I’m obsessed with yarn bowls because after crafting with yarn most of my life, I’m done with running into tangles that break up your groove and make you dread opening your yarn bag. Yarn bowls hold your yarn steady so it doesn’t roll away as you work and feeds the yarn out in one, untangled strand, similar to spools on industrial embroidery machines. Plus, they’re beyond cute.
The Mud Place will handmake a custom order yarn feeder bowl for you with the name of your choice carved into it. You can also choose the color of your bowl to make it truly your own design.
These bowls have a J-shaped loop for yarn and holes to hold your needles. It’s a good medium size at 6.5 inches in diameter and 3.5 inches tall. You can feel good knowing you’re supporting a small business out of Florida.
For a truly unique winder bowl, check out Colorado Claywork’s Knit Picker Collection. Each one is made by hand to order with your selection of colors and features 3D details. Plus, how could you go wrong with a pun like Knit Picker?
The bowls are shorter than many bowls like this but it helps to keep the bowl more stable and prevent it from tipping. You thread the yarn through the nose hole and work with it from there. I like that this means your yarn won’t slip out like it can with some swirl designs but you also can’t separate your project from the bowl without cutting the yarn which may not be for everyone. There are two other holes on the opposite side for holding your needles.
With this bowl, you are supporting an American artist running their own small business and I think that’s awesome.
If you love detail, you’ll go wild over the elaborately carved ocean-themed images on this Natvasclay Knitting Bowl.
It’s covered in a lovely deep-water green glaze and decorated with carvings of kelp and seashells. The exaggerated swirl looks like the curl and crest of an ocean wave and there’s a small drip gathered on the tip of the curl–a detail that is beyond striking and unique. It makes the underwater scene look wet and that’s impressive.
The bowl is seven inches across and 3.6 inches tall.
I adore this cheeky handmade ceramic knitting bowl that states, “A lady never discusses the size of her yarn stash.” (A good motto to live by, so don’t ask me about mine either.)
It’s beautifully smooth with a white exterior and salmon pink interior. There’s one J-shaped swirl and no other holes so if you’re hoping for knitting needle holders, this one isn’t for you. The lettering is crisp and easy to read. On the other side of the slot are four illustrated balls of yarn.
It’s an average size at 6.25 inches in diameter and 3.5 inches tall.
The ceramic bowl has a J-shaped swirl that opens up at the top for a unique look. There are also two holes for storing your knitting needles. The inside of the bowl is all white and blue speckles and the underside is matte tan.
If what you need is lots of space, check out Domspottery’s Jumbo Knitting Bowl with an 11.5-inch diameter and height of 5.6 inches. It’s handmade by an artist in Cornwall, United Kingdom.
The black ceramic bowl has an irregular crosshatching carved into it and then accented with bright colors. There’s a classic swirl on one end and a start cutout on the other side so you could easily have two projects going at once with this bowl. The swirl and entire rim of the bowl is ringed in holes that can be used for yarn or holding your knitting needles.
This Rosewood Bowl by Star India Crafts is a stunning piece of hand-crafted woodworking with a striking pattern burned right into the wood. It features a classic swirl pattern to hold your yarn in place but also allows you to separate the project from the bowl without any fuss.
The rosewood is polished to a glossy, ultra-smooth finish and sealed for an even more frictionless surface. It’s a good choice for people looking for a larger bowl to fit small skeins along with balls as it measures seven inches in diameter and four inches tall.
For those who love a little bling, this handmade ceramic bowl has accents of real, 24 karat gold. It’s one-of-a-kind, feminine, and dainty.
I like the exaggerated J-shape with the notch to hold your yarn in place and the three needle-slots to the side. It’s a compact bowls at five inches in diameter and 3.5 inches tall.
If you love glitter as much as I do, Purple Heather Pottery has a crafting bowl for you. The handmade, wheel-thrown ceramic bowl has a sparkling black glitter glaze with more glitter added to accent the cutouts.
I love this bowl’s extra-deep swirl which keeps your yarn in place without pointy edges or too many curves. The four holes for your knitting needles are in a unique diamond pattern I haven’t seen recently on other bowls.
