Spalted Maple "Mushroom"

This is a new form for me, but I think I see more in the future. Actually, I have already made 2 more pieces similar to this one.

I had a big piece of spalted maple that wouldn’t fit on the lathe so I cut it into a somewhat circular shape on the bandsaw. When I put it on the lathe I decided it the shape looked good without making it perfectly round. I turned the face flat and then put a small bowl like center into it. Then I took put my King Arthur Lancelot disk on the grinder and used it to make the “mushroom cap” effect on it.  Next came some dark walnut stain and some danish oil. (You can see more detail of the stained area in the pic below) The base came from a very old rough sawn oak plank that I found in my dad’s wood stash back in KS before my parents moved to IA. The posts are were cut from a brass rod I found in a dumpster a few years ago.


This piece will be available for purchase at The Mansion at 2801 Ingersoll Ave. in Des Moines, IA during my demo that is part of ArtStop this coming weekend....See you all there!