Collection: Rich Alexander

I have enjoyed working with wood most of my life from building backyard clubhouses to making furniture. My passion is turning wood bowls - I believe that a wood bowl should be functional but also beautiful. To me beauty is in the wood itself. All my bowls are sourced from local downed hardwoods; no trees are cut down by me to make these bowls. Western Massachusetts is blessed with extensive hardwood forests with many suitable species for bowl making, cherry, maple, birch, sycamore, walnut, ash, hickory, and many others.

To me the best thing about wood turning is the release of useful and beautiful objects from wood you'd never expect to contain any such thing. Gnarly, old, half-rotted stumps and trunks not suitable for firewood are trash to the tree man; he must pay someone to take them. This ugly wood can contain highly figured, beautifully grained wood with spalting or ambrosia staining and burls—if you know how to look. This wood is destined to be made into mulch—it is a joy to me to rescue the beauty within.

Bowls are finished with natural walnut oil to maintain the beauty of the wood. Oil can be applied whenever the bowl starts to look dull; just apply a thin layer and wipe off. Wipe it a few more times over the next few days to remove any oil that seeps out of the wood pores. To clean wipe with damp cloth and dry immediately. Don’t put wood bowls in the dishwasher. Enjoy!

Rich Alexander