Packing and shipping work to customers and galleries is an essential task for ceramic artists. The methods outlined here have been used to ensure damage-free delivery for years.
A simple statement . . . “If you make ceramic work to sell, you need to ship it to a gallery or a customer without damage.”
As a gallery owner, I have seen every method of packing pottery and used every shipping service, such as UPS, FedEx, and common carriers, referred to as LTL Freight (Less Than Trailer-Load) with individual boxes packed on a skid. I receive, pack, and ship work weekly and while it is a particularly thankless job, I take great pride in that I have only had one piece broken in the seventeen years that I have curated Plinth Gallery. I am also fortunate that I have a dedicated packing area. In my 57-year career of making pottery, I have learned a great deal about packing and shipping ceramics and have had virtually no breakage other than my first year as a production potter a long time ago. While no system is completely trouble free, the last thing you want is to have the timely and lengthy efforts of your hands be broken in transit. There is also the added expense of packing materials and boxes.
Packing pottery can be looked at in four stages:
The boxes
Protecting each piece of pottery
Packing the pottery inside the box
Void fill
The Boxes
When I started shipping pottery to galleries and stores many years ago, I had little idea how to pack my work. I used small fiber drums and UPS would roll them resulting in significant damage. I found this method unacceptable. The next step was obtaining used boxes with dividers from liquor stores. At that time, I did not want to buy new boxes, but I could never be guaranteed that the liquor store would have what I needed. After a few years, I learned about a vendor in Philadelphia that sold clean, used boxes. He received a steady supply of double-walled boxes that were rectangular, and I would drive the short distance from my studio to his warehouse and load up my Suburban.
From 1975 to 1988, I sold my functional pottery to over 200 stores and galleries using a double-box system. After thirteen years in that first studio located between Lancaster and Reading, Pennsylvania, I took a much-needed break from pottery making and moved to Telluride and then to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, to work in the recreation industry. After four years in the ski and bicycle business, I returned to pottery making and I started to buy new boxes from a vendor in Denver. My business, Ceramic Design Group, provided product development and small-batch manufacturing to potters, ceramic artists, and small businesses.
I designed a packing and boxing system using a double-box method based on the cube dimensions of boxes. The interior box should be 2 inches (5.1 cm) smaller in all dimensions, thus a total of a 4-inch (10.2-cm) differential, side to side and top to bottom. For example, an 18×18×18-inch (45.7×45.7×45.7-cm) interior box would be used with an exterior box 22×22×22 inches (55.9×55.9×5.9 cm). The side spaces would be taken up with corrugated filler flats, which are flat egg crates 12×12×2 inches (30.5×30.5×5.1 cm). These take up the size differential between the interior and exterior boxes, to provide a tight fit and excellent cushioning between the interior and exterior box.
For many years I used a handheld tape dispenser and 2-inch (5.1 cm) packing tape. The color of the tape does not matter. Packing tape is an economical solution to box assembly and sealing. I have never used paper tape. Now I use an industrial stapler that is connected to my air compressor to staple the boxes together for a much more secure box-sealing solution than tape (1).
1 Use a pneumatic stapler to assemble corrugated boxes.
Packing the Inside Box
Individual pieces are wrapped with small-sized bubble wrap, then each piece is secured with stretch wrap (2). I bundle like items together, such as mugs or small bowls, and wrap that bundle with bubble pack and stretch wrap (3). I look at these as modules. Of course, there are other materials that can be used to wrap each piece of pottery: closed-cell foam available in various thicknesses, Geami pack from Ranpak, and of course, newsprint. My feeling is that whatever your choice, it’s critical to understand that each piece needs to have a good degree of cushioning and protection from other packed items. Bubble wrap and closed-cell foam weigh less than paper products. The pottery is positioned in the interior box to fit in as logical a way as possible, making sure there is some space between the bundles and the box walls, and the bundles are securely positioned in the interior box. I cut pieces of corrugated cardboard to separate the bundles from each other. It is also valuable to understand that boxes are loaded into shipping company’s trailers or trucks regardless of any “this side up” or “handle with care” stickers.
2 Wrap each ceramic object with bubble pack and combine them with other like objects to form a module or bundle. Then, wrap the bundles in protective bubble.3 Wrap each ceramic object with bubble pack and combine them with other like objects to form a module or bundle. Then, wrap the bundles in protective bubble.
Void Fill
For many years I felt trapped in using Styrofoam peanuts for my void fill, which is the space between each bundle. I used a large, suspended bag with a valve at the bottom so that I could dispense the material into the box. After many years of using Styrofoam peanuts, I decided I needed a way to eliminate Styrofoam from my packing process. It was an expense I could do without; the 14-cubic-foot (0.4-m3) bags took up a lot of storage space that could be better used. Additionally, the Styrofoam would always settle during transit. And no matter how careful I was, there were always loose peanuts on the floor that would migrate into the studio. I needed another material.
