loubear -
many ready-made soup bowls are made from round balls of dough, baked, tops cut off and insides hollowed out leaving about 3/4-inch shell - the reserved bread being used for stuffings, croutons or bread crumbs
I have stainless steel bowls that are just the right size for a bread bowl and I will form my homemade bread over the bowls and bake - removing the bowls after baking.
A friend of mine makes hers by inverting her jumbo cupcake pans and using every other muffin cup as a mold (don't let the dough from one bread bowl touch the other or you will have soft spots and you don't want that)
I would suggest experimenting to see which works best for you.