board#074: shortboard for Colleen

Colleen & her board

Dimensions: 5'8 x 19 x 2 3/16
[completed in December 2014]
V-epic model

The story: Colleen's son got a Mère-Made board first (see Aiden's board here). He liked it a lot and that might have decided his mom to get her own Mère-Made too! Colleen is a very good surfer from my home spot and I am very stoked she is ripping on one of my board now!

The shape: There was a lot of brainstorming with Vincent to decide what was the best options for Colleen. We decided to go  for one of my popular short board model, the V-epic. I am always up for that shape which is one of my favorite to do.

The artwork: Interestingly, the artwork was designed around the very cute pad Colleen bought for this board. We matched the color and Colleen suggested a nice curvy design that would  follow the arc of the pad. Basically, the paint job is an accessory to the pad.

The light/performance glass was done at Global Glassing, Oceanside.

The whole Sprunk Family chose Mère-Made Surfboards!

board#069: shortboard for Sam

Dimensions: 5'7 x 18 7/8 x 2 1/4
[completed in October 2014]
Model V-epic

The story: A long time ago, in a galaxy far away, I met a french guy named Samuel, on the beach, at D-Street, Encinitas because he recognized my logo from this blog !!! We became friends and I shaped him his first Mere-Made in August 2012. It was time for a second one.

The shape: I sat with Sam and discussed what he wanted and "performance" & "shortboard" were the key-words. We browsed my blog with those key-words (yes, there is a search function on the top left corner! very convenient! try it!) and he decided for the V-epic model which I created for my Team rider Nicole. The bonus was that he got to be with me in the shaping room while I was shaping his board so he could  decide on the spot where to remove volume, round some nose/tail,  and work for me as my sanding assistant ;) We did the shape in 2x two hour sessions that day with a surf session in between and a dinner afterwards! You can't beat Mere-Made customer service ;)

The artwork: The choice of color was very singular. Like I said, we were having dinner after the shape when I asked Sam what kind of color he would like. He pointed at the kitchen wall… I said I still had some left over from the interior paint and he laughed. But I was not. I used the Home Depot paint to spray paint his board with the exact color he was pointing at. Sam also requested to paint the white parts with white paint as it is supposed to prevent the resin to get too deep in the foam (less weight) and it also prevent the foam to turn yellow in the sun. As a final touch, Sam asked for a deck carbon patch, beautifully glassed in by the Global Glassing crew.

The testimonial: Sam left for a 5-month surf trip and took his new Mere-Made...

Pro surfer Teiki Baillan approved the board!

Sam is supervising the shaping

Sam helped too with the sanding part

New Zealand 2015 

board#064: shortboard for Owen

Dimensions: 5'8 x 19 x 2 1/8

[completed in September 2014]

Model V-epic

The story: Owen is the person responsible for the little (™) next to my logo… Yes. Owen is the lawyer who trade-marked Mère-Made Surfboards (and apparels!). Big deal in Mère-Made history. As a side note he is also working of for the ASP. Another big deal as he got us VIP passes for the last Trestle Pro! I was stoked when he asked for his own board with little mermaid logo on it ;)

The shape: Owen and Vincent (my technical advisor/customer support) discussed a short board shape that would allows Owen to transition towards performance shortboards (thin, short, fast) for the local fast breaks. I used the V-epic template which is one of my most popular shape.

The artwork: except for the red blade, I had no particular instructions from Owen. I took the liberty to add some steel-like plates as I was super excited to try a new Montana can of metallic paint. The screws were painted manually with a home-made stamp and a toothpick! It sounds painful but I had a lot much fun doing it, actually.

glass by Global Glassing!

board#062: shortboard for Vincent

flags belong to the skies

Dimensions: 5'6 x 18 1/4 x 2 1/16
[Completed in August 2014]
V-epic model

The story: I can just copy and paste the same story over and over: "Vincent, my husband is a surf maniac. For instance, in 2014 he surfed more than 365 times…  Therefore he uses a lot of boards. A lot. And he always wants new models I create for other customers." 

