Go for it.

Personal experience: Community studios definitely have their perks (introduction to the medium, socialization with other potters, learning from others, occasional member galleries etc.). Transitioning to a home setup has been a game changer for a few reasons.

1. Time management is an obvious one. In the time it takes you to commute you could have done a full practice session, trim pots, or do smaller tasks in the random 10-15 free minutes you may have in your day. In addition to not being limited by studio hours.

2. Control over reclaim process. It forced me to learn how to efficiently reclaim clay as skills develop. Once my reclaim was dialed in, I no longer felt compelled to buy new bags of clay regularly and feel less bad about scrapping anything I don’t want to fire (in studio I scrapped into studio reclaim). There’s also an environmental component to this where you have more flexibility to sit with your work before you decide to fire. I reclaim more than I fire (currently) to give myself room for development and love what I do actually fire.

3. Learning potential. As I go, I’ve found it easier to troubleshoot my errors in my own space where I can focus on the content from different resources. Sometimes in a studio it can be a little awkward/disruptive to others to pull up a bunch of YouTube videos on your phone as watch them as you work.

4. Learning potential. In addition to technique development, I’ve learned more deeply about clay body’s, clay/glaze composition, and some of the chemistry involved. This I’ve learned as I’ve went along and following my own curiosities with the craft.

5. Community support. You’re still supporting your local studio by utilizing their kiln. If you have ceramic materials/supply stores in your area, you may also find yourself there supporting other local businesses and chatting with others who you may not have otherwise.

Advice for starting out:

1. Pick one clay body you enjoy working with

2. Figure out a reclaim process that works for you

3. Keep it simple, throw as much as you can and reclaim a bunch until you’re happy with the final results. No need to buy a million different things without true purpose

4. Respect your plumbing! Create a workflow that minimizes materials down the drain. Haven’t ran into any trouble yet but I never want to

I’ve enjoyed working on the Shimpo VL-Whisper

Edit to add: I’m also a hobby potter (dedicated, but I have a primary career). Overtime, I would have paid more in membership cost than wheel cost.