Monday 5 December 2011

Storyboard Books Printed and Signed!

When pulling together the Storyboard exhibition, Mat and I reallised what a great opportunity we had to make a photography based documentary of the project. So we went ahead and turned our favourite 26 images along with the story into delightful little handmade books. Great for the coffee table or for budding board builders to browse over for some thoughtful inspiration....we hope! We had a limited run of 14 printed, which we have both signed and the first few have disappeared from our hands without us even telling anyone about them. This first run of signed editions are priced at £25 each, so if youd like to pick one up before Christmas, let us know and we'll send one out to you.

Here are some teaser images that are in the book.










We are planning to complete a second edition of prints when we sell out of those first few, but these wont be signed and will be sold at a price of £20. So if you miss the first batch, fear not, more are on the way!

Friday 28 October 2011

Bear Prototypes Finished

It feels like it's been a long time in the making, but we have finally completed our first two prototype Wombats for Keith Beddoe of Bear Surfboards. There were a few issues with the collaborative processes that needed ironing out, so these fist two will be very much our demo boards, and not for sale but in the coming months, we will be working on a mal with Keith. So if you're looking for a longboard from us, watch this space...



We will be keeping this model for demo use, its a 6'4 based on the Bear Wombat.



This is Keith's 6'4 model - look at the lovely finish that the guys at Diplock Phoenix achieved for us.
Here's Keith's board in its new home - on display at Surfed Out in North Devon.

Monday 10 October 2011

Demo Day This Weekend!

Thanks to the Tubestation at Polzeath for holding our current exhibition as well as the Jesus Longboard Classic http://tubestation.org/jesus-longboard-classic/

Mat is going to be at the event with a Mini Magic and a Big Blue to demo for anyone who is keen to have a go on one. Fingers crossed for some good waves and some great surfing.


An 8'0 Big Blue model will be at the event.


Along with a 6'10 Mini Magic.

Tuesday 20 September 2011

The Storyboard Opens at Polzeath


The Storyboard and book took center stage for the openning.



A board close-up reveals the story and the hard work - handmade plywood with engraved frame all from one tree!

A selection of our final images (6 of 12) all framed with the same tree's timber.

Talking boards with George Stoy as the openning comes to a close with one of our finished Bear boards in the background. . . watch this space for more news of those!




 Last Saturday we were lucky enough to open our exhibition at the Tubestation in Polzeath. Mat and I were up 'till late on friday night hanging boards on the walls and fiddling with gallery hanging systems to get everything looking right. Then on Saturday, with a cup of tea and some cake we entertained some enthusiastic guests talking about our project.

So. . . its now open, untilt the end of October and we're so pleased to have all the pieces of the puzzle together, so if youre into wooden surfboards get along and have a look round. The framed images are on show upstairs and the board and books are displayed in the gallery space downstairs at the Zeath gallery.

Sunday 11 September 2011

Exhibition just around the corner

 

One Tree. One surfboard. One Story.
For the past 9 months, Mat Arney (check out Mats blog for the full story) and I have been busying ourselves in the woods and workshop to pull together a project which is being launched as an exhibition this coming Saturday. We will have our board, framed images and books on show and sale, so come on down to Polzeath, Tubestation for our openning at 3pm on Saturday the 17th of September for tea, cakes and wooden surfboards.


Friday 19 August 2011

Story Board - Upcoming exhibition in Polzeath

Here is a little taster of some un-edited images that will feature as part of a collaborative exhibition that me and freind/photographer Mat Arney are putting together. We are telling the story of a board made completely from Cornish Western Red Cedar from the standing crop through to a finished board, with a few hidden surprises too!

The Story Board exhibition will be taking place at The Tubestation in Polzeath, launching on Saturday September the 17th and will be on display for 6 weeks until the end of October. We plan to have framed prints, the display board and a second finished board and even some books that will document the story deeper on sale at the gallery.

We will post further developments here and will extend official invites for the opening night on request. So please come along and see what we have been up to.









Saturday 13 August 2011

World Belly Boarding Champs just around the corner!

We are pleased to let you know that we will have a small stand down at Chapel Porth beach for the World Belly Boarding Championship, held by the National Trust on Sunday the 4th of September. We are planning to have a demo session of our handplanes and a couple for people to try out throughout the day, so if you're keen, come on down. If you're really keen, why not enter the belly boarding competition too? - Visit the official website to enter here.

Just a little reminder of how a handplane looks.

Thursday 14 July 2011

Surf Fayre at Sennen



We will be taking some demo boards, handplanes and t-shirts down to Sennen on the 6th of August for the Surf Action Fayre. If you fancy a ride on one of our boards, fancy picking up a handplane or t-shirt, or simply want the chance to talk to some of the industries best board makers, please come along.

