I have a very special guitar, called the "Aki Jiimaan", for my esteemed client Tim B. that definitely tells a story. This one is on the verge of completion, after a long wait. I glued the bridge on last night, and today and tomorrow, I'll finish the assembly and set-up.
Tim wanted a guitar with some special inlay that depicts his favorite place on Earth, the Aki Jiimaan, or Land of the Canoe- the homeland of the Ojibwe Indians in Canada. Tim has traveled here for years to spend time in the pristine wilderness, camping, fishing, canoeing...
We commissioned Jimmi Wingert to do the inlay work, because something on this magnitude is beyond my skill set. Unfortunately, Jimmi had some enormous life changes, and was unable to complete the job. She did produce a beautiful design, though, and Tim bought the design work. We wound up sending it to the DePaule workshop in Vietnam to get the shell work done. They did a masterful job.
This project has taken nearly two years to complete, due to all the delays and re-routing of the inlay work. And I have to say, it was quite a nerve-wracking tightrope walk for me to inlay this incredibly complex shell work into the fingerboard and headstock. But it turned out a success, and I think it looks stunning.
Tim has been infinitely patient and kind through the whole process. And now his wait for this guitar is almost over. The Aki Jiimaan will be coming home to him in just a few more days. Once everything is fully dialed in, it's on the way to him.
The back and sides are Brazilian Rosewood, and the top is Sinker Redwood. I'm confident this guitar will sound as amazing as it looks.
Here are some photos of the Edwinson Eclipse OM Aki Jiimaan guitar, before the lacquer work.
Wow, sorry about all the dust on the upper fingerboard! I'll post some new photos of the guitar once it's strung up and fully detailed. For good measure, here are a couple more shots of the rest of the guitar. Thanks for looking!
