A few details on this bowl: It is 8 1/2" high X 10 1/2" diameter. It was sanded to 400 grit, and finished by keeping it saturated (staying on it with a wet rag until it quit absorbing Minwax WOP and then a light second coat a few hours later. It was buffed with the beall system, except I use Rennaissance wax at the end.
I knew there was going to be some real interesting character created by incorporating some of the natural topography ("bumps and valleys") of the burl itself, so I carefully mounted it several times and handspun it to try and optimize the character. When I got to the point where I was happy with the outside shape, I stopped to develop a plan for the inside, as I originally thought there was going to have to be a hole in the side because of the "valleys" that were created. I absolutely loved the appearance of the tree (and other images if you look close!!), so I turned the walls a bit thicker than I had planned to in the beginning. The walls are about 3/8" in the side so that I could salvage the image I wanted to remain.
Hope this helps, and thanks for looking and commenting.
Mike Ash