The solution was crushed paper. My packing supplier provided a paper-crushing machine. The machine has a small profile and is on wheels. The paper comes in fan-folded bundles that are 15×10×9 inches (38.1×25.4×22.3 cm), easily fed into the machine. The machine is actuated by a foot pedal, and I can rip off whatever length of crushed paper I need (4).
4 Dispense crushed paper from a paper-crushing machine to use as void fill between each bubble-wrapped bundle.5 Use corrugated filler flats to provide cushioning on the bottom of the exterior box.
Next, egg-filler flats are placed on the bottom of the larger box (5). I pack the smaller interior box with bubble-wrapped bundles, using pieces of corrugated cardboard to separate the bundles, and then fill any void with crushed paper. I make sure that the bundles do not move around inside the box. If I have space for another layer on top of the first, I use crushed paper and a corrugated cardboard flat to separate the layers and then pack the second layer with more bubble-wrapped pieces. Adding a final layer of crushed paper to slightly over-fill the interior box, I staple it closed. I then use my tape gun to secure one filler flat on each side of the smaller interior box and insert the inner box into the exterior box.
Placing the final layer of filler flats on top of the interior box, I staple the exterior box shut. Each box contains twelve filler flats: four at the bottom, one taped to each side of the interior box, and four on the top and they can easily be cut to fit any box size (see 6). I have made a very secure box ready to go (7). If my shipment needs to be shipped on a skid, I stack the boxes as tight as possible on a skid and then shrink wrap the entire load of boxes onto the skid. I have a pallet jack that I use to maneuver these full skids. When using LTL shipping, I make sure to specify that the pick-up truck must be equipped with a lift gate.
6 Tape a filler flat on each side of the interior to provide side cushioning.7 Place a layer of filler flats on top of the interior box, then staple the exterior box before weighing.
I buy all my packing supplies from one vendor and if it is over a certain dollar amount, there is no delivery charge. I can usually fit a roll of bubble or a bundle of boxes in my Subaru if I need to. I realize that this is not an inexpensive packing system, but I am willing to spend the extra money to ensure damage-free delivery. I also understand that this is but one of many packing systems that ceramic artists use.
the author Jonathan Kaplan has an active 57-year career in ceramics as an author, potter, ceramic designer, and educator. He is the author of The Mold Making Manual: The Art of Models Molds and Slip- Cast Ceramics published by The American Ceramic Society. He lives in Denver, Colorado, and curates Plinth Gallery (plinthgallery.com).
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Packing and shipping work to customers and galleries is an essential task for ceramic artists. The methods outlined here have been used to ensure damage-free delivery for years.
A simple statement . . . “If you make ceramic work to sell, you need to ship it to a gallery or a customer without damage.”
As a gallery owner, I have seen every method of packing pottery and used every shipping service, such as UPS, FedEx, and common carriers, referred to as LTL Freight (Less Than Trailer-Load) with individual boxes packed on a skid. I receive, pack, and ship work weekly and while it is a particularly thankless job, I take great pride in that I have only had one piece broken in the seventeen years that I have curated Plinth Gallery. I am also fortunate that I have a dedicated packing area. In my 57-year career of making pottery, I have learned a great deal about packing and shipping ceramics and have had virtually no breakage other than my first year as a production potter a long time ago. While no system is completely trouble free, the last thing you want is to have the timely and lengthy efforts of your hands be broken in transit. There is also the added expense of packing materials and boxes.
Packing pottery can be looked at in four stages:
The Boxes
When I started shipping pottery to galleries and stores many years ago, I had little idea how to pack my work. I used small fiber drums and UPS would roll them resulting in significant damage. I found this method unacceptable. The next step was obtaining used boxes with dividers from liquor stores. At that time, I did not want to buy new boxes, but I could never be guaranteed that the liquor store would have what I needed. After a few years, I learned about a vendor in Philadelphia that sold clean, used boxes. He received a steady supply of double-walled boxes that were rectangular, and I would drive the short distance from my studio to his warehouse and load up my Suburban.
From 1975 to 1988, I sold my functional pottery to over 200 stores and galleries using a double-box system. After thirteen years in that first studio located between Lancaster and Reading, Pennsylvania, I took a much-needed break from pottery making and moved to Telluride and then to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, to work in the recreation industry. After four years in the ski and bicycle business, I returned to pottery making and I started to buy new boxes from a vendor in Denver. My business, Ceramic Design Group, provided product development and small-batch manufacturing to potters, ceramic artists, and small businesses.
