Category Archives: bowls

New Bowl Horse Plans and Tutorial

Over twenty years ago, I designed and built my first bowl horse and it has been an important carving partner for me ever since. I use it for every bowl, but also for shrink pots, spoon blanks, and all sorts … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, carving, events, holding, patterns, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 20 Comments

Bowl from a Plank: Part 2

Back to the “bowl from a plank” that I started in this post a couple weeks ago. After preparing the blank and laying out the hollow and rim, I began to hollow the bowl. Remember, this plank was completely dry. … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, finding wood, Lettering, Uncategorized, walnut | Tagged , , , , | 16 Comments

Bowl from a Plank

Sourcing, storing, and/or processing green logs can be a challenge for some people based on location and other circumstances. There are ways around it. I’ve written a few posts that feature bowls carved from dry wood, or other creatively-sourced blanks. … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, finding wood, layout, patterns, Uncategorized, walnut | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Asymmetrical Cherry Crook Bowl

The treetops had been on the ground since the logging crew left the woodlot over a year ago. I climbed over brush and through the jaggerbushes that had sprung to life in the new abundance of sunlight. It was slim … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, cherry, finding wood, layout, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Merging Cuts in the Hollow

Earlier this month, I wrote a post about two walnut bowls, and there was a question in the comments about dealing with the tricky area where the grain direction merges across the middle of the hollow. I wanted to expand … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, carving, sharpening, tools, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Arch Top and Flat Top

These two walnut bowls are very much alike in all aspects of their design except for the shape of the upper surface. I split both blanks from the same log. After hewing and planing both bottom surfaces flat, I gave … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, holding, layout, Uncategorized, walnut | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Walnut Bowls and Hosta Flowers

Earlier this week, I was preparing to take some photos in the shop of two recently-finished walnut bowls, but the light filtering into the shop wasn’t really bringing out the color variations in the wood. I looked into the back … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, nature, Uncategorized, walnut | Tagged , , | 11 Comments

Koa Bowl

The wood for most of what I make comes from trees that grow within a few miles of my house, which is more than enough to make me happy. I’m fortunate to live in an area with so many diverse … Continue reading

Posted in axe, bowls, carving, trees, Uncategorized | Tagged | 12 Comments

Perico the Bowlmaker

I don’t know what’s going to happen to me. How could I know? I could die right now, or maybe I’ll die tomorrow. When will it be? In the meantime, I’ll keep making bowls for as long as I can. … Continue reading

Posted in adze, axe, bowls, historical reference, Persons, quotes and excerpts, Uncategorized, video | Tagged | 4 Comments

Bowl from Dry Walnut

Wood is much easier to carve when it’s green, and you can get right to work with a large blank of fresh uncracked wood straight from the tree. Then you can let the bowl dry, stress and crack free, before … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, carving, holding, patterns, Uncategorized, walnut | Tagged , , , | 20 Comments