A bowl even a mother couldn't love

[Brian Brown]

I was asked to do a demo at our club. It is not until April, but I need to get started working on it now. They asked me to demo finishing techniques. I can't imagine many topics I am worse at. They told me I can do something with embellishments also. I am trying to find some canvases for the demo, and I am gong through some old unfinished projects. This bowl made from some seriously ugly Carpathian Walnut, and the turning did not do anything to make it better so it has been in the unfinished pile for a couple of years. I thought this might be one of the canvases I'm looking for. My question is what embellishment would you do to make this bowl look nicer. I'll point out that I think paint on wood is a crime. :D At least a lot of paint. Small amounts are doable. It currently has a couple of coats of walnut oil, and the wall thickness is about 1/4 inch. It is just as ugly inside. I took a pic but can't get it to load. Bad computer day.

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[Edward Weber]

A simple textured band around the middle could make it pop a bit

[Ken Fitzgerald]

A simple thin V groove added just under the rim of the bowl and then "burned-in" using a wire burner. I use a piece of guitar string tied at each end to a piece of wood used for handles.

[Don Frank]

If you haven't tried using a scaler before you could demo that. You can get one at harbor freight for about $30. They are intended to use for removing rust off of metal. They run on air so you'll have to have a compressor. Remove the hardened rods and take them to your grinder and make smooth rounded ends on them. Replace them in the scaler and run it perpendicular to your wood. It makes a soft hammered texture very quickly. It's my go to texture tool. You can cut pieces plastic from a milk carton or tide bottle and use them as a shield so that you can texture right next to a bead or edge and have a crisp line. Just cut an arc in the plastic that matches the arc of the bowl approximately .

[Terence McGee]

Maybe try some woodburning patterns on the outside and rim areas. But only to a minimal.

[Prashun Patel]

Sharpen the undercut of the rim, or eliminate it. Remove the tenon, and it'll be fine.
If you're thinking to put lipstick on a pig, I say just embrace the pig.

[Thomas Wilson80]

If you haven't tried using a scaler before you could demo that. You can get one at harbor freight for about $30. They are intended to use for removing rust off of metal. They run on air so you'll have to have a compressor. Remove the hardened rods and take them to your grinder and make smooth rounded ends on them. Replace them in the scaler and run it perpendicular to your wood. It makes a soft hammered texture very quickly. It's my go to texture tool. You can cut pieces plastic from a milk carton or tide bottle and use them as a shield so that you can texture right next to a bead or edge and have a crisp line. Just cut an arc in the plastic that matches the arc of the bowl approximately .

Don't want to hijack this thread but I’d love to see some examples of what the scaler can do. Sounds intriguing.
Tom