Bernie,
I keep coming back to look at your scalloped vases... they are really really nice and thinking I need to try one. Really like the Elm... I had a huge elm cut that was dead and parts of it were falling on my shop. I had it cut the first year we were up here in TN, but let it lay too long and think I've lost 90% of it... a couple of the logs are just mush now... some of the ones higher up on the stack may still be usable and I've had a few pieces inside the shop that I might be able to use... I like the grain patterns in Elm.
Earlier this spring I picked up a limb at a friends house that had fallen out of his elm.. his was a slippery elm (also called a Chinese elm I think...) and a huge tree. The limb I got was over 12 inches diameter... I've done one pepper mill from it and it turned out really nice... I think I may try one of your vases next... I don't have a spindle sander, but will figure out a way to do the scallops.