New demo video
I've just uploaded my first new youtube demo for quite a while, featuring a back-to-back comparison of my airline model versus my latest tenor ukulele, this time built from beautiful figured koa.
.The Bunting Has Arrived for our Stall at the Hebden Bridge Burlesque Festival
We have a stall at the Hebden Bridge Burlesque Festival this weekend (where we'll have a few tin amps, diddley bows, a cigar box uke and the lovely books and prints of Shelley Rickey (of UkeBox fame)). We are excited as the festival is being organised right here in our home town by someone we think is just awesome (that's be miss Heidi Bang Tidy).
The bunting for our stall was made by Su Collins, mother to Tinguitar.com's Rob Collins and an active WI member on the Isle of Man. She said she'd try to throw something together and then she surprised us with we believe will be the best bunting ever! 
-the tinguitar elves 
Getting Ready for Spring and Summer Season
For a second year in a row, we find ourselves lined up to appear at events across the UK and Ireland throughout the Spring and Summer months. Most (but not all of the events are ukulele festivals and we are excited about each and every one of them!). We just received our new business cards today and we look forward to giving them away.
If you'd like to see us, here are some of the events we'll be attending (some with stalls and some just to support the event as punters).
We hope to see you!
-the tinguitar team
Events We're Attending:
- Hebden Bridge Burlesque Festival (we'll have a stall on the Sunday)
- North Wales Ukulele Gathering (we're attending as punters... we love Jim's excellent event)
- Ukulele Festival of Great Britain (we'll have a stall on the Saturday)
- Hollesley Ukulele Jamboree (no website for this... we'll attend as punters, always have)
- Ukulele Hooley (we love Tony Boland and this event that he puts on is outstanding)
- a Grand Northern Ukulele Festival (we are co-sponsoring this and will have a stall and will run workshops)
(we'll post links later - we're having a bit of a wordpress/theme-update issue at tinguitar central)
Wood!
A Grand Northern Ukulele Festival
I am excited and proud to be involved with the festival - the first of its kind to be hosted in the North of England.
Just recently I have been helping to plan extras / gifts for the Early Bird ticket holders. At the festival itself I will be presenting a workshop where guests will be able to build their own one-string diddleybow. Please check the website for details. I look forward to meeting you there
-rob
Fear of Extinction and the EU Headache
We don't normally post sobering things here but it's been a landmark day.
It seems to be all change in the world of wood-working (especially for Europeans). Here at Tinguitar.com we've always taken great pains to ensure that our wood came from reputable suppliers (either major importers with clear commitments to sustainable forestry or from small mom & pop types of wood yards where they knew where their wood came from, even if it sat around for 20 years before being sold to us).
There is now a real risk that we might not be able to use much of the wood we've salvaged because of the burden of proving that the wood wasn't illegally harvested is massive. It's strange because, though salvaged wood and re-use is acceptable, the burden of proof lies with me. I can't provide full traceability for that piece of wood that was once a kitchen cabinet or an off-cut from a local joiner.
We lost a day of work at Tinguitar.com today working with solicitors to trying to ensure we continue to be compliant with all regulations around wood use and procurement. At best, it may decimate our stocks. At worst, it could put us out of business. The new EU Timber Regulations were developed in consultation with big business and furniture manufacturers. Their own guidance documents suggest that small and medium sized businesses may suffer disproportionately.
We just hope we can survive this new burden of paperwork.
<sigh>
My first 5-string ukulele
This custom tenor ukulele is my first 5-string model. With high and low G on the same instrument, you get the best of both worlds - or simply a fuller sound for chords...
Just completed – airline model in khaya and spruce
This airline soprano just left the workshop in the hands of a very happy customer. I'm really pleased with the look of the black accents against the spruce and the khaya. Sonically, this little uke is surprisingly loud, with plenty of treble.
Khaya is a wood I have only recently started to use. It is one of the most affordable woods I work with - regularly used in guitar building, it is sometimes sold as, "African mahogany." (I purposely avoid such misleading naming of woods though - this is a fine wood in its own right and does not need to pretend to be something else!)
Sound-wise it is very close to true mahogany and makes a great budget alternative to the Brazilian mahogany I have in stock.
Wellingtonia – aka redwood
Today I've been re-sawing some of my stash of English-grown woods (London Plane, Walnut and the amazing soundboard wood pictured below, Wellingtonia).
Wellingtonia is lovely. It is more commonly known as, "redwood" and while it's not an indigenous species, this example was grown in the south of England. It's a softwood, very stiff and shockingly light weight. It rings like a bell and I am excited to make my first ukuleles with this.
Things are busy here at Tinguitar.com as we are building ukuleles for Cheltenham (The Ukulele Festival of Great Britain), a burlesque festival and a new ukulele festival taking place here in the north of England in the Autumn.
There's still room for a commission or two so please get in touch if you have something in mind!
Bournville souvenir tin – Ukulele
This vintage Bournville souvenir chocolate tin has become my latest tin instrument, with the same neck profile, feel and playability as one of my standard ukuleles. The neck is a pretty piece of figured sapele, with a rosewood fretboard and a very fancy piece of curly maple for the headstock front.
