#308- Curly Port Orford Cedar, Pistachio and Fir Tenor Ukulele

First, just the bill of materials:

-Curly Port Orford Cedar top salvaged and milled by woodfromthewest.com

-Pistachio from California Orchards

-Douglas fir neck salvaged from floor boards from a store in The Dalles, OR.  

-Bone nut and saddle, GHS strings, K&K pickup and Gotoh tuners.

All this adds up to a really solid and resonant tenor ukulele.  The extra weight of the pistachio makes it feel solid, but the light Port Orford Cedar top makes it sing and vibrate.  I feel when I play it that it can handle anything I can give it, something a lighter uke can't always do for me.  The materials make for a tidy and unique aesthetic, but I made sure to include one nail hole in the neck from the original floor boards.  Just a small reminder of our true imperfection when compared to our high expectations and lofty goals.  Just like the music it will make, it is destined to be both flawed and beautiful!

#307- Walnut, Fir and Pistachio tenor ukulele

This one was really fun for me to put together.  It made me think about the difference between art and craft, luthier and craftsman, folk art and fine art, perfection and practice, etc...It might not come through to the player who strums it, but it was on my mind when I made it and maybe some small part of these musings get shut in the case before Nicole mails it out.  The top is old growth Douglas Fir that matches my new baritone uke below.  The back and sides are Oregon walnut from Goby in Portland and the pistachio is from California orchards.  The neck is some unique wide grain fir from my friend Cath from Vashon Island, WA.  I bought my big bandsaw and jointer from her and she sent me back with a stash of Fir from the trees on her property.  I love how the wide grain fir makes for a unique texture in the left hand due to the hardness differences between the hard and soft rings.  It plays easy, sounds loud and true, is made from materials I believe in and looks unique and beautiful.  Feeling lucky today.  

#309- Grafted Walnut, Douglas Fir and Pistachio Baritone Ukulele

For the last few years I have been playing baritone ukulele more than the other sizes.  The lower pitch is a compliment to Nicole's tenor uke strumming, but I have to have make sure that my baritone ukes have the crisp brightness needed to play leads and melodies.  This old growth Douglas Fir top seems to be the right balance for me: as loud as spruce but with a dusty earthiness unique to Fir.  The walnut on the back is grafted with two different species for root and fruit stock, a common practice in orchards.  I got this walnut set from Kevin from woodfromthewest.com and I admit that I saved it just to show off a little bit as it is so unique and beautiful.  Here is more info on the grafted variety: https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=PRP19060707.2.2  Of course, I had to use my favorite walnut and maple rope binding.  Add on geared brass Gotoh tuners, a K&K pickup, bone nut and saddle and GHS strings to make it stage ready.  Look for this one soon in several videos as I work on our next ukulele book.  

#312- Maple and Pistachio Mini Five String Banjo

Every once in a while a piece of pistachio just leaps off the shelf and yells "pick me, pick me!"  I have never seen a fretboard like this one and don't expect I ever will.  I paired it with a subtle bird's eye maple neck and a rim made of three different boards of maple for a unique look.  All of the maple comes from the Carpenter Ant stash in Portland, the Pistachio comes from California Orchards.  The customer wanted this in the standard banjo tuning, so I put heavier gauge strings on it and tuned it down to gdgbd.   Even with the short scale, this tuning works although it is a pretty mellow sound, which is why some folks seem to like it.  Either way, this one is ready to head to Colorado and make some music!

#303- Master grade myrtle tenor ukulele

I like to call Myrtle "Oregon's Koa," because it looks as beautiful as Hawaiian Koa and sounds great too.  I like to think that if the ukulele originated here they would have picked myrtle as the traditional ukulele wood!  This fancy myrtle comes from near Pistol River, OR from woodfromthewest.com.  The old growth Douglas Fir neck comes from floor boards from The Dalles, OR and the pistachio fretboard and trim is from California orchards.  This one is a great example of why the myrtle tenor became our bread and butter at Mya-Moe: it's the perfect combination of sound and looks!  

