My Second Bowl

[Alan Trout]

I was gone for 5 days over the 4th of July out of town about 2000 miles away in western Oregon and Washington. I stopped by Gilmer Wood Co. in Portland. What a wonderland of wood. I spent about 2 hours just digging through all of the stuff they have. I came home with a bunch of pen blanks and a couple of small bowl blanks. This is all that would fit in my luggage:). They are super nice people and I look forward to getting more treasures from them in the future.

Here is the second bowl that I have done. I started thursday afternoon and got a chance to finish it last night. It is a piece of Big Leaf Curly, Quilted, Birds Eye, Maple from Oregon. The other wood is a piece of eucalyptus that I picked up out of the scrap bin in my local woodcraft. I was looking for a contrasting wood for the foot and a rim to go with the maple.

I left the bottom of the bowl a little thicker so I could attach the foot with a tenon. The sides are about 1/8" maybe a little less. I did find out that the end grain in the big leaf can be a bit of A challenge especially for a Newbe. The finish is just sanding to 2000 grit and then 3 coats of Watco burnished with a cloth into the wood. The dimensions of the bowl are 5" wide by 3.5" high.

Again sorry for my poor photography skills/equipment. When I get the time and money I will make improvements on both. Right now just concentrating on the turning:D.

Let me know what you think.

Thanks,

Alan

[Mike Minto]

Alan, beautiful choice of wood, and the finish looks outstanding. A really nice piece. Mike ;)

[Bill Wyko]

Great job, you're a natural. What was your first like?

[Steve Schlumpf]

Alan - interesting form, beautiful combination of woods! Looks like sanding to 2000 really made the curl pop! Very nice work!

[Richard Madison]

Very nice work, Alan. And no need to apologize for the photography. It is just fine. So keep on turning.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Great work Alan with a great looking combo of wood.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

That's a beauty Alan! I like your choice of contrasting woods.

[Scott Lux]

I love the way the foot echoes the shape of the rim. That's spectacular.

Makes me think I want to do one with a "base" instead of a foot. A round-bottom bowl with a base to match the rim. It'll have to wait for my skills to increase a bunch first.

Lux

[Alan Trout]

Thanks for all the kind words, I really appreciate it. This bowl is intended as a gift for my folks. It is coming up on their 50th wedding anniversary.

My inspiration for the bowl stems from my parents furniture. I grew up in a house full of solid walnut, mid century modern furniture that they purchased early in their marriage in the latter 1950's. My father teaching cabinet making as a second carer also crafted many pieces of furniture to add to the collection.

I have a soft spot for furnishings from the 50's. I always found the simple and elegant lines, arch's, and curves to be pleasing to the eye.

Thanks, again

Alan