board#118: mini-malibu for Laura

Dimensions: 7'0 x 21 1/4 x 2 1/2

[completed in December 2015]

Model Valerie

The story: Laura is an Orange County surfer which I met through the surf group she is part of: the Wahine Kai Surf girls. I got my dear friend Michelle in this group who has been riding my longboards for a while and spread the good word about my boards [board#008 and board#055]. And this is how Laura decided to order a mini-malibu from me. She is more of a shortboard surfer girl but she needed a longer board for the weaker swells, without compromising too much on the performance. She tried my personal board and that was the model she picked for her first Mere-Made surfboard!

The shape:  When Laura asked this model it was just perfect because she and I share the same body weight and surf level. So I basically shaped that board like if it was for me which makes the work so much easier! Very thin mini-malibu with pinched rails and deep channels = the formula for a very fast  and manoeuvrable mini-malibu. I called it "my long shortboard" :)

The artwork: Laura already made my life easy by asking for my favorite shape and she was also very cool about the artwork: "anything would do". She was not picky. After sending a couple of pictures and color ideas, we locked down a modern geometrical design. Very Mere-Made-like!

The testimonial: I was in the water with Laura when she took her first wave with it. The waves were decent that day (4-6 foot range) and a shortboard would have been more appropriate but Laura took very nice rides and I was so stoked to witness that!

Laura with her nephew

first wax.....

board#115: longboard for Isabella

Dimensions: 8'0 x 21 1/4 x 2 3/4
[completed in November 2015]
Model Valerie

The story: Isabella is a teenager from the East Coast but she studies here in California and therefore she lives with her uncle's family. It was his idea to give her a surfboard to reward her good work at school. Plus, she could now follow him on the waves during her free time. I thought it was already a very special board but it became even more emotional when I learnt that Isabella wanted an iris as artwork. This was the favorite flower of her Grand-mother who she misses a lot.

The shape: Isabella was a surfer in training but not her uncle who could help me to figure out the type of board she would need. My best-seller model Valerie adjusted with more length and volume overall was picked.

The artwork: Like mentioned in the story section, Isabella insisted for an iris. I was a bit resistant to make what she was suggesting first with vivid colors... Because it was representing her Grand-Mother, I wanted the artwork to be soft and delicate. Even though I am not a painter, I took my brushes and painted the flower on the foam. Because of the texture of the foam, it looks like watercolors. Exactly what I imagined for Isabella.

Only photo I have :(

board#114: longboard for me

dimensions: 7'2 x 21 x 2 3/8
[completed in November 2015]
Model Valerie

The story: The Model Valerie is my best-seller and my every day board. I can surf it when small or a bigger surf and it turns so well that I call it "my shortboard". My latest of this model (click here to see it) started to get a bit beat up and needed a replacement.

The shape: same as before with a bit more pinched rails. That is the great thing about shaping for myself. I know what I want. I know what I need. I shaped the board without any hesitation.

The artwork: as I was showing my new very colorful Roxy wetsuit to my friend Laurent, he came up with the genius idea of matching the artwork of my board with it. The idea was that I would camouflage (view from the top, from a pier for example) when paddling on it. 

That is what you get for dropping in on me !!! ;)

board#113: longboard for Sarah

Dimensions: 7'6 x 21 1/4 x 2 3/4
[completed on September 2015]
Model Valerie

The story: as you may have noticed all my posts start with a "The story" section. This is because I do custom surfboards and there is a story behind all of them. Some stories are very cute. Like this one. One day I receive an email from Michael. He is on a mission. He wants to surprise his girlfriend Sarah with a custom surfboard for her birthday. After a couple of emails back and forth, we decided it would be best to have her involved as she is surfing already for quite a while and she would probably want to have her input in the specifications of the board. However he surprised her by meeting me when she thought she would go for some random errands. I had my ordering sheet ready to take notes for her upcoming birthday present. 

The shape: talking with Sarah about her board, I found out she was surfing my home spot!!! This is great news for me because I know exactly what kind of waves she will be dealing with and it helps me refine the dimensions needed. She wanted a longboard and I suggested she should try mine as she weighted like me. She did and she decided it was the right board for her. Of course, we adjusted a couple of dimensions for her surf style. The shape went pretty smoothly as I know this model by heart (almost!)

The artwork: I received very specific directions about the artwork. I could tell they put a lot of thoughts about it. The main piece on the deck was a chinese sign which says Sarah's name with real hand prints from her daughter. In the back, Michael asked for a stylized representation of the beach with Sarah's and her dog foot prints. I could tell this board would be very special for Sarah.

Michael's sketch with my suggestions in pink ;)

real hand print from Sarah's daughter

Here is Sarah and her new board !!!

board#113: longboard for Sarah

Dimensions: 7'6 x 21 1/4 x 2 3/4
[completed on September 2015]
Model Valerie

The story: as you may have noticed all my posts start with a "The story" section. This is because I do custom surfboards and there is a story behind all of them. Some stories are very cute. Like this one. One day I receive an email from Michael. He is on a mission. He wants to surprise his girlfriend Sarah with a custom surfboard for her birthday. After a couple of emails back and forth, we decided it would be best to have her involved as she is surfing already for quite a while and she would probably want to have her input in the specifications of the board. However he surprised her by meeting me when she thought she would go for some random errands. I had my ordering sheet ready to take notes for her upcoming birthday present. 

