Monday, August 3, 2020

This Lady Luthier Has Been Making Amazing Custom Guitars In NYC For Almost 9 Years

Cindy Hulej is a luthier who has been creating incredible custom-made guitars in New York City’s West Village for nearly 9 years. She uses a variety of different techniques, such as wood-burning, hand painting, and even leatherworking, to create the guitars and each of her instruments is a unique masterpiece that would make every musician’s jaw drop.

In an interview with DeMilked, Cindy said she has always been interested in music and art. She grew up watching her father play guitar and started playing it herself when she was just 8 years old. Throughout summers in high school and afterward, Cindy studied at Art Students League in Michael Grimaldi’s life drawing and anatomy class as well as Bill Behnken’s etching and lithography.

More info: Cindy Guitars | Instagram | Instagram

Cindy Hulej is a New York-based luthier who creates incredible custom-made guitars

When Cindy first came to New York, she had to work at a suit-and-tie type restaurant for as many as 80 hours a week to make ends meet. After a couple of years working there, the restaurant had to close and this forced the woman to look for something else to do. “I sort of said to myself “what am I going to do now?.. I was interning at galleries here and there and doing odd jobs sometimes- always playing music at home and all, but I didn’t want to be on the “paperwork side” of anything anymore– and I knew that trying to make a living being an artist within a year wasn’t practical at all,” said Cindy.

At the time, Cindy was helping musician Jimmy Webb around his apartment and the two decided that working on something to do with guitars would be “super cool” – and the woman wasn’t about to get a job at Guitar Center.

“I was always following Rick Kelly’s guitar making throughout high school ((he’s owned Carmine Street Guitars here in Greenwich Village the last 30 years and has had about ten shops prior to including one called Naked City Guitars around the corner on Bedford back in the 70s which was frequented by the likes of Lou Reed, Bowie, Belushi…)) and I loved the fact that he was repurposing really old wood out of famous NYC buildings like the Chelsea Hotel, Chumley’s Speakeasy, Jim Jarmusch’s loft, etc,” said the woman. “And I loved that he worked so old school – everything by hand, no computer. In fact, he still doesn’t have a cell phone! Ha!”

That’s when Cindy decided to simply walk over to Kelly’s guitar store and ask for an apprenticeship – and it did! Even though the first thing he said was “I can’t pay you”, Cindy was determined and said it was okay and she simply wanted to learn how to build guitars.

“He could tell I was serious and took me on that moment and I’ve been here now ((and building)) almost 9 years nearly every day,” said Cindy.

“I also wasn’t interested in combining my artwork and building – I didn’t think anybody was going to appreciate or want it,” said the luthier. “He really pushed me to do that because he thought I was very talented and I’ve had orders steady from the get go so the outcome in that has been really awesome and unexpected.”

So far Cindy has built custom guitars for musicians like Ian Docherty of July Talk, Jackson Smith of Patti Smith Band, and Kurt Vile of Kurt Vile & The Violators, as well as Jim Jarmusch of Squrl, Stuart Matthewman of Sade and many others.

“Carmine Street Guitars is basically Rick building his guitars((Kelly Guitars)) and me building my guitars ((Cindy Guitars)) and his mother, Dorothy, who is 95 and still does the paperwork,” said Cindy. “There are no CNCs and even our guitar templates are made from scratch out of masonite like Leo Fender used to do.”

When asked what material Cindy uses to create her guitars, she said they use all sorts of old wood, ranging from pine and mahogany to zebrawood and padauk. However, the luthiers are best known for pine – as that is what most of New York City is built of. “These are conifers((which are the oldest in the world)) having grown for 200-400 years- then were cut down and indoors for another 100-200 years expanding and contracting throughout the summers and winters in these old buildings,” said Cindy. “This makes the wood very resonant and stable for making guitars. If you were to look at the grain of this wood on a microscopic level ((because the pine trees grow the straightest in grain)) it would look like a bundle of straws, which also allows us to make guitar necks without truss rods – which is unheard of usually and what we are known for as well ((big pine neck no truss))– remnant of the way classical guitars were always made.”

If you want to order a custom guitar like that yourself, keep in mind that Cindy has over a two-year waitlist, even working on about 10 to 15 orders at a time – and that’s not counting the custom pickguards and straps!

“I could build a standard simple guitar in about a week but most of mine are a bit more complicated and so they take a bit longer, not to mention the artwork hours that go into some,” said the luthier.

Cindy says that a couple of her signature models are the Moto and the Cathedral.

There’s even a film made about Rick and Cindy, called Carmine Street Guitars – you can check it out here!

Check out more of Cindy’s incredible custom-made guitars below!

The post This Lady Luthier Has Been Making Amazing Custom Guitars In NYC For Almost 9 Years appeared first on DeMilked.



