that leaks and I can't get rid of it but it it always leaks all over my it's not a big leak, it's just like a little leak in the mug anyway. You do drink your tea really fast.
Amelia Hruby:Exactly. It's like a test. It's a speed race between me and this mug that I made. I made it in a wonderful workshop with a ceramicist I love and a friend who has very sadly passed since since I'm not willing to get rid of this mug. No.
Amelia Hruby:But every time I use it, it's a little bit of a tribulation for me. You can
Amber Faktor:put a plant in it. My go to line when people, if they're making a mug or something and they're like what if it cracks? Like you can put a plant in it.
Amelia Hruby:That's true. It's very small, so I just need a tiny plant.
Amber Faktor:Little tiny cactus.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah. It's also it's very wonky. If you saw it, you would be like, oh, Amelia. Like, the sides are all different widths. The handle is way too thick.
Amelia Hruby:I'm not a ceramicist. I'm not a at all. But getting back to the sustainable marketing cycle from the strange tangent I took to my broken mug. There are the sell workshops. There are the nurture workshops, and then there are the grow ones.
Amelia Hruby:Right? Being in the classroom where the students are gonna make it and then take it home and maybe their parents get excited or doing a free demo even at a at a market or something like that where it's like, oh, you know, they have a stage, and I'm gonna do a thirty minute this. And, like, I really am kinda losing money on that, but also I'm just gonna be in front of 100 people. Like, you know, there are different reasons to teach in different settings and chart different things, and I love that you're thinking about that, and also that you have a spreadsheet where you track costs, so it's not totally just vibes, right? Because I feel like I see a lot of people who do workshops sort of burn out when it's solely vibes based because they're not realizing like, oh, actually, I've lost money on everyone and it takes me two days to recover.
Amelia Hruby:And so that, like, it has to be intentional. I I love that you have these different reasons but you're very dialed in to what is each workshop doing for you, what are you offering through it, how's it serving the business, etcetera.
Amber Faktor:And I think that's something that when I'm doing my initial planning and I'm finding my starting point of like, what am I basing it off of? You know, for this one that's coming up, you know, yes, wanted to do a spring workshop, but one of the big whys was that I do want it to be a profit workshop. So, you know, that is then influencing some of the decisions that I'm making, like when I'm booking venues and and advertising and whatnot. Like, because I like to you know, advertising for workshops, in person workshops is a whole, you know, different strategy than doing something online. Right?
Amber Faktor:Like, I'm taking advertisements out in my local newspaper and things like that. So those are costs that, you know, I have to be factoring in and whatnot. But, yeah, I loved what you said about, you know, the reasonings behind, you know, selling or teaching workshops. I think there is a lot of value to people really appreciating your craft. And I think that's something that I hear from other makers.
Amber Faktor:They're like, why would I teach someone to make what I want what like, what then they're not gonna buy what I'm making. And I'm like, no. Because out of the gate, they are not gonna come to your workshop and suddenly just be able to replace all of the mugs on their shelf. Like, no. They're gonna make one, and they're gonna realize the years that went into your craft so that when they pick up your mug, they see why you're charging a $100 for a mug because of the experience that went into it and the design details and whatnot.
Amber Faktor:So that's always a fun conversation to have when folks are like, why would I, you know, share my livelihood?
Amelia Hruby:Give away
Amber Faktor:the They're gonna turn into, like, dedicated customers because they'll just appreciate it so much more.
Amelia Hruby:Absolutely. They are more likely to make sad mugs like mine than beautiful mugs like yours at the end of one workshop, right? Some people will get inspired, it will become what they do. Like if
Amber Faktor:That's somebody can great.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah. It is. It's beautiful. And I think there are so many benefits to this. So Amber, thank you so much for sharing all of this.
Amelia Hruby:It was so thoughtful. I have thought about so many different aspects of teaching that I wasn't even thinking about before. Is there anything else that you wanted to share with folks who are tuned in, who are thinking about teaching their own workshops before we sign off?
Amber Faktor:I think really just think about the kind of workshops that you would want to attend. That's sort of been my guiding light. That was something that was really remarkable when I found Priya Parker's work was I was able to bring this lens of thinking about different gatherings that I've attended over the years that have been really nourishing, really joyful, but then also ones that were totally the opposite. And recognizing like what were the details that went into those different events? What was the invisible structure?
Amber Faktor:What was the venue? Like, you know, it maybe it just was the overhead fluorescent lighting that made that so terrible. Right? And so taking all of those things into consideration and designing a workshop that really suits you and your brain and your capacities because I think that's the way to be able to do them in a sustainable manner is, you know, creating the gatherings that you want to see in the world, but that you would also want to attend.
Amelia Hruby:Yeah. That's such beautiful advice and so, so true. I had forgotten until you said that that one of the reasons I decided to make COME TO CLASS is that I took the worst online class of my life this winter and I abandoned it. I only went once. It was like a three week thing.
Amelia Hruby:I went the first time and I was like, never again. It was so it was just very like teen Zoom. Like the like, we hadn't even tried through the pandemic. We hadn't learned anything. There were no introductions.
Amelia Hruby:We dove in. It started with like random people who never introduced themselves doing these like six minute shares about something I didn't understand. And then they put us in breakout groups with no support and then we're just and it was it was really miserable. So if you don't know what a good experience feels like, think about the bad ones and make a different decision every step of the way can be a starting point. Gatherings.
Amelia Hruby:I also love Priya Parker's work and thinking about how do we just tend to ourselves and each other in every space that we're in, and how do we start with? Like, the ways that you like to learn and be held in a space, build your teaching style from there. And different styles will suit different people, right? Like you are sensitive sold and I'm sure sensitive people love your workshops. Other folks who are like super direct and wanna move fast, it may not be for them.
Amelia Hruby:Right? They're gonna show up and be like, why are we not doing anything for an hour? Like and that's okay. Like, it's it's about being yourself and how you show up in the room and craft a room and and teach and guide people. And then, you know, you'll find the right students for that style as long as your style is intentional.
Amelia Hruby:So thank you so much, Amber, for this time. I'm so excited to have you in Come to Class a little bit and to share this conversation with folks who are tuned in. And I didn't think about how to sign off, so I guess, friends, we'll see you in CLASS. Bye for now.