This bowl is what I made for the 'Beauty' part of the Beauty and the Beast contest over at WTA. It's all from a piece of Russian Olive burl. The lid was cored from the bowl using a primitive homemade coring tool (I recommend using a 'real' tool after this workout) and the finial was carved from a piece of the burl cut off to round it for the lathe. It's about 11" wide at the widest point and 9" tall to the top of the finial. Russian Olive is a junk tree that grows like a weed around here. It has some nice color and a very distinct aroma when turning it. Burls aren't very common though so when I found this at the local green waste dump it was one of those "Eureka" type finds. This wood was very dead and dry when I got it so it was turned start to finish without any drying time in between. There are so many great finial makers out there that whenever I try to turn a finial I always feel like I'm copying someone's style. So for this contest piece I decided to try carving a finial that would be unique and different. It was an experience to say the least and although it is unique I'm not sure I'll try that again. The finish is 4 coats of AO and then buffed with the Beall system.