Some Simple Red Maple Bowls

[Baxter Smith]

This summer my sister asked me if I could turn something from a piece of wood in their woodpile. It was from a tree that had come from a good friends yard(their pastor who has since moved to Florida). From what I could tell from looking at the ends, the spalting was wonderful but so was the checking!:( I could only come up with one piece that I thought was suitable. Roughed out a hollowform from one side and did these two pieces from the other. Once turned them so she could send them for Christmas.
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Used Walnut oil on the larger 9 1/2 x 3 and lacquer on the smaller 7 x 1.5. Was reading a David Ellsworth book a couple days after applying the oil and had to smile when he said that oil on spalted wood often resulted in blotching. You can see that on the left one.
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Didn't have that problem to the same degree on some spalted maple I did last spring but only used AO.

Cut a large standing dead maple this summer that was pretty bland. I rough turned several pieces that had more spalting than this one and left other blanks in the woods to spalt some more.
Used polymerized tung oil on this 13 x 3 one just to see what the color would be.
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In the front are two 7 x 1.5 bowls that came from the live red maple that I posted earlier that had the bark inclusions.
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Will give these two to my sister to go along with a couple of other ones just like them to go with her larger bowl.

Not much variety in turning, but some different colors with the same species of tree. Comments and suggestions are always welcome.

[Ray Bell]

Very nice Baxter. I'm sure your sis, and her friends will appreciate this.

[Ken Hill]

Nice! I like the simplicity

[Michelle Rich]

wood is super and the simplicity shows off the form & the wood. Nice

[John Keeton]

Really nice form on these Baxter, and an interesting array of color.

[Steve Vaughan]

I like those, I like the simplicity and the color, and love the spalting.

[James Combs]

I like simplicity and I like these bowls.

[David E Keller]

Nicely done on all of them, but I'm drawn to the 13x3 bowl... I love the way it warped a bit.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very nice work on all your bowls Baxter!

The spalted bowls look great! Beautiful markings and nice simple forms!

The 13" x 3" bowls sure has some vivid color! Really like how you turned it thin and let it warp! This bowl really stands out!

Nice - very nice! Thanks for sharing!

[charlie knighton]

very nice, i like the smaller bowls with the inclusion, your sister will enjoy them

[Jake Helmboldt]

Baxter, every one of those is virtually perfect; the simple forms let the wood shine and the symmetry with the grain and spalting gives the pieces nice balance.

I also like the reference to the origin of the wood; nice touch (and making me nostalgic for my youth). I'll be heading to Maine in a month! But I don't think the airline will be happy if I show up with a log to check in my bags on the return trip.

[Michael James]

I'll be heading to Maine in a month! But I don't think the airline will be happy if I show up with a log to check in my bags on the return trip.

The airlines will be happy to charge you for an extra bag. Thats how I got the wood back from Illinois that Joe M was so kind to share. Get a big ol duffel bag and cut em down to fit!:D

Baxter, I had not realized you were so prolific. Very nice work here, as usual. Thanks for posting!
Michael

[Bernie Weishapl]

Baxter nice looking bowls and love the simple form.

[Baxter Smith]

Thanks for the nice comments everyone. I enjoy looking at the exotic but am attracted just as much by the simple.


..... and an interesting array of color.
Thanks John, I find it interesting as well. Thought about titleing this something to the effect of "Maple: healthy, dead, and rotting.":)

Very nice work on all your bowls Baxter!

The spalted bowls look great! Beautiful markings and nice simple forms!

The 13" x 3" bowls sure has some vivid color! Really like how you turned it thin and let it warp! This bowl really stands out!

Nice - very nice! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Steve. The larger one does have a nice warm color to it now. I was dissappointed when I cut the tree and a lot of the lower portion had a somewhat muddy, grayish brown look to it. I roughturned the bowl in July but never bothered to sand and finish it until a couple of weeks ago. It just didn't appeal to me. I bought some green rit dye this summer to use on it(when you were posting your dyed maple vases) but never even opened the package since I didn't really care for the shade of green they had. Muddy grayish brown into muddy aqua green.:p


Baxter, every one of those is virtually perfect; the simple forms let the wood shine and the symmetry with the grain and spalting gives the pieces nice balance.

I also like the reference to the origin of the wood; nice touch (and making me nostalgic for my youth). I'll be heading to Maine in a month! But I don't think the airline will be happy if I show up with a log to check in my bags on the return trip.
Thanks Jake, I will be heading to Maine as well in the not too distant future. Can't say I won't be bringing back a piece or two, or three, or....Would gladly bring you back a piece or two. Maybe I had better check those axle ratings.:)

....
Baxter, I had not realized you were so prolific. Very nice work here, as usual. Thanks for posting!
Michael
Thanks Michael. Prolific? Is that another word for hooked? At least I got most of my new shop set up for all the flatwork projects I was going to do first.:rolleyes:

[Neil Strong]

Simple is good in bowls and the hardest to achieve, IMO.

You are on top of it!

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