First Attempt… "Classic" NE Bowl

[David DeCristoforo]

Most of the turnings I have done to date have incorporated some form of natural edge detail. So far, I have not been pulled in the direction of making bowls and I have never been motivated to try a NE bowl. I like them well enough but somehow they just haven't appealed to me to the extent that I wanted to make them.

But…. I had this piece of wood that simply insisted on being "turned" into a natural edge bowl. And I learned, long ago, the folly of trying to argue with a piece of wood. This is some kind of wonky maple that I bought off a guy on ebay. I don't really know why I even bid on it because I usually go after the burls. But, for better or for worse, I "won" the auction and so, there it was.

This piece was as as green as green can be. WET! I was going to do the whole "rough it out, let it dry and return it" bit or DNA it. But a few months ago, I went to a meeting of the local turner's group to pick up some walnut from Mike Spanbauer and there was a guy there demoing turning NE bowls and he just turns them green and lets them do whatever they will as they dry. So I decided to have a go at that. This was turned in "one sitting" using only my 1/2" bowl gouge. It was so wet that the walls became translucent as they got close to the "target" 1/4" thickness. I was unable to decide if it should have a foot so I ended up going with a "soft" foot just to keep it upright.

Right now, it just has a light application of oil on it. I am going to let it dry put for a few weeks and then re-sand it and buff it up a bit.

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PS 9.5" in diameter... 5 high...

[Tim Rinehart]

Nice NE David. What caught my eye was the impression of a landscape from the spalting and ambrosia (maple, right?).

Quite nice. Can get a little scary when translucency allows light thru, while turning. You start double checking your calipers.:cool:

[Kelvin Burton]

All I can say is WOW! That is beautiful!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Beautiful bowl David! Love the wood and the landscape scene! Really cool piece!

[Scott Hackler]

Great job on this form, David. You can't get much better than that. And regarding that chunk of wood..... wow that is a great peice of wood. I love maple and the way it spalts.

[steven carter]

Very nice NE bowl David. I look forward to seeing it after the warping takes place.

Steve

[Baxter Smith]

Ditto the landscape! Before I enlarged the top view, I thought, theres a pond surrounded by a forest of trees. (Not that a forest woudl be anything else but..:))
You had better keep it. You may never get another like it!

[Ken Hill]

Well done!

[Tim Rinehart]

I would say it fits perfectly with the sort of scenery and accessories you see in those high priced furniture and shops catering to log home owners.

It has a very rustic and natural feel, beyond ordinary for a NE bowl.

You sure got a nice chunk o'wood there...have the other half too by chance?
:cool:

[James Combs]

I love the landscape seen. Outstanding piece of wood. Has eBay got more like that??

[Ken Fitzgerald]

David,

Very nice first classic NE. The wood is just incredibly beautiful!

If you want to see some of what IMHO are great examples of forms for NE's, go to Creeker Mark Cothren's profile and look at his NEs. Sam Maloof was lecturing Arkansas....saw one of Mark's NEs for sale and purchased it. Keith Burns and Travis Stinson have some great NE forms too.

[John Keeton]

David, just an excellent choice on this piece of wood!! Everyone agrees on the landscape, but for me my first impression was a western landscape, with buttes, points, etc. Wonderful piece of wood, and as you say, classic form. Just doesn't get any better!!

[Bill Bolen]

Well for a guy who doesn't care for ne bowls you certainly brought this piece to life! Great landscape too...Bill...

[Jim Burr]

Not wanting to be a copycat...couldn't you have found something with a landscape in it?:p:p. That's great work David...ya done good :D

[Mark Hubl]

Very nice. The wood is good looking and the bowl is great. You got the grain lined up well in the bottom. The sides are nice and even. Good job.

[Dale Bright]

Very nicely done David, and a beautiful piece for wood. You should be very proud of this one.

Dale

[David DeCristoforo]

"...landscape...landscape...landscape..."

There seems to be a common thread here! Odd that I never even saw it as a landscape. I was thinking more of hands cradling the bowl.

"...great examples of forms for NE's..."

Yes, those guys do some awesome stuff. I have looked at their work many times. I'm not really thinking of this as a "direction". But if I were, there is certainly a "high bar" in this area!

[Bernie Weishapl]

David that is a beautiful piece. Really nice form and finish.

[Richard Madden]

Ditto the landscape! Before I enlarged the top view, I thought, theres a pond surrounded by a forest of trees. (Not that a forest woudl be anything else but..:))
You had better keep it. You may never get another like it!

