First and Second Turns

I have been wanting a lathe for a while now and last weekend I went out and purchased a cheaper one. A cheaper one because that is what I could afford and to see if I could do it.
Anyway my first two group of turns have only been snowmen with and without hats. The one without the hat was because as I cleaned the rim of the hat a piece chipped off and so I took his hat off and gave him a third layer.

The first pic is my second turn and all three are from sweetgum. I gave them a coat of beeswax and I think it help reveal the true wood color of the wood.
The second pic is my first turning, the outside snowmen are made from sweetgum and the middle is from an unkn wood out of my firewood pile.