Took a pottery class in Tulsa and the instructor told me to stop centering with dry hands, she was so right
I signed up for a 6 week wheel throwing class at a studio in Tulsa back in March and kept fighting every piece until the instructor told me to dunk my hands in the bucket every 30 seconds, not just at the start. My third bowl actually came out round last week, first one that didn't look like a sad ashtray. Now I'm wondering if anyone else got a tiny tip like that in a new hobby that made a huge difference right away?
I had the same thing happen to me with knitting, of all things. I was pulling my yarn way too tight because I thought that was how you get even stitches, and my hands would ache after an hour. This older lady at the yarn shop watched me for about two minutes and said to loosen my grip and let the yarn do the work. Sounds so simple but it changed everything. My scarves stopped curling up like a taco and I could actually knit for more than a few rows without wanting to quit. It is funny how one small thing someone notices can save you weeks of fighting yourself. Glad your bowl finally came out round, that first one that looks right feels like a huge win.