Help me design the perfect shaving bowl

I met a potter tonight at a charity event. She has offered to make a custom shaving bowl if I can tell her what I want. I'm wrestling with the multitude of options so figured I would lean on some of you with way more experience. If you could design the perfect shaving bowl, how would you "spec it out"?
I know that I want a bowl, not a cup or mug. I also want a thumb loop, not an apothecary stud to prevent an accidental drop.
I'm thinking about 5" in diameter and about 2 - 2 1/2" deep. Textured on the inside with ridges or swirled bottom.
Am I close? Let's hear it?
Who knows, if this goes well, maybe we can get her to do a DFS run of them!

Brent

that's probably what I'd want in a bowl if I were to have one made.

that's probably what I'd want in a bowl if I were to have one made.

Me too. I like a large diameter, fairly shallow bowl - easy to load and no brush handle clink.

Maybe dirty bird pottery's bill bowl will provide inspiration. I love mine.

"Fits snugly in the palm
Inverted thumb loop for secure grip
Ridges to aide in building lather
Brush Scuttle can be stored inside"


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http://www.dirtybirdpottery.com/shavinggear.html

I like it when I can float it in the sink with brush keeping things nice and warm. Loop perhaps placed low enough to provide added stability. Don't forget the guys with very large fingers. Might ther be an even larger one offered? Some of us bowl latherers like the really large diameter or oval shaped? Thank you.

JustinHemi, that's pretty much the picture I had in my head. Thanks for posting. I thought the tops might have to be slightly turned inward to prevent the lather from going over the top. Yours looks pretty straight. No problems with that design?

Neither are mine, just pictures from the website and the net, but mine does look like the first one. No issues.

Justin

The issue I've had with those types of bowls is the steep sides - they're fine with high-loft brushes, but if you have a low-loft brush (or a small one), there's a tendency to knock the sides of the bowl. At the least I find it annoying, but I keep worrying that eventually this will chip one of my brush handles (hasn't happened yet).

I have a nice Ladysea scuttle that has a removable inner bowl (no handle, of course). It is perfect because the bottom is rounded out to the edge. With this 'bowl', I don't knock the side of the bowl when I'm lathering, regardless of the size of the brush.

The downside of the rounded bottom is that there is a greater likelihood that lather will escape the sides of the bowl.

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