I have this thing for wooden bowls. I have yet to buy one, but I've been on the lookout ever since I spotted one at a B&B I stayed at in Ireland and realized how fantastic they are. Since then I've searched high and low for the perfect specimen.

I've driven my sister Candy nuts during a trip to Italy examining olivewood bowls minutely in every store we came across. Unfortunately, none were exactly what I wanted. This one was too pink, that one had too many brown streaks. The other day, I spent at least an hour staring at bowls in a shop. I think the store owner thought I was nuts, especially when I walked out empty-handed.

The other day I stumbled across Laura Yeats's website. Yeats is a Seattle artist who started out in urban design and got sidetracked by an interest in woodworking and welding. She now specializes in finding dead, diseased or unwanted wood and works magic with it.

She does make smaller bowls, but I fell in love her large Madrona side bowl. A 20-1/2 by 9-1/2 inch beauty, it's just what I want and would be perfect on its own or for displaying food or other beautiful collectibles. Alas, the price is just too high for my pocketbook. The search continues…

Available at: www.laurayeats.com

Price: $1,800.00 US