Turning, Drying & Wabi-Sabi

Fresh hardwoods are not always available here, and while Florida live oak is plentiful, premium hardwoods like cherry, pecan, cedar and camphor; to name a few are a rare find. Recently, Bob found a reliable source for prime cherry hardwood; a particular favorite for its minimal warping, stunning tones and a very hard durable finish that resists dents and dings.

Turning fresh hardwood into yarn bowls is a lengthy process spanning several months. Each bowl starts after a fresh log is cut into blanks. Each log is stripped of bark and trimmed with a chainsaw. Next the blank is mounted on the lathe for a rough turning, shaping and hollowing.

​After roughing out, each bowl is set aside for a drying period of one to four months time depending on weather conditions (humidity, barometric pressure and temperature). 

Rough turned yarn bowls, drying over time. Notice how the front left and top front right bowls are dramatically warped and cracked! All the other yarn bowls are cherry, with minimal warping and cracking.

The drying period is the most critical stage for fresh turned wood. A stretch of dry, cool weather for example can cause the bowls to warp and crack. Some hardwoods (like cherry) are less prone to warping and cracking, other hardwoods gently warp, while many crack considerably, or warp and crack. Nature determines the condition of the bowl when it’s dry enough; as interesting wood patterns and challenges emerge. The choicest bowls are finished first. 

Most wood turners reject cracked and warped bowls; discarding them to focus on more pristine specimens. Bob sets these nature challenged bowls aside until his supply of hardwood gets low, and he has the necessary hours to rescue these gifts from nature. This is when the real magic begins –with restoration techniques that result in his most artful offerings. 

Here's an example of natural cracking during the drying process. These bowls are extreme examples of how a combination of certain weather conditions can crack and warp bowls.
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​Bob has several techniques to prevent drastic warping, however, when nature takes its course, the wood can have a mind of its own!

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The larger cracks are filled with our proprietary sparkle inlay; in custom colors mixed to complement the bowl. Fine cracks are filled to match the wood tones. Bob’s process follows the ancient Japanese philosophy “Wabi-Sabi” using ancient "Kintsugi" techniques, embracing the flawed or imperfect; highlighting the cracks and repairs to honor the life of an object rather than allowing its service to end at the time of its damage or breakage. 

Large yarn bowl #644 (SOLD) had 2 dramatic cracks on it's east and west sides, Wabi-Sabi makes gives it life!

Large yarn bowl #690 (SOLD) had 2 dramatic cracks on it's north and south sides, Wabi-Sabi adds interest.

For more examples of this ancient technique, see "Wood Wabi-Sabi Trending Home Decor"

Drying Jumbo yarn bowls is Bob’s biggest challenge to date. These HUGE hardwoods usually crack considerably -even before they are removed from the lathe!

This colossal oak bowl developed multiple cracks on its east/west sides and valued black line spalting on the north/south sides. Fine cracks were painstakingly filled to match the darker grains, Larger cracks were filled with custom matched inlay –a tricky process as wood and fill colors will change when the piece is finally inished.

This particular set is too big to sell/ship and the yarn fanatic loves it… 💭🧶👍🏻❤️