The shape: talking with Sarah about her board, I found out she was surfing my home spot!!! This is great news for me because I know exactly what kind of waves she will be dealing with and it helps me refine the dimensions needed. She wanted a longboard and I suggested she should try mine as she weighted like me. She did and she decided it was the right board for her. Of course, we adjusted a couple of dimensions for her surf style. The shape went pretty smoothly as I know this model by heart (almost!)

The artwork: I received very specific directions about the artwork. I could tell they put a lot of thoughts about it. The main piece on the deck was a chinese sign which says Sarah's name with real hand prints from her daughter. In the back, Michael asked for a stylized representation of the beach with Sarah's and her dog foot prints. I could tell this board would be very special for Sarah.

Michael's sketch with my suggestions in pink ;)

real hand print from Sarah's daughter

Here is Sarah and her new board !!!

board#97: longboard for Dina

Dimensions: 7'2 x 21 x 2 5/8

[completed in May 2015]

Model Valerie

The story: One day, on my home spot parking lot, a lady driving by suddenly stopped her car next to mine. She pointed at my board and she said: "that is exactly what I am looking for". I handed her my business card and 3 months later she got "the board she was looking for".

The shape: this is shape is one of my favorite, if not my favorite. That is what works for me and I had so many good sessions on this board. Dina had the same body shape than mine so it was just the perfect fit for her. I didn't have to customize too much. I shaped it how I would for myself which makes the shaping much easier.

The artwork: once I was done with the shaping, Dina stopped by my house with a paper which was precisely what Dina wanted. (This woman knows what she wants at every level ;) We are not only sharing the same body shape :)) I just followed the directions. It was an interesting concept of an artwork which would mimic resin tint with overlaps. Reason: cost & weight. I loved the result! I was almost jealous I was not the one who came up with this artwork in the first place. The cherry on the cake are the gorgeous Bamboo fins from NVS. 

The light glass was done at Global Glassing.

"sketch" made by Dina !!!

bamboo fins by NVS

board#086: longboard for me

lingerie-inspired surfboard !

dimensions: 7'2 x 21 x 2 5/8
[completed in March 2015]
Model Valerie

The story: wait a minute... My current longboard number is #011 (click here), all dinged and the colors are fading... But but but I love it so much... wait, I am the shaper... I can just make myself a board whenever I want. It is about time to get a brand new longboard :)

The shape: same shape than the previous board but with a 75 additional board experience in between. 

The artwork: I always super excited to shape a board for myself because I get to pick my very own artwork. Once again, I took my inspiration from my favorite brand, Victoria's Secret. For a very long time I had the fantasy to have some lace laid-in on a surfboard. I shopped around for real lace and I quickly realized that it will add a lot of weight to the board. I then decided to browse the internet to find a lace pattern I could print out on rice paper.  I picked amongst hundreds of different lace patterns (it was like shopping for real fabric) and I bought a high resolution file which I copy and paste to create a long piece of lace. Then, the print-out was glassed on top of my spray-painted surfboard.

The testimonial: I din't want to change a thing about my new longboard as I loved the previous one so much. I corrected the imperfections of #011 with my acquired experience. Definitely my favorite shape personally.  It is also the favorite shape of many of my customers (one new customer even stopped me in the parking lot and ordered one on the spot!).  This board is so popular that it became a demo board. Feel free to borrow it whenever you would like to experience the thrill of the Valerie model! 

Board #011: a mini-long board for...me!

Dimensions: 7'2 x 22 1/4 x 2 3/4
[completed in may 2012]

I have been busy like a bee shaping mostly for my husband and for my friends. I wanted board #011 to be mine. 11 is my lucky number (I think) as I keep seeing this number everywhere. So for board#011 my goal was to replace my beloved but delaminating 7'2 Walden. I had the greatest rides on that board and I wanted something very similar for either flat days or more challenging surf where I feel safer taking off a bit further out. 

The shape was easier than usual as I knew exactly what I wanted. The more difficult part was the bottom as The Walden mini-magic models have a double + single concave going all the way to the nose. I added a mini V bottom at the very end of the tail (where the middle fin is). I had a lot of fun shaping that board.

The design is my favorite "animal": a dragon which I purposely picked chinese because 2012 is the year of the dragon! The background has neon colors: I want my board to be seen from the parking lot so my friends can easily spot me in the line-up :) Pink and orange are my favorite colors. I hope you like too.

Glassing (4 oz, 4+4 oz) and by Global Glassing in Oceanside. The board is super light!

on the road towards stoke

airbrushed pink to orange fade 

my daughter and I are always in sync,
we even blink together on the pictures

pretty close, isn't it?

the neon colors are a big hit with my 3 year old