Birch Hollow Form

[Harry Robinette]

Well my homemade hollower works pretty good:D. This is a piece of Paper bark Birch I found in the wood dump about 5 months ago and has been in the garage. I have never seen this color in Birch around here must be something in the ground:confused:. Most Birch around here is bland. I have to make a scraper for my hollower so I can smooth out the insides.
NOW do I leave the base or cut it off I'm afraid it will be to plane without the base but. Also the top I think needs to be taller and maybe of a darker wood.
Oh ya the hole in the top is huge I know, but I wanted to be able to watch the cutters as they cut to see what I need to change. They all cut very good but really need a large smoother as you can see by the inside picture.219063219064219065219066219067219068

[Allan Ferguson]

How about a base and finial of a dark wood to balance the piece?

[Bernie Weishapl]

Nice looking HF. If it were me I would leave the base but I would dye it black and a black finial.

[Jim Burr]

Hmmm...Harry, I'm the last to critique a HF...but the shoulder/top isn't my favorite...maybe it's the sharp angle...or my glasses being smudged. Wood is beautiful and you made a great save!

[Steve Schlumpf]

That's cool! I would keep the foot but turn the edge such that it mirrors the underside of the body. Your finial works as far as elements but - to me - is too short for this elongated form.

[John Keeton]

Harry, nice work on the vase! I think the difficulty in getting the finial to look right comes from the flat top. It definitely needs a taller finial, and a bit of an upward curve on the top would provide some lift and keep the finial from appearing as though it rises from nothing. I don't know if you have enough thickness left, but something to think about.

On the foot, I agree with Steve, but I would not do it from dark wood - use the birch that remains. IMO, if you draw attention to the bottom, the form will appear even more elongated when compared to the finial and base.

[Michelle Rich]

there's no law that the hole in the top has to be 1/16th inch & hollowed by gremlins! maybe down the road, someone may use this as a container & need a wider opening. :-) Neat you got the birch from a dump..good for you. I think the brown color of the finial is good. Not everything has to be black..go crazy & be unique!

[Justin Stephen]

I'm not normally one that automatically agrees with much of the rest of the forum's strong predilection towards tall, very narrow finials, but in this case I have to agree. Taller, thinner (and probably black) would probably look better. I would also lose the base. I think you have achieved a great curve on the underside and it would look really nice curving into a table rather than into a base. I also like your flat top. Nice work.