The post on potato chip bowls and the word "embellishing" remind me of a few
things I do as a matter of course to bowls intended for particular use.

A salad bowl needs to stand up with the serving utensils hanging out. This
means a broader base and/or heavier bottom than a display piece. A potato
chip bowl doesn't need such a firm footing, but it certainly could use a lip
extending either inward, where it would be in the way for salad, or outward,
which would reduce capacity if turning at the max throw of the lathe. The
lip acts as a thumbhold or a fingerhold as the bowl is passed, and can't
really be replaced by beads, though two/three "V" grooves might do.

Popcorn bowls are usually passed, but they also require thicker bottoms to
keep the heat isolated from your lap, and special consideration in finish
selection. Can't use a surface finish on a popcorn bowl. The old maids
hold a lot of heat, and even if you're using Orville, there will be enough
of them to blister the finish. Not to mention the obvious, that with salad
and popcorn both, the ultimate finish is the oil used in the contents. Even
chips are not _that_ oily.

Anyone else with considerations for either design or material selection?
It's an artistic choice just like bronze versus marble or fresco versus
mosaic, in my opinion.

"Arch" wrote in message
...


Embellishing by adding something not natural to the wood and/or
ornamenting with coves, beads and such are part of crafting an object of
wood art. How much or if any, of each is a world class FAQ, but it has
no answer. The old adage: "Ornament the construction, don't construct
the ornament" is sound advice, but hard to follow in actual practice.