It’s a good average size at six inches in diameter and is handmade by an artist in Indiana.
(When in doubt, add glitter, I say. That’s where I stand on glitter nail polish for sure.)
This Yarn Box by BambooMN with its unique covered design is perfect for those who want to make extra sure their yarn stays in place and out of the reach of playful cats. The square shape also makes it quite stable and less prone to tipping.
It’s made of 100 percent sustainable bamboo with a removable lid and carved swirl to capture your working yarn. You can also get this lidded design in a rounded bowl shape.
The Dreamsicle Bowl has a lovely irregular pattern on the glaze that will be unique in the world. It’s handmade stoneware clay made by Dragon’s Breath, a small pottery maker out of Colorado.
I like the fishhook style of the swirl which is more likely to keep your yarn in place. It’s a good compact size at six inches in diameter and three inches tall. The ceramic glaze is lead-free.
For a more modern look, consider a metal yarn crafter’s bowl. This aluminum bowl by Nagina International has an attractive high polish and rounded swirl to keep your yarn in place.
There are two extra holes for holding your needles. It’s available in three different sizes, small at six inches in diameter and 2.5 inches tall, the featured medium which is 6.5 inches in diameter and 3 inches tall, and large at seven inches in diameter and four inches tall.
This Cobalt Blue Ceramic Bowl for Yarn is wide and shallow for stable storage in a striking cobalt color. It’s 7.5 inches in diameter and only 3.5 inches tall, a full inch shorter than you’d expect for this size. That makes it nice for smaller skeins as well as less likely to tip over.
The design has a traditional swirl slot for yarn as three holes to store your needles. It’s handmade by Ning’s Pottery in Minnesota.
If you love crafting with super-soft alpaca wool or just love alpacas and llamas in general, this is a good pick for you. This ceramic bowl from Cindy Douglass has an elongated J yarn slot and two holes for holding your knitting tools.
The 3D alpaca is adorable and bound to make everyone smile. It has a weighted base to keep it from tipping and measures five inches in diameter by five inches tall.
Cat lovers can’t go wrong with this wooden bowl and hand-carved cat cutout. The curved cat’s tail works as the yarn slot and with such a large area for feeding yarn, there’s almost no chance of the yarn slipping back out.
Wooden bowls aren’t as heavy has ceramic and less breakable as well. The slot shape is more aesthetic than practical, but worth it for the cute-factor. This is a good medium-sized bowl at around 6.5 inches in diameter and 3.7 inches tall.
Eighties and Nineties kids will dig this speckled look, harkening back to those weird speckled mixing bowls we grew up with. The Skittles Knitting Bowl is ceramic and made by hand in California.
It has an exaggerated J-shaped swirl with a slight hook to it that will effectively keep your yarn in place. You also get three holes for holding your needles.
This is a petite bowl at five inches in diameter and 3.5 inches tall.
Just a reminder to folks around you that counting stitches is no laughing matter. Do not mess with us when we’re counting.
This cute ceramic bowl from Lennymud is great for any knitter or crocheter. It has a simple J-shape loop to hold your yarn in place and a cute speckled look. It’s handmade and supports an American small business.
I like that the swirl is quite narrow to keep the yarn from moving around too much, but it is much lighter than the ceramic bowls you’ll find and more likely to move around during use.
Take your yarn obsession to the extreme with this Cable-Knit Ceramic Bowl. The exterior is covered in a 3D knit pattern with ceramic handmade buttons on either side. The texture and look of this one is definitely a conversation starter.
Skipping the typical swirl slot, this bowl has six bowls for storing needles and feeding your yarn through. It’s large enough that you could probably have two projects going at once since it’s eight inches in diameter and five inches tall.
You can feel good knowing you’re supporting a small business out of California.
For something on the more feminine side, there’s this Cherry Blossom Crafter’s Bowl by Domspottery in the United Kingdom. I love the sweet little pink flowers on this speckled white base.
It has a pronounced swirl as well as a cute star-shaped cutout and two holes to hold your knitting needles. The bowl measures at around 6.6 inches in diameter and 3.8 inches tall.
For an extra charge, the artist will also carve in the text of your choice before the bowl is fired.