The Surf Action Surf Fayre is a gathering of Cornwall’s finest surfboard shapers and surf related businesses, local art and craft. This is a fundraising event with Free entry that will help Surf Action continue their great work with Combat Veterans.

We are stoked to have been invited to the show and hope to see you there! (fingers crossed for some waves too)

Wednesday 6 July 2011

New Tees Printed

We have just picked up our next batch of tees from the folks down the road at Advertees. Printed on Earth Positive tees with water based inks, these shirts are thoughtfully and carefully produced. We have limited stock, so order yours soon to have a new, soft and low impact shirt for the summer!

£20 Each - Email us to get hold of one info@ottersurfboards.co.uk

Earth Positive - "Organic and ethically made, but crucially, manufactured solely using sustainable energy generated from wind and solar power."

I have been pleasantly surprised at how soft these shirts are to wear. They're a great cut and comfortable, let alone minimum environmental impact. Help us get the word out there and put our logo on your chest.






Tuesday 28 June 2011

SAS Board underway

Surfers Against Sewage got in touch with us a few months back about making a board to be part of their raffle fundraiser later this year. We got making to get some pics ready for their promotional work even though it won't be needed until December and boy are we excited about getting it finished.

One lucky supporter will walk away with this 6'10" mini magic model. Keep your eyes on SAS for their raffle tickets!








Monday 23 May 2011

New Website up and running

We have just finished the long task of pieceing together a much more comprehensive website, with the ability to purchase products and much more content to see and read. Get stuck in and let us know your thoughts!

www.ottersurfboards.co.uk

 

Friday 6 May 2011

Boards Ready for Demo

We got some boards back from a couple of shows the other day and they are now waxed up and ready for riding. If youre interested to come and see how they ride, get in touch and we can arrange for you to test one out.

The Boards are a 5'8" Whiz Twin, 6'8" Single Diamond and a 6'10" Mini Magic.




 
 



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Tuesday 12 April 2011

Big Blue goes exploring

We got Big Blue back from the Get Fresh exhibition at the Devon Guild of Craftsmen at the end of Feb and took it out to get some pics a few days ago. The sea mist had risen, but the sun was still out so we got some funky iconic shots of the mine at Wheal Coates near Chapel Porth.

Though this board is to become a demo model, this shape is now availabe from 7'10" to 8'2" at a price of £1295. Just drop us an email if you are interested in this, or any other models.











Wednesday 6 April 2011

Otter Surfboards on a quick trip to The Eden Project

Thanks to friend and old colleague Tim Stirrup, Otter Surfboards will be at Eden this coming weekend - on the 8th and 9th of April. We will have a few finished boards on show as well as the rest of our product line as part of Pioneer EBC's stand at the Green Build Show on at The Eden Project.





We will be in one of Pioneer's Studio Arks in the Banana Car Park (where the park and ride drops you).

We hope to see you there!

Wednesday 30 March 2011

Handplanes Boxed and Ready for Sale

Our Handplanes are now available to buy. Priced at £45 plus p+p, they make a great present and a great addition to the quiver for days when you just fancy some bodysurfing fun.

Contact us to place an order.

Here are some pics of one boxed and ready. We supply the planes with 80ml of tung oil - the best 100% natural oil for protecting your plane - and some appplication and care guidelines. All packaged in a recycled cardboard box using some of our wood shavings for protection.









Please note that handplanes will have different colour/wood schemes as we make them from our surfboard off-cuts. If you have a preference, please let us know.

Sunday 20 March 2011

Trelowarren Private View - We Won Best Newcomer!

Here are some pics of the show openning for the Cornwall Crafts Association Trelowarren Gallery. Open from the public for 2011 as of last Monday, the 14th of March. We managed to win the best newcomer to Cornwall Crafts, thanks to John Crowther for his award.

This show is open for eight weeks, before the gallery has a shuffle around, so if you want a closer look at our handplanes and the single diamond, pop down and have a browse around the gallery. The house and grounds are stunning, a beautiful country estate just outside of Helston.














Thanks to all for the kind words and interesting conversations. I hope many more of you enjoy the gallery and the great craftsmanship on show!

Monday 28 February 2011

Surf trip for the hand planes

 
Our new hand planes got in the waves this weekend. Thanks to Sean and Ally for paddling into some dumpy sandy rides while we got pics from the beach. We all agreed that on a day like this they were more fun than our surfboards, great for getting little barrels and giving you a workout.


 






These are available through our website - just email me, or alternatively, I'll soon be putting some in the Cornwall Crafts Galleries at Trelissick and Trelowarren. They'll come with a cloth and some oil for keeping them looking pretty.

Photographs thanks to Liz Diss