New Project - Part XI

I've managed to find some time this week to nearly finish my oak leaf bowl. I have only one more leaf surface to finish on the backside, and then the carving will be done. I might actually finish the carving tomorrow, which would be a very nice Mother's Day gift to myself.



This view is how the profile is shaping up. I think it will tilt like this after the last leaf is carved. There's more weight on the one side compared to the other, so it should balance without me having to put it on a stand for display.







I'm holding the last unfinished leaf on the left. You can get an idea of the back side in this view. The points on the leaves are all in line with the grain, so they aren't as fragile as they would otherwise be. I've had plenty of opportunities to break off the points. I try to be very careful as I'm moving the bowl around the carving bench, but when I'm concentrating and have my occulars on, I tend to run into things. This bowl is pretty tough!





Here's another view of the profile. The leaves are thin enough in spots to be translucent, and thinner in other spots that have become bug bites. The thickest spots (where two leaves overlap) are probably 1/8 inch - most of the bowl is 1/16th inch or less in thickness.






I've been leaving the fluorescent lights on over my carving bench to try to help the oxidation along faster. If I finish the project tomorrow, I may just pop over to my lab and stick this in my UV crosslinker. That ought to emulate the Arizona sunshine. Paul Fennell zaps his African Sumac pieces with sunlight. I don't have that option right now. We've had a week of steady rain and more forecast for the next three days.

Previous posts in this series, beginning on January 3, 2006: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, and Part X.