Partain Pottery owner Tanner Partain\u2019s college major was not what one might expect from a craftsman who makes the majority of his living selling ceramics.<\/p>\n
The Dallas Baptist University graduate pursued biblical studies and camp leadership, but he finds the latter applies to the business side of his work peddling mugs, incense holders and garlic graters.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of business management and logistics. We spent an entire week one time learning about sewage treatment options at different camps,\u201d Partain said. \u201cAs silly as it is, that probably did me more good than anything else in my major, was just getting to do all of the things that you wouldn\u2019t think of, but you need to think of in order to do a business.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 30-year-old Grand Prairie resident previously worked as a teacher and as an inventory specialist at a medical technology company before starting his business in October 2024.<\/p>\n
The further he takes his business, the more confident he has become that he is on the right path.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more I do and the more I\u2019m consistent in pursuing pottery and pursuing the business, the more I feel like it\u2019s where I belong,\u201d Partain said.<\/p>\n
He spoke with reporter McKinnon Rice about molding his business.<\/p>\n
The interview has been edited for clarity and space.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Contact information:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Website: <\/strong>partainpottery.com<\/a><\/p>\n Instagram: <\/strong>@partainpottery<\/a><\/p>\n Etsy: <\/strong>etsy.com\/shop\/PartainPottery<\/a><\/p>\n Email:<\/strong> PartainPottery@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\n McKinnon Rice: <\/strong>Tell me about your business and how it got started.<\/p>\n Tanner Partain:<\/strong> I started October of 2024, so a little bit over a year now. I\u2019d been doing pottery as a hobby for a long time, but it just felt like I was getting good enough that I wanted to dive in and see what I could do with it. I like doing things all the way, and I got to a point where I was so interested in pottery and so obsessed with getting better at it that I was like, well, I just have to do this for a job. That\u2019s kind of where the business side of it started. I started doing markets about then, like farmers markets and craft markets and things like that. I\u2019ve expanded to have an online presence since then as well.<\/p>\n Rice: <\/strong>What are some of the markets you sell at in Tarrant County?\u00a0<\/p>\n Partain: <\/strong>I really like the Pretty Little Things Market. I also do the Arlington Farmers Market. I did the Funky Finds one at the Will Rogers Center this year. This next year, I\u2019m planning on doing ArtsGoggle. I didn\u2019t get a chance to do it this year, though.<\/p>\n Rice:<\/strong> How old were you when you first started doing pottery?<\/p>\n Partain:<\/strong> I started in high school. I started when I was 16. I had a class that I took, and I just kind of fell in love with it. I took the class, I did a little bit of pottery here and there, and then, because of housing situations \u2014 it requires some equipment that did not fit in an apartment with seven other dudes \u2014 I had to take a break for a little bit.<\/p>\n Rice:<\/strong> Is your pottery business your only job?<\/p>\n Partain:<\/strong> This is my most-of-the-time job. I do odd jobs here and there. I have a friend who does florals, and so I help her with those sometimes. But in general, I\u2019m working to make it feasible to have this be my all-the-time job. I just still have to do other things in the meantime right now.<\/p>\n Rice: <\/strong>What is your favorite part about your business?<\/p>\n Partain:<\/strong> In pottery as a business, I do so many different things. Because I\u2019m doing my own business, I\u2019m my own admin, I am also an artist. I\u2019m also a craftsman, which is different in pottery, because you have to have the craft to be able to do a good mug that is dishwasher safe and microwave safe and all those things on top of the art side of it, making it look pretty.\u00a0<\/p>\n I like balancing all the different parts. I really love getting the things that I make to people who really love them and enjoy them. Overall, that\u2019s probably my favorite part. But I also like the borderline-hectic bouncing around between different things that have to get done.<\/p>\n Rice: <\/strong>What are some of the challenges that come with a business like yours?<\/p>\n Partain: <\/strong>There\u2019s the business side, and there\u2019s the art side. In the business side, of course, you have to think about all of the legal things and taxes and all the things that you have to get to get started. There\u2019s a lot of up-front investment in pottery. Equipment is pretty expensive. A normal kiln and wheel is probably $3,000 to $4,000 just on its own. I was operating on a wheel that was not professional quality for a while. Just those little things of jumping into it and the obstacles at the beginning that you run into in any business.<\/p>\n I think the other side of it is separating out the artistic side, where I\u2019m constantly criticizing my own work because in my head, it\u2019s better, it\u2019s always better. It\u2019s always better, and no matter how good I get, it\u2019s always going to be better in my head than what actually comes out. And so trying to show grace to myself, while also saying, this is a good product. Objectively, I did a good job on this. I am happy that somebody is going to enjoy this. But battling that interior voice that\u2019s telling me that it\u2019s not good enough.<\/p>\n Rice: <\/strong>When you think toward the future of your business, what do you hope for?\u00a0<\/p>\n Partain:<\/strong> This year, I\u2019m trying to expand my online presence. I have an Etsy, I have my own website, but I\u2019m trying to expand into a couple of other spheres that I\u2019ll be excited to hopefully get into as far as online sales go. I also want to do more art-related markets because historically, I\u2019ve done mostly craft and farmers markets, and so doing more markets that are focused on a clientele that is looking for a product that is beautiful and brings them joy in their own ways I think is my near future goals.\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019d love to expand my studio and be able to offer classes. My goal is to be able to offer classes by the summer, so I can do summer break classes for students. That\u2019s more of, I used to be a teacher and I miss students more so than a business side decision. I want to be able to teach and help people grow more so I\u2019m hoping that that\u2019ll be a big source of income.<\/p>\n Rice: <\/strong>Do you have a favorite piece that you\u2019ve made over the years?<\/p>\n Partain:<\/strong> I feel like that\u2019s a constant moving target. I think my favorite piece from last year on the art side was, I had an incense holder that was a little guy in a boat, and the incense, as it burned, fell on top of him like rain, and he was in a little rain jacket. Personally, I really liked that one. I have a couple others that are in that same collection where I have one hiding under a leaf and one under a mushroom that are all hiding out from the ash falling on their heads.\u00a0<\/p>\n Outside of that, I really like the lamps that I\u2019ve started making this past year. I have some good ones that are a metallic-chrome color that reflect the light really well when they are being used as lamps.<\/p>\n McKinnon Rice is the higher education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at mckinnon.rice@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Fort Worth Report partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage.<\/p>\n At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n This <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org\/2026\/01\/11\/made-in-tarrant-former-teacher-spins-ceramic-business-in-grand-prairie\/”>article<\/a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report<\/a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License<\/a>.<img src=”https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fortworthreport.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&quality=80&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”><\/p>\n <img id=”republication-tracker-tool-source” src=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org\/?republication-pixel=true&post=364679&ga4=2820184429″ style=”width:1px;height:1px;”><script> PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: “https:\/\/fortworthreport.org\/2026\/01\/11\/made-in-tarrant-former-teacher-spins-ceramic-business-in-grand-prairie\/”, urlref: window.location.href }); } } <\/script> <script id=”parsely-cfg” src=”\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/fortworthreport.org\/p.js”><\/script>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-11-at-8.29.59-PM-1024x803.png\")
Herb strippers in multiple colors made by Tanner Partain for his business Partain Pottery. (Courtesy image | Tanner Partain)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-11-at-8.32.11-PM-1024x705.png\")
Fall leaves magnets made by Partain for his business. (Courtesy image | Tanner Partain)<\/p>\n