Ditto. I see the lake and trees too!:D

[Curt Fuller]

Man that's nice! Absolutely beautiful!

[Donny Lawson]

I like the coloring in that one.

[gary Zimmel]

Nice chunk of wood that is now one sweet bowl David...

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

David,
That's a striking piece of wood. The shape shows off the natural beauty of the wood. probably a good idea to make a soft foot because when the bowl dries it will make a flat bottom want to rock anyway. I am looking forward to seeing how it dries and finishes.
faust

[Ron Bontz]

Pretty slick looking piece. So I am guessing a "soft foot" is to just flatten the bottom? Sorry for the lack of knowledge on my part.:o

[David E Keller]

Pretty wood and a nice looking form... Nicely done.

[Michael James]

Beautiful chunk of wood, done nicely!

[Ron Stadler]

I'm like you on that one, natural edge bowls are nice and I know a lot of people love them, but the draw to make them is not there as much for me also, not that I won't with the right piece of wood though. And well, you look like you found the right piece here, very nice looking wood, the markings are great and you did a fine job for a first for sure, looks very well balanced.

[Cathy Schaewe]

Yep, as usual, an excellent job. Very, very nice. I wouldn't believe it was a first if you hadn't said so -

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Good looking bowl David, I like the round almost closed form of the bowl, nice base, just enough to give it a floating look.
Of course the staining isn't shabby either, yup nice one, I like it ;-)))

[David DeCristoforo]

Thanx to all for the kind words. And for pointing out the "landscape" aspect. I totally missed that! My wife said that it looks like an Indian basket.

"...when the bowl dries it will make a flat bottom want to rock..."

It has already done that. At this point, there is a very slight distortion. Not much but enough to allow the bowl to rock slightly. I think there is enough wood on the bottom that I will be able to sand it flat again once it is dry.

"...I am guessing a "soft foot" is to just flatten the bottom?..."

AFAIK, the tern "soft foot" is not an "official" technical term. I was referring to the lack of any "hard edge" foot. I just "eased" the gouge a bit at the bottom of the bowl to create a "soft" transition between the sides of the bowl and the small flat at the bottom.


"...yup nice one, I like it..."

Coming from Leo who is pretty much the quintessential "bowl guy", that's a great complement!

[charlie knighton]

very nice....

[Harvey Ghesser]

Had to comment....just beautifully done, David! Congratulations! (and I don't much care for NE bowls)

[Leo Van Der Loo]

/SNIP // SNIP // SNIP/

"...when the bowl dries it will make a flat bottom want to rock..."

It has already done that. At this point, there is a very slight distortion. Not much but enough to allow the bowl to rock slightly. I think there is enough wood on the bottom that I will be able to sand it flat again once it is dry.


Leave it rock, it isn't glass or steel or ceramic, it is beautiful natural wood, and should be noted as such IMO

And yes I/we do have some bowls that rock just a bit, and yes I could easily make them sit solidly, but I prefer to leave them just like that (as long as it is just a little), they won't fall over, and no we don't fill them with liquids :rolleyes: :D ;)

[Rob Cunningham]

Very nice NE bowl. A really cool grain pattern landscape scene. It's amazing what we find inside a log.

[David DeCristoforo]

"...Leave it rock..."

Well... that might be a problem. You see, there's a rare strain of obsessive compulsive disorder that runs through my family. I might not be able to tolerate a rocking bowl. I might not be able to sleep at night or I could have a nervous breakdown thinking about it. Might be too much to risk. We will have to see...

[Doug W Swanson]

"...Leave it rock..."

there's a rare strain of obsessive compulsive disorder that runs through my family. I might not be able to tolerate a rocking bowl. I might not be able to sleep at night or I could have a nervous breakdown thinking about it. Might be too much to risk. We will have to see...

I think many of us are like this (especially when it comes to our own products). I've made a few things that probably look great to most people but I notice the mistakes. My wife looks at them and thinks they are perfect but I just can't get myself to overlook the faults in them (even if it's a minor run in the finish).

Your bowl is very well done. It's simple but yet has so much to look at....

[bob svoboda]

Very nice form and great job keeping the bark in place. I especially like the way you finished the bottom. Have to agree it looks like a landscape-at first glance I thought it was a burned pattern.

[David DeCristoforo]

"...great job keeping the bark in place..."

This piece of wood was so green that the bark was still solidly attached. So it was no great challenge to "keep" it...