Dave's Wood Art- All American, All Texan!

Howdy!  To me softwoods are cottonwood and hackberry.   Other woods that I am now getting in from a supplier that are soft are rainbow poplar and camphor.  There are others, of course but those are the two softwoods that I turn.  Also you need to include cedar in this category.    Both cottonwood and hackberry are fibrous woods and take a great deal of sanding to make them smooth.  But, no matter how you try there will always be what is called burring on them.  But, that just adds some character I think.  Enjoy!

Hackberry is no doubt a nice looking wood.  This particular bowl has some natural edging on it.  The bark on hackberry stays well, so that should not ever be a problem.  Also, this wood is relatively soft which does not always cooperate with the turner.  There are some natural blemishes in the wood that help give the bowl it’s rustic appeal.  They won’t sand out so they are there to stay.  The wood was sealed two times with food grade walnut oil.  The bowl received three coats of shellac for the finishing.  All were buffed out after each application.  Using these materials and methods gives the bowl a nice hard long lasting finish.  The bowl is 12 ½” at the widest point and 11” at the narrowest.  The height is 3” and the depth is 2 ½”.  The volume measured at ¾ gallon to the brim.  The bowl has a trough in the bottom for any unpopped popcorn kernels to roll into if you use the bowl for popcorn.  8May22  BLHB93  $62.50  Qualifies for free shipping within the United States.

As we all know, everyone needs a bowl.  So, seeing you need a bowl why not have one that makes you feel warm and fuzzy every time you look at it?  This sumptuous looking bowl turned from camphor wood certainly will do this.  The natural color and grain pattern combines to make it delightful looking.  This wood is aromatic as the name implies.  The wood was first sealed with food grade walnut oil and then buffed with tripoli wood buffing compound.  The finishing was done with shellac rubbed while the bowl was spinning at high speeds.  Then it was buffed again.  The bowl was given a nice hard long lasting finish by using these methods and mterials.  The diameter is 9 ¼” and the height is 2 ¾”.  The depth is 2 ¼” with the volume measuring at 6 cups.  18Oct21  BLCAM3  $48.50  Qualifies for free shipping within the United States

Admittedly this is store bought wood.  Not local as most of my turnings are.  A lot of folks are gonna say they have never heard of this wood.  The wood is poplar that has been naturally mineral stained.  The variation of the color of the wood is immense.  Looking at the natural color of this wood and add the grain pattern that is has, you end up with a really, really nice looking bowl.  There will be those who say this bowl is rather pricey, but it is priced below the average that I saw online.  The diameter is 9 ½” with a height of 3”.  The depth is 2 ¼” and the volume measured out at 6 cups.  The wood was sealed with food grade walnut oil.  After it soaked in it was buffed with a tripoli wood buffing compound.  The finishing was done with shellac applied while spinning with ultra-fine steel wool.  Using these methods and materials give this bowl a nice hard long lasting natural finish.  2Jun21  BLRP1  $58.50  Qualifies for free shipping in the United States.

To say that this bowl is lovingly spalted is an understatement.  The spalting was lovingly added to this bowl by Mamma Nature.  Taking in the grain patterns and the darker spalting  you have one really great looking bowl.  The diameter of the bowl is 11 ¼” and the height is 3”.  The depth is 2” with a volume measuring ½ gallon.  The wood was sealed with food grade walnut oil.  The finishing was done with shellac with a bit of walnut oil based wax added in.  Using these materials and methods gives this bowl a nice hard long lasting natural finish.  Fill this bowl with fruits and nuts and use it as a centerpiece bowl on your table.  Or use it as a serving bowl.  11Jun21  BLHB87  $50.00  Free shipping within the United States.

Every now and then you hear me mention that some wood gives a warm and fuzzy feeling.  Hackberry is one of them.  Take a look at the grain pattern.  It’s not necessarily subtle but also not real distinct.  But nonetheless it is a good looking wood.  This smaller sized bowl is just right for a lot of folks.  It has a decent capacity measuring 4 cups to the brim.  But it has what is called a small footprint.  It is 8 ¼” in diameter, 2” high and 1 ¾” deep.  There is some interesting looking spalting on the inside and outside as well.  The wood was sealed with food grade walnut oil.  Then it was buffed with a tripoli wood buffing compound made specifically for wood bowls.  Then the finishing was done with shellac.  Using these methods and materials gives the bowl a nice hard long lasting natural finish.  8Mar21  BLHB85  $40.00  Qualifies for free shipping within the United States.

One of the most amazing things about hackberry to me is the amount of spalting it displays.  Those unique lines added by Momma Nature along with the grain patterns make it a fine looking wood.  Lets not forget about the coloring of the wood, too!  Take all of this and put it together and you have one fine rustic looking wood bowl.  This particular bowl is of a great size for most households.  The bowl is 10 ¼” in diameter, 2 ½” high and has a depth of 1 ¾”.  The volume measures at 5 cups to the brim.  The wood was sealed with food grade walnut oil.  The finishing was done with shellac with a tad bit of walnut oil based wax mixed in.  Using these materials and methods gives this bowl a nice hard long lasting natural finish.  There is a nice lip on the bowl for ease in handling and you will see some unique looking bug holes in the inside of the bowl.  They do not leak so use the bowl as you wish.  12Nov21  BLHB90  $38.50  Qualifies for free shipping within the United States.

I suppose the most amazing thing about something turned from hackberry is, well, the fact that the wood does look amazing.  I don’t think I can put it better than that.  Looking at the wood you see some really nice natural colors, grain patterns and then the spalting lines.  There are some natural defects here and there in the wood that I left alone.  Another nice thing about this bowl is that it only weighs 1 ¼ lbs.  The diameter is 10 ½” with a height of 2 ¾”.  The depth is 2” and the volume is 7 cups.  That’s a fair amount of salads, veggies, and other tasty things.  The wood was sealed with food grade walnut oil and then the finishing was done with shellac mixed in with some lemon oil wax.  Using all of these different items gives the bowl a nice hard long lasting natural finish.  9Jun20  $42.50  Qualifies for free shipping within the United States.

Hackberry can be a very good looking wood on it’s own.  Just look at the natural colors with the spalting added by Mamma Nature!  That is a look that is hard to beat.  Some folks might not even want to put anything in it as it looks so good.  But, hey!  I design my turnings to be used, so please put this beauty to work.  The wood was sealed with a couple of coats of food grade walnut oil.  After that was soaked in good the finishing was done with a walnut oil/shellac mixture.  When using a combination such as that gives the dish a nice hard long lasting natural finish.  The diameter of the dish is 11 ¾” with a height of 1 ¾” and a depth of 1”.  As it is not meant to hold liquids I didn’t get a volume measurement.  Personally I can see this dish sitting on a coffee table full of chips with a bowl full of salsa or guacamole along side of it.  Yummy!!!  24Nov19  SDHB6  $45.00  Free standard shipping within Continental United States.  All other locations contact me with your zip code for shipping costs.