Large Colorful Aspen Burl Bowl (23WS9) SOLD

This bowl was turned from an aspen burl that came from the Hovland, Minnesota, area. The burl was purchased from local loggers. Images of the trimmed burl (on the lathe) are shown. Aspen burls are very rare, and I am lucky to get a few each year. The burl has knobby bark which accounts for the jagged bark edge of the bowl. Aspen burls are always difficult to turn due to decay and separation of many of the grain lines. These grain lines need frequent stabilization during turning. The burl also had some soft decayed areas, worm holes, and bark inclusions. These were stabilized and sealed with cyanoacrylate resin and fine dark wood dust. A few of the grain line edges could not be sanded completely smooth, so there is a slight roughness to these narrow lines. The burl also had some long thin cracks that were filled and sealed with CA resin and dark wood dust. These appear as thin dark lines in the bowl and are stable. This is not unusual, especially at the border between burl regions or lobes. The wood has unusual figuring with wavy lines and zones of golden to brown-red colors. This is unusual for aspen burl which typically has tighter swirling patterns. The grain lines are more regular near the bark and have some intersecting rays of curl (chatoyance). The unusual shape of the bark rim follows the bottom edge of the burl. You can see this in the figures of the burl below. It gives the bowl an interesting non-round look, but of course the lower part of the bowl is turned round. The bowl was turned from fresh burl wood using handheld tools on a lathe, dried for several months, and sanded to 400 grit. Bowls turned from green wood always warp some during drying. This gives distortions that add natural charm to a bowl. I re-turn the bottom of green turned bowls to make sure they sit nicely. The bowl was sealed with two coats of tung oil, hand sanded after each coat, and finished with a buffed thin coat of beeswax and walnut oil. This finish is considered food safe, although the bowl is best suited for artistic display. Aspen burl is rare and very difficult to turn. Very few wood turners work with aspen burl. It is my favorite wood to turn because it is always unusually beautiful.

 

 

 

All my bowls are can be returned for a full refund if you are unsatisfied for any reason within 60 days. You must only pay the return shipping.

All of my bowls come with a laminated card with images of the bowl and burl, a complete description of the bowl and making process, and the artist's bio on the back side. There is no price on the card so it can be used if the bowl is given as a gift.