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How it works

Most Pawtery pieces are customized with a real paw, hand, or foot impression. This guide walks through the process from ordering to receiving your finished ceramic piece.

How it works

Four steps

  1. You choose the piece you want.
  2. We send you a kit so you can capture the impression at home.
  3. You mail the kit back with the included pre-paid label.
  4. We craft your chosen pieces and ship them to you. (Free Shipping)

We keep your impression in storage in case you want to order more products with it in the future.

Shop keepsakes

Choosing an impression option

Before clicking “Add to Cart”, you choose one of these options:

  • New impression — We send you a kit. You make a fresh print and mail it back to us with the included pre-paid shipping label. You’ll be asked to give this new impression a nick name after you click “Add to Cart”. Name it something like “Cujo’s Paw” or “Jackson’s Foot”.
  • Prior Order’s Impression — If you bought from us before, you can choose to use an impression from a previous order. You will be asked to log-in so that you can choose which prior impression you want to use. Only impressions that are compatible with the product and still on-file will be shown as options.
  • New impression already in cart — If you want to use the same new impression for multiple products on the same order, add the first product to the cart using “New impression, and for the other products, just click “Reuse new kit already in this cart”.

Not sure which option fits your order? Contact us and we can help.

What's in the New impression kit

If you choose a new impression, we mail you a kit that includes:

  • A plastic box with a smooth bed of fresh, never used playdough ready for your impression
  • Printed instructions (and with a QR code linked to this page)
  • The cardboard box the kit arrived in — keep it for mailing the impression back
  • A prepaid return label that you adhere to the box before putting it back in the mail.

We make the playdough ourselves from wheat flour, salt, cream of tartar, and vegetable or seed oil. Each kit gets a new bed of playdough.

Important: The playdough is not food and is not meant to be eaten by people or pets. Supervise children and pets and keep it away from mouths.

Making your impression

  1. When you are ready, press your pet’s paw or your baby’s foot carefully into the playdough.
  2. Lift straight up. You should see a clear, complete print, not too shallow and not smeared.
  3. Need a do-over? Smooth the playdough flat again, as flat as when you received it, and try again. You can use a flat piece of cardboard or something similar to help flatten out the playdough if necessary.

Take your time. A good impression makes a better finished piece.

Mailing your kit back

  1. Place the plastic box with your finished impression back inside the cardboard shipping box.
  2. Affix the prepaid return label from your kit, covering up the original label (so the post office doesn’t get confused).
  3. Drop the package in the mail or take it to a post office-drop off site. Keep your tracking number until we confirm receipt.

You can also follow your order in My Account after logging in.

Making your finished piece

Once we receive your completed impression kit:

  1. We make a plaster cast of your impression that we use to transfer the impression to the products you ordered with it.
  2. We make your piece from stoneware clay using artisanal pottery techniques and press the impression cast into it.
  3. We bisque fire the piece (the first kiln firing that hardens the clay).
  4. We apply glaze and fire again for the final finish, then pack and ship your piece to you.

The finish glazes harden into glass (it’s not paint). The mugs and jars are dishwasher and microwave safe, and the glaze will not ware off over time. The pieces can chip if they hit a hard surface.

How long does it take?

Each piece is made by hand, and the customization work is not fast. We give an estimated delivery date when you order a product, and while we try to beat it, sometimes a product might take longer to make. Sometimes handmade ceramics crack or warp during firing and we have to remake them which slows things down.

We will keep you updated as your order moves through the studio. Questions? Contact us