Yarn Bowl

I received many fantastic birthday gifts, one of which is a lovely handmade item from Foodie that required bit of an explanation….a yarn bowl. The idea is quite clever and when function meets fabulous, how can one possibly go wrong? The bowl is big enough to hold a standard skein of yarn and is constructed with a little canal through which yarn is threaded to keep it from escaping as knitters or crocheters work their woolery magic. The yarn is pulled easily from the skein as a project progresses and, because the bowl confines the yarn, it does not roll around and pick up dirt and other stuff (like dog hair).

Creative, huh?

And useful.

Foodie is an excellent “thrower” of clay on the pottery wheel and as you can see from the shape of the bowl, she began with a standard bowl shape and then pushed the clay in as she worked her way towards the top. She probably created the little canal with a needle tool or pottery knife. One of my favorite features of thrown pieces is the circles you see from the throwing process…I tried to get a good photo of that for you. Once fired, Foodie glazed the bisque piece and made the fun design with “slip” which is merely a more liquid form of clay used to decorate clay pieces. It was fired again to give it the gleam you see.

I am normally too lazy to roll my yarn in a ball, but wanting to use this practical and handmade gift, I dutifully rolled my yarn for my current v-neck vest project (I have a few “current” projects going and maybe one day I’ll finish one, besides a doggie sweater). It’s a beautiful silky 75% acrylic/25% bamboo blend from Caron in an “ocean spray” color. Simply exquisite yarn that is knitting up nicely.

When older daughter saw the yarn bowl she said “wow, cute and nifty”…..high praise from a cautious critic! So here you see two types of transformations…clay into a delightful and functional piece of art and yarn into (hopefully) a warm and wearable piece of art.