Bowls: Spalted Maple Trumpet

I have a proclivity to turn pieces of wood that most sane people would reject as "too far gone". As well known professional woodturner John Jordan once stated, "Life's too short to turn crappy wood." While he definitely has a point. somehow I didn't get that memo.

This trumpet bell shaped bowl is 12" in diameter and is turned from an extremely spalted piece of maple. So spalted in fact that I could literally remove wood with my fingernail before I began turning. It looked like it had potential however, so I stabilized the blank with a wood hardener which permeates the piece leaving it rock hard and somewhat turnable. The colors in this piece are wild and I'm still struggling to capture a good photograph of all of the hues visible.