Do you yarn bowl?

Quite a while ago (August, 2016, to be exactish), I glazed a yarn bowl at our local Bisque It Studio. It sat on a shelf, unused, until lately. I was having trouble with my handspun red Tunis - pulling it off the ball any which way added more twist, making it extra kinky. The yarn bowl came to my rescue - the yarn spins around inside the bowl. Of course, this is assuming the yarn is coming off the outside of the yarn cake and not from the center.

Knitting: The red Tunis 'Graham' hat is going well - I'm almost to the crown. (I probably just jinxed myself.)
Spinning: The fine spinning of the mystery yarn is off the spool. There is a lot more of this fiber, but I can't decide if I should continue with the fine spinning or move onto something else.

My daughter and family were all sick at xmas, so the gift exchange happened only recently. During the pandemic, she taught herself to embroider. That's when she started these refrigerator magnets. One is missing from the pic, as she used a glue gun to attach the very strong magnets - the magnet stays behind when you try to pull the object off the refrigerator. We'll have to try something like Gorilla Glue next.

My shoulder continues to improve, to the point I am contemplating warping a loom or two. Yay!

Behind the times

My new found interest in crochet led me to Ravelry. OMG! The interface is completely new! I stumbled on some broken links - as a ex-software developer, I know there are always bugs to fix - but I am (sort of) eager to explore and see what else is new. One issue I have is photos - mine are in Flickr but they raised their "professional" rates. I'm not a pro by any means, but it was an easy and (formerly) economical way to store photos online, plus I linked my Ravelry projects to those photos. I'll have to see what the alternatives are now.

I cruised around the crochet patterns for something small and easy to make. That provided a second jolt - there are new (to me) stitches with new acronyms. I decided to make a cowl using the stitch pattern from the Taupe Beast I am repairing, since I already know how to do that. I also checked out The Happy Hooker from the local library's online collection - I always have trouble with turning and starting a new row in the right place. This book has great drawings and helpful hints. (I used to own a copy but it disappeared during a round of decluttering.)

Crochet: Still wrestling with the Taupe Beast repairs, although I think I have a strategy. It won't be pretty but it should work. I'm either a third or a half done with the cowl, depending on how tall I decide to make it.

My interest in pottery is growing in fits and starts. The instructor for the class I am enrolled in is ill (not Covid), and so far the substitute has not been able to make it to class, either. Hopefully, tomorrow. Meanwhile, I purchased some "Mexican pottery clay" (made by AMACO) to play with at home. I'm not sure what it is made of, but it feels very clay-like. Instead of firing pieces, one just lets them air dry, after which they can be painted and decorated or left as is. No kiln needed, nor a wheel as I prefer hand building. I bought a couple of scrapers too, but otherwise am using homemade tools like a fat dowel to roll slabs, a paper clip to cut, etc. I have invested so much money in equipment and tools for fabric arts that I feel like I don't make full use of, I am a little leery of making a similar investment in what may be a passing fancy.