I designed a packing and boxing system using a double-box method based on the cube dimensions of boxes. The interior box should be 2 inches (5.1 cm) smaller in all dimensions, thus a total of a 4-inch (10.2-cm) differential, side to side and top to bottom. For example, an 18×18×18-inch (45.7×45.7×45.7-cm) interior box would be used with an exterior box 22×22×22 inches (55.9×55.9×5.9 cm). The side spaces would be taken up with corrugated filler flats, which are flat egg crates 12×12×2 inches (30.5×30.5×5.1 cm). These take up the size differential between the interior and exterior boxes, to provide a tight fit and excellent cushioning between the interior and exterior box.
For many years I used a handheld tape dispenser and 2-inch (5.1 cm) packing tape. The color of the tape does not matter. Packing tape is an economical solution to box assembly and sealing. I have never used paper tape. Now I use an industrial stapler that is connected to my air compressor to staple the boxes together for a much more secure box-sealing solution than tape (1).
Packing the Inside Box
Individual pieces are wrapped with small-sized bubble wrap, then each piece is secured with stretch wrap (2). I bundle like items together, such as mugs or small bowls, and wrap that bundle with bubble pack and stretch wrap (3). I look at these as modules. Of course, there are other materials that can be used to wrap each piece of pottery: closed-cell foam available in various thicknesses, Geami pack from Ranpak, and of course, newsprint. My feeling is that whatever your choice, it’s critical to understand that each piece needs to have a good degree of cushioning and protection from other packed items. Bubble wrap and closed-cell foam weigh less than paper products. The pottery is positioned in the interior box to fit in as logical a way as possible, making sure there is some space between the bundles and the box walls, and the bundles are securely positioned in the interior box. I cut pieces of corrugated cardboard to separate the bundles from each other. It is also valuable to understand that boxes are loaded into shipping company’s trailers or trucks regardless of any “this side up” or “handle with care” stickers.
Void Fill
For many years I felt trapped in using Styrofoam peanuts for my void fill, which is the space between each bundle. I used a large, suspended bag with a valve at the bottom so that I could dispense the material into the box. After many years of using Styrofoam peanuts, I decided I needed a way to eliminate Styrofoam from my packing process. It was an expense I could do without; the 14-cubic-foot (0.4-m3) bags took up a lot of storage space that could be better used. Additionally, the Styrofoam would always settle during transit. And no matter how careful I was, there were always loose peanuts on the floor that would migrate into the studio. I needed another material.
The solution was crushed paper. My packing supplier provided a paper-crushing machine. The machine has a small profile and is on wheels. The paper comes in fan-folded bundles that are 15×10×9 inches (38.1×25.4×22.3 cm), easily fed into the machine. The machine is actuated by a foot pedal, and I can rip off whatever length of crushed paper I need (4).
Next, egg-filler flats are placed on the bottom of the larger box (5). I pack the smaller interior box with bubble-wrapped bundles, using pieces of corrugated cardboard to separate the bundles, and then fill any void with crushed paper. I make sure that the bundles do not move around inside the box. If I have space for another layer on top of the first, I use crushed paper and a corrugated cardboard flat to separate the layers and then pack the second layer with more bubble-wrapped pieces. Adding a final layer of crushed paper to slightly over-fill the interior box, I staple it closed. I then use my tape gun to secure one filler flat on each side of the smaller interior box and insert the inner box into the exterior box.
Placing the final layer of filler flats on top of the interior box, I staple the exterior box shut. Each box contains twelve filler flats: four at the bottom, one taped to each side of the interior box, and four on the top and they can easily be cut to fit any box size (see 6). I have made a very secure box ready to go (7). If my shipment needs to be shipped on a skid, I stack the boxes as tight as possible on a skid and then shrink wrap the entire load of boxes onto the skid. I have a pallet jack that I use to maneuver these full skids. When using LTL shipping, I make sure to specify that the pick-up truck must be equipped with a lift gate.
I buy all my packing supplies from one vendor and if it is over a certain dollar amount, there is no delivery charge. I can usually fit a roll of bubble or a bundle of boxes in my Subaru if I need to. I realize that this is not an inexpensive packing system, but I am willing to spend the extra money to ensure damage-free delivery. I also understand that this is but one of many packing systems that ceramic artists use.
the author Jonathan Kaplan has an active 57-year career in ceramics as an author, potter, ceramic designer, and educator. He is the author of The Mold Making Manual: The Art of Models Molds and Slip- Cast Ceramics published by The American Ceramic Society. He lives in Denver, Colorado, and curates Plinth Gallery (plinthgallery.com).
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