SlabStudio handles every calculation between your sketch and your kiln. From shrinkage compensation to frustum geometry — every number is exact, every template is print-ready.
The mathematical core. Every curved vessel section is treated as a truncated cone (frustum). The engine calculates exact outer radius, inner radius, and sweep angle for each strip — not approximations.
Core enginePlot as many control points as your form needs. Profiles that widen then narrow generate geometrically independent strips per segment. Every curve you draw becomes a precise template.
Profile editorEnter your clay body's shrinkage rate and all templates scale up automatically. Supports stoneware, porcelain, earthenware, raku, terracotta, and fully custom percentages.
Clay scienceEvery template is an A4-sized SVG with a 1 cm grid overlay. Annotated with arc lengths, slant heights, sweep angles, and assembly notes. Print at 100% — no scaling needed.
SVG exportSave your best forms with one click. Your library stores the full profile, clay config, and dimensions. Load any shape back into the tool instantly and generate a fresh set of templates.
Cloud storageSwitch between round vessels (annular sector strips) and faceted vessels (flat trapezoids with score lines) with one slider. Same profile — two completely different geometry calculations.
Dual geometryWhen you roll a flat annular sector into a cone and stack multiple cones, you get a slab-built vessel. SlabStudio reverses this: given your profile, it unfolds every segment back into its exact flat sector.
Each profile segment defines a frustum with a top radius, bottom radius, and slant height. The engine derives the outer development radius (R_out), inner development radius (R_in), and sweep angle (θ) — the three values that define the flat sector precisely.
All clay shrinks as it dries and fires. A pot you build at 20 cm tall will fire to 17.6 cm at 12% shrinkage. SlabStudio inverts this: it scales every template up by the shrinkage factor so your finished, fired piece matches your target dimensions exactly.
Select from five preset clay bodies or enter your own percentage. The compensation applies uniformly to all linear dimensions — arcs, widths, heights, and radii.
One slider switches the entire geometry engine between two completely different calculation paths. Round forms use frustum development to produce curved annular sectors. Faceted forms calculate flat trapezoids, one per face, with pre-scored fold lines.
Every SVG template is built to be used immediately. Open it, print it at 100% scale on A4 paper or card, and start cutting. No resizing, no conversion, no software required.
| Feature | Compass & ruler | Generic CAD | SlabStudio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exact frustum math | ✗ Approximated | ✗ Manual setup | ✓ Automatic |
| Shrinkage compensation | ✗ Manual scaling | ✗ Not ceramic-aware | ✓ Built in |
| Profile-driven strips | ✗ One at a time | ✗ Complex scripting | ✓ All at once |
| Round + faceted | ✗ Different method | ✗ Rebuild from scratch | ✓ One slider |
| Print-ready output | ✗ Manual annotation | ⚠ Possible | ✓ Fully annotated |
| Design library | ✗ Paper files | ⚠ File management | ✓ Cloud-synced |
| Time per template set | 90–120 min | 30–60 min | ✓ <30 seconds |
The frustum math alone would have taken me an hour with a protractor. SlabStudio generates my entire vase template set in under a minute. The accuracy is genuinely remarkable — first-try fits every time.
I work in porcelain at 14% shrinkage and previously had to triple-check every measurement. Now I enter 14, hit generate, and trust the math completely. It's freed up my mental energy for the actual making.
I teach slab building to 20 students and generating a class set of templates used to take my entire Sunday. Now it takes five minutes. The SVGs print perfectly on A4 every time.
The faceted forms feature made a project I'd been avoiding for years suddenly accessible. Six-sided bottle with a custom profile — generated in 30 seconds, first build fit perfectly.