Bread-bakers -
My name is Leon Neal and I hand-carve wooden dough bowls - with the hope of
helping to preserve the art of biscuit and home-made bread baking and
eating. I would like for all my bowls to be what I envision as 'standard
size' about 19" X 12" X 4 1/2" however I have to work with the trees and
logs that I can get and thus there is quite a variation in sizes and wood
types. A bowl of 'standard size' and ordinary wood would retail at about
$160. My bowls are sold at Thos. Moser Showrooms in Freeport, ME and
Charleston, SC, at Bob Timberlake Gallery in Lexington and Blowing Rock,
NC, at the NC State Museum of History in Raleigh, NC, at Capricorn in Mill
Valley, California, at Menage in Gloucester, MA, at Compliments to the Chef
in Asheville, NC and some other similar shops. I am not into mass
production - I have been making about 30 bowls per year - but I am now
retired and I will perhaps make about 50 bowls per year. To date I have
not basically 'retailed' my bowls but have used wholesale and commission to
distribute the bowls.
I began to make bowls because I have a daughter-in-law who said that she
'loved to make biscuits' and simply needed one of those large wooden bowls
in which to make the biscuits. I told her that I would "get her a dough
bowl". I had no idea what a quest this statement would lead to.
I go to a great deal of difficulty to make sure that my bowls are 'food
safe' and the only finish on the bowls is mineral oil (the cheapest and
thickest I can find). I know that a number of finishes are available that
claim to be 'food safe' but I know that mineral oil is safe. It hurts to
know that most of my bowls that are purchased are actually used only for
displaying fruit or flowers etc. I would really like to have a way to
market my bowls to a group of potential buyers who are most interested in
using the bowls for homemade bread, pasta, biscuits, etc.
Note: My 'business of "dough bowl making"' is not a wealth generating
activity - by wholesaling and commission - I typically average between
minimum wage and $10 per hour for my labor.
[[Editor's note: Leon sent a picture which cannot be included in the
digest. Email him for more information. Leon included this caption: "A
picture of a bowl (there are no 'typical' bowls') - all are unique,
numbered, and signed." ]]
Leon Neal
Master Dough Bowl Maker
3506 Carriage Drive
Raleigh, NC 27612
Tel & fax: 919.789.4338
e-mail: bowlman-neal@nc.rr.com