This board is a bit special though. This one was a group order from some of our friends who wanted to give Vincent a surfboard for his 40th birthday. He knew I was shaping him a new surfboard as he always wants to closely supervise the shape/dimensions. However I plotted with our friends so that they would all sign a piece of rice paper I could apply on the board under the glass. That autographed rice paper is what they gave him on his birthday as a surprise. And he was surprised!

The shape: Vincent requested the V-epic model created for Nicole (see her first V-epic here, and her second V-epic here). All the dimensions were tightly adjusted for him. With a  1/16 of inch precision. If you know Vincent,  you know I am not kidding...

The artwork: because Vincent has Basque origins, his 40th birthday party theme was a reenactment of the "Fetes de Bayonne", a traditional party time in July in Bayonne. For this reason, the artwork I picked for his birthday gift was simply the Basque Country flag. The simplistic design was ideal to host the multiple signatures from the gift donors.

board#054: performance shortboard for Nicole

Nicole & Dad, freshly landed from Hawaii

Dimensions: 5'6 x 18 1/4 x 2 1/16
[Completed in July 2014]
Model V-epic

The story: Nicole is a talented Californian surfer girl. Fearless too: she is not  afraid to charge big waves in Maui where she trains regularly with her brother and her dad (excellent surfers too!). Nicole competed last year on her first Mere-Made Surfboard (see story here). Second board was soon due for my only female Team rider!

The shape: For her second board, I discussed with her what she should like to change/improve on her previous board. Nothing major which was a relief to hear :).  She just wanted shorter without losing the paddling ability.  I also made a deeper single to double concave for increased speed. Because I used the same template from her first board she got to name her own shape model. She picked "V-epic" because all the rides are epic on it ;))

The artwork: plain white board was Nicole's request. She had in mind to make her own design on the glass… which she did with the help of her friend!

artwork by Nicole & friend! Good job girls!

board#034: shortboard for Nicole

Isn't it the best testimonial ???? 

Dimensions: 5'7 x 18'' x 2'' 1/16
[completed in December 2013]

The story: Nicole is a 13 year old talented surfer who was in search of her next short board. Her Dad heard about my hobby and she was thrilled to have her board shaped by a girl… and likewise I was thrilled to shape a board for a girl. 

The shape: Nicole brought her current board and she told me what she liked and what she did not like about it.  From this discussion, I tried to make her new board by keeping all the positives and changed the negative points. I basically went for a less narrow nose for more flotation combined with narrower tail for better transitions. I was so excited to work on my first performance short board for a teenager girl !!!! The challenge came also from the very short timelines: I got a text from Nicole's dad showing her current board she just snapped in two pieces in Hawaii (yes, she is charging!). It was Shaping 911!! I got a little help for Nicole herself when she joined me in the shaping room to help finishing the fine sanding. She did a great job even though it is a bit intimidating to work on a board at that stage: the board is so fragile and vulnerable. Fearless like on the waves, she got the job done! Next generation of female shaper on the way :)

The artwork: All credits go to Nicole! She had her mind set on a very modern artwork and she made sure I accomplished it: she sent me sketches and came to my house with the colors she picked at Michaels. Love that determination in her!

Testimonial: the best testimonial is that Nicole picked this board for her latest trip to Kauai and sent some awesome shorts of her shredding on her Mere-Made! She also sent me that text: "Hi Valerie this is Nicole I wanted to let you know that the board works really well (insane) it's so fun the board paddles really well an then I stand up and ride the waves and do turns I don't dig my rail it is the perfect size too its better than any of the other surfboards I've had thank u so much." Thanks Nicole for trusting Mere-Made Surfboards! I am as stoked as you!

Nicole with her Dad
(and her Xmas gift from him)

Nicole's sktech
(I so love the little mermaid in the V!)

Nicole sanding her board

She even picked and cut out her own Mere-Made logo