#310 Walnut and Pistachio Concert Banjo Ukulele

I found some curly two color curly walnut from the carpenter ant stash in Portland and paired it with some swirly reddish pistachio from California orchards for this little guy.  I like how the closer you look at it, the more small details you see in the wood grain!  The walnut concert banjo uke has turned into one of our most popular models and it's easy to see why.  The concert scale is the right balance in your lap for the 8" rim and the warmth of the walnut cuts some of the brightness of the banjo.  A great combo.  

#297- Bearclaw spruce and mastergrade Myrtle Tenor Ukulele

I have to say, I think this customer picked a really classy configuration for her uke.  The simple pistachio binding sets off the fancy spruce and myrtle well and the salvaged Douglas fir neck is a great way for some wabi-sabi to sneak in.   The spruce top gives a rich warm sound with plenty of volume and with the geared Gotoh tuners and K&K pickup, it is ready for the stage.  The spruce is salvaged Alaskan bearclaw Sitka spruce, provided by Alaska Specialty Woods.  The Mastergrade Oregon myrtle and California Pistachio come from woodfromthewest.com.  The Douglas fir was salvaged from a shop in The Dalles, OR.  

#306- Walnut and Pistachio Concert Banjo Ukulele

This customer asked for two things: a wild fretboard and walnut from the Carpenter Ant stash.  I said: "No Problem."  Business is easy when you attract like minded folks who already believe in what you do.  As a reminder, the Carpenter Ant stash is a lifetime wood stash of the father of a friend.  He spent years as a cabinet maker and set aside his favorite pieces as they came into the shop.  They have allowed me access to the wood in order to see his precious collection turned into musical tools.  The wild pistachio fretboard and headplate come from California orchards and I love how no two are alike.   Oh yeah, how does it sound?  Well, it's one of those that seems to vibrate in my lap and throw the sound out but manages to stay sweet.  I hope Leigh likes it as much as I do!  

#305- Walnut and Pistachio Tenor Banjo Ukulele

It really is strange to me that every single one of these has it's own voice.  I probably am the only one who can hear the difference, as they all sound like a Beansprout after all.  But, I love the process of getting to know each of their voices and shipping them off to you for the real musical experience to happen.  I take a pile of wood, brass and plastic, do 1000 tiny, mundane operations and out comes this unique musical tool.  I'll never get sick of this.  This walnut is from the Carpenter Ant stash in Portland and the pistachio is from California orchards.   It is for a guy named Tom who has the important job of really getting to know this one.  

#304- Walnut and Pistachio Five String Banjo

Dark Oregon walnut, reddish California pistachio, raw brass hardware from Brooks Masten and Fluorocarbon strings instead of steel.  All this makes a rich and mellow instrument that still has some punch to it.  This is for my friend and mentor Marianne, who already plays ukulele and has been wanting to learn banjo for a while.  She wasn't so sure when she came to pick it up, but after three notes of Angeline the Baker she was grinning.  Hooked.  

#296 Spruce and Maple Tenor Ukulele

This tenor ukulele is the first customer order for our new line of ukes and I am very pleased with how it turned out.  The spruce top comes from a stash of spruce cut for a dulcimer maker in the 1960's which I inherited from a friend.  Because of it's age, it already has a great golden brown color and sounds old too.  The maple is from the Carpenter Ant stash in Portland.  The Douglas fir neck comes from floorboards salvaged from The Dalles, OR.  The pistachio comes from California Orchards.  

The customer also plays banjo and wanted a uke that could hang with his friends other acoustic instruments.  I thought this wood combo would give the volume that I needed, but I also worked hard to make sure it's voice was balanced, not piercing or shrill.  I think it worked out great.  

#302 Mahogany and Pistachio Concert Banjo Uke

It's for Craig and Sarah!  It has a volcano on it!  It sounds awesome and plays easy!  Craig and Sarah have been long time friends and collaborators.  Helping with video, photo, design, playing tunes, buying Legos for Henry, sharing meals and more.  I am happy to get this in their hands and see what music it inspires.  The pistachio is from California orchards, the Honduras mahogany was salvaged from a theater in Portland.  It's the same wood that my main woodworking bench was made out of.  Can I be so bold to hope that someone names this banjo uke Pele?

