The most recent session in the shop had a lot of putzy work. Mostly a card scraper and sandpaper, and more CA glue.

But I got close enough that I put on a trial coat of the finish, which is a 50-50 mix of tung oil and orange oil. Once that dries (tomorrow), I’ll do another inspection and see if I’m ready for real finishing.

This knot (below) was the center of the main trunk of this juniper tree, with a branch to the right. The bark has been removed and filled with blue, purple, and clear epoxy. Many small cracks have purple fill as well.

Another side view of the bowl. The focus is again the pith of the trunk, along with the heartwood of the branch, which is on the left. The wild grain of the crotch is very visible in this view, as are some areas with nice chatoyance. My final finish on the outside of the bowl will be either a shellac or a traditional varnish to try and show off and enhance that chatoyance.

A side view of the bowl, featuring the filled bark inclusion between the branch and the trunk. I initially thought this would be the main focus of the bowl, but the grain in the photo above, and the radiating cracks in the top photo are giving it a run for its money.

A view of the inside of the bowl, including the crack that almost opened up as I was hollowing the bowl. I didn’t realize the crack ran almost all the way to the trunk heartwood, but I guess I shouldn’t have been too surprised by it. At least I caught it before it decided to turn into two pieces on the lathe.