Painting Ceramics at The Mud Oven

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An outside store sign for The Mud Oven. "Mud Oven" is in rainbow text. The phrase "paint your own pottery" follows it. The background is black.

Photo: J. Black

My birthday just passed and as a fun activity my partner took me to The Mud Oven. 

When we stepped outside that morning it was brisk but pleasant with a bright sun shining and an almost cloudless blue sky. This was great news since we use public transportation to get around. Our commute from Nepean to Bank Street was surprisingly smooth and definitely amplified the fun we had; we all know Ottawa’s buses are far from the best transit system. 

Once off the bus it wasn’t hard to find The Mud Oven because of its colourful signage. It is an overwhelming experience walking in for the first time with ceramics and people and colour all over the place, but the staff are very welcoming. The lovely attendee behind the centre desk greeted us and explained the first half of the process: there are communal hooks around the space for your coats, please wash your hands to avoid oils from reacting with the supplies, and decide which piece you’d like to paint.

Wooden shelves with various ceramic plates, planters, frames and figurines in them.

Photo: J. Black

An unpainted ceramic figurine of a cat with a tall gnome-like hat pulled down over its eyes.

Photo: J. Black

So that’s what we did. I’m terrible at estimating numbers, but the floor to ceiling shelves were filled with various statues and dishes, and I'm sure there were over a hundred items to choose from. We walked the stretch together discussing all the options. It took at least ten minutes to have even an idea of which we would choose. I was, of course, torn between all the gnomes and mushrooms. My partner ended up set on a zombie mug from the Halloween collection; I ended up going with a gnome-vibe cat figurine. 

An unpainted ceramic mug with features of a rotting zombie head.

Photo: J. Black

Now that our pieces were chosen we got the paint and firing explanation. This is the extra cool part of ceramic painting in my opinion. We weren't using regular paints, like acrylic, but were painting with glazes. This means a few things work differently than you may be used to. They are very thin, and dry very pastel, but they react strongly to the heat of the kiln.

There is a wall of swatch tiles to help imagine what your painting will look like, but it is truly a mystery until you get them back. The layers of paint are translucent which you can use this to your advantage to, in theory, get some very cool effects. Pencil is burned off in the kiln, so if you want to get super intricate with your design you can plan it out first.

A peg board holds a variety of colourful ceramic tiles. At the center are rows of rectangluar tiles presenting three opacities of each colour.

Photo: J. Black

A ceramic cat figurine. Its body is painted orange and its gnome-like hat is painted blue. The colours are pale.

Photo: J. Black

We decided to discuss our colour and design ideas before jumping into our painting. Then started with a general base coat, my partner using green and I grabbed orange. Between each coat of paint sped the process up with a hair dryer.

On my third coat I tried to only paint certain spots hoping to add some dimension; you’ll be able to find out if that worked at the end of the post. I had another large area to cover and decided my cat's hat would be blue. Once I started applying, I realized it was giving “wizard” but I decided to lean into it.

Once those base layers were complete, it was time to dive into the details. I filled in the few spots that hadn't been painted like the insides of the ears, the toe-beans and the whiskers. Then went to town with single layers of white and dark orange hoping to add more dimension and variation. The final detail I added was paw prints up the hat, really leaning into that cartoon wizard hat: blue with stars.

Then we were left to wait. We handed off our freshly painted ceramics, paid and waited for the email to say they’re ready for pick-up. If I had thought harder about it, I would have made a slightly later reservation so we could have gone to The Belmont for drinks and a snack but we hit Bridgehead instead. About five days later, I got the email, which was actually sooner than expected! Check out our final products! I think they turned out fantastically.

Someone offscreen adds painted details to a ceramic zombie mug.

Photo: J. Black

I highly recommend The Mud Oven for date nights and group outings alike, honestly it would even be a good solo activity! Price points are based on what you paint with choices as low as $15 and the time, paint and firing are included. Just make sure you make a reservation or you may end up disappointed!

On the left is a ceramic orange gnome-cat figurine with a tall blue hat covered in purple paw prints. On the right is a ceramic green zombie mug with bits of gore and bloodshot eyes.

Photo: J. Black

Jerrica Black (She/They) is a student of Professional Writing at Algonquin College. She has lived in Ottawa for over a decade (and grew up in the Valley where driving into the city was an activity.) Working in the restaurant industry strengthened her love of food and her recommendations will always include the gluten-free girlie stamp of approval. Jerrica enjoys exploring the outdoors when it’s warm (but not too warm,) and prefers gaming when it gets too cold. Throughout Ottawa you will find her playing a board game with friends and a refreshing bevvy, cozying up with a book and hot coffee in a cafe, or blazing a trail while chugging a gatorade.