#301- Myrtle Alto Ukulele

Wabi-Sabi is a Japanese phrase that describes an aesthetic that features asymmetry, imperfection, impermanence and uniqueness over the clean and symmetrical lines in Western art.  In this case, I chose wood that others would have thrown out due to imperfections and featured those imperfections as part of the design.  Specifically, you can see the top and back have a big knot that would have normally exiled this myrtle to the scrap bin.  On the top, I put the knot in the soundhole and on the back I reinforced it and placed it in the middle.  The neck is made from old growth Douglas Fir floor boards with nail holes that are filled.  It shows the floor board's utilitarian origins as they progress to their new job of making music.  All of these "flaws" are solid and stable and do not hamper the sound or playability at all.  In fact, they serve to create a unique artistic statement that is my own small tribute to the concept of Wabi-Sabi.  

#298- Maple and Pistachio Mini Five String Banjo

This beautiful curly maple comes from a sustainable, family run forest in Salem, OR called Zena Forest Products.  It has a reddish hue that pairs nicely with pistachio from California Orchards.  Add in a brass armrest, a frailing scoop and open G tuning and we have a unique instrument that looks and sounds great.  It's going all the way to Norway!  

#300- Clockmaker's Koa Tenor Ukulele

This is a special instrument.  First- It is the first regular uke I have put out since leaving Mya-Moe.  Second- It happens to be a nice round number, #300.  Third- The wood is from the carpenter ant stash and built for the caretaker of said stash, my friend Lizann.  The koa belonged to her grandfather, who built two beautiful clocks with it which I have seen in her house.  Therefore it's label, Clockmaker's Koa.  I have all different grades of figure, but this is among the best.  I paired it with an old growth douglas fir neck and pistachio fretboard, headplate and bridge.  The maple and walnut rope binding add some old world flair to it.  It is easy to play, light weight, vibrant and loud!  

#295- Walnut and Pistachio mini five string banjo

I love how the pistachio wood allows me to truly "play" with the personality of an instrument.  Sometimes I prefer a subtle look that requires closer inspection.  Sometimes I like a more sculptural look that can be appreciated from farther away.  This one allowed me the latitude to play with the white sapwood and reddish heart wood, especially across the divide of fretboard and headplate.  In this case, the straight grain walnut from the Carpenter Ant stash was a perfect compliment to the "busier" pistachio.  

#294- Walnut and Pistachio Mini Five String Banjo

Normally we have been shipping these mini five string banjo tuned to open C, but this one is strung and tuned lower to open G, like a standard five string banjo.  It has a nice mellow sound that is comfortable to play and I'm quite pleased with it.  The goat skin head both looks and sounds great on this one, I love the variable appearance and texture these heads have.  The curly walnut comes from Goby Walnut in Portland and the pistachio is from California Orchards.  

293- Walnut and Pistachio Concert Banjo Uke

I had time today to play this one enough to ponder the merits of the goat skin head on this little banjo uke.  It really seems like there is a complexity to the tone that makes me want to keep playing.  Amplified through the K&K pickup, it sounded sweet as well.  The walnut is from the Carpenter Ant stash in Portland, with some surprising curl in the rim and some dead straight stuff for the neck.  The pistachio comes from California orchards and I was happy to include a tiny bit of sapwood at the end of the fretboard.  

#292- Walnut and Pistachio Concert Banjo Ukulele

This one doesn't want to go back in the case.  It's made like all the others, from similar materials and no "voodoo" or "magic" to it, but I am really having fun playing it.  They all sound like a Beansprout, but this one has a sweet and vibrant tone I am really enjoying.  The walnut is from the Carpenter Ant stash in Portland and the pistachio is from California Orchards.  

#282- Port Orford Cedar and Pistachio Baritone Ukulele

The depth and richness of tone that you want from a baritone, but the zing that you need from a standard ukulele. Pistachio from California orchards, fir salvaged from old floorboards and Port Orford Cedar from the Oregon Coast.