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Masked illustrations are welcoming shoppers back to Europe’s malls

We Are Open was created for mall operator Klepierre, which owns shopping centres in countries across Europe. It’s intended to convey “open-mindedness and hospitality”, as well as the joy of returning to a bit of normality.

Parisian artist Séverine Assous created the illustrations, which feature some classic aspects of retail life including security staff and check-out assistants wielding barcode scanners. Notably, every person is wearing a face covering – included as a reminder that we all still need to take precautions.

The We Are Open campaign will appear in shopping centres in 13 countries, and feels like a pleasantly upbeat take on current events.

sidlee.com

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Top five cardboard furniture designs in the Dezeen x Samsung Out of the Box Competition revealed

Dezeen x Samsung Out of the Box Competition finalists

A rocking horse, a series of animal companions and three storage solutions have been selected as finalists in Samsung and Dezeen's contest to create innovative household objects from repurposed cardboard packaging.

A jury comprising Samsung executives Kangwook Chun, Kyounghoon Kim and Jae Julien, alongside Dezeen's editor-in-chief Marcus Fairs and assistant editor India Block, selected the top five designs from a 15-strong shortlist, which we published last month.

Each design was assessed on its innovation, aesthetics, functionality and how practical it would be for someone to build at home.

"The quality of the shortlist was extremely high," said Fairs. "The top five designs are all simple to build, yet elevate the humble cardboard material to create objects that are both useful and attractive."

"There were so many brilliant ideas that we didn't even think of and it was a pleasure to see so many people support the Eco-Package concept and share their creative designs with us," Samsung said. "These top five designs were outstanding among the many submissions."

Readers can vote for their favourite design via Instagram

The five finalists were based in Belgium, India, Portugal, Sweden and the UK, reflecting the wide range of entries received. In total, the contest attracted over 1,500 submissions from 82 different countries around the world.

The jury will convene later this month to determine the overall winner.

Readers can also vote for their favourite design by replying to our Instagram Story by Friday 7 August . The results of this public vote will be shared with the jury to help inform their decision and will also be revealed alongside the winner announcement in September.

Endangered Animals by Sarah Willemart and Matthieu Muller
Sarah Willemart and Matthieu Muller created a series of animal companions for kids

The competition draws from Samsung's Eco-Package concept, which aims to reduce waste by providing customers with a way to repurpose their television packaging into new household items.

Two of the top five designs transform the cardboard boxes into animal-shaped toys for children.

Endangered Animals by Sarah Willemart and Matthieu Muller
The rhino is made from Samsung's The Serif Eco-Package

Sarah Willemart and Matthieu Muller, who are based in Waterloo, Belgium, created a series of three companions for kids called Endangered Animals.

There is a polar bear that can be made from Samsung's The Sero box, a black rhinoceros that can be constructed from The Serif box and a sea turtle that can be built from The Frame packaging.

Endangered Animals by Sarah Willemart and Matthieu Muller
The polar bear is made from The Sero box

The animals, which are intended to help teach children about declining biodiversity, can be produced without glue and have been designed to be simple to construct.

"The animals are made of four to five pieces only and use the existing folds of Samsung packaging," explained Willemart and Muller.

"It makes the assembly very simple and accessible to children. The polar bear, black rhino and sea turtle can be used as riding stools, drawing tables and secret hideouts."

The Rider rocking horse by André Cardoso
André Cardoso created a rocking horse

André Cardoso, who is based in Braga, Portugal, created a rocking horse called The Rider.

Designed to be made from the box of Samsung's The Serif television, it is assembled from a series of folded cardboard panels, which are orientated so that the graphic representation of The Serif TV printed on the outside of the box forms a saddle.

The Rider rocking horse by André Cardoso
The rocking horse is designed to be made from The Serif box

"The design was envisioned for kids between three to five years old and dimensioned to make the most of the available cardboard, reducing waste," said Cardoso.

"The package cardboard capabilities such as thickness, stiffness and flexibility were thoughtfully studied to ensure a stable and sturdy object."

Twist basket by Akhil Kumar
Akhil Kumar created a basket called Twist

The other three finalist designs are all different forms of storage.

The most simple design is the Twist basket by Akhil Kumar, who is based in Mumbai, India.

The sides of the basket are made from a single panel of cardboard cut from The Sero Box, which is scored and folded diagonally to create a visually appealing faceted form.

Twist basket by Akhil Kumar
The basket is constructed from just two cardboard panels cut from The Sero box

"I wanted to create a design that will require the least amount of cutting and gluing," said Kumar.

"I believe minimizing the effort is a way to encourage people to recreate and repurpose the cardboard boxes. The complex-looking faceted shape is actually rather easy to create. Its form is simple and the angular faces lend a unique visual interest, adding character to any space."

Kibe storage by Revaz Berdzenishvili
Revaz Berdzenishvili created a stepped storage unit called Kibe

Revaz Berdzenishvili, who is based in Stockholm, Sweden, has a different take on using Samsung's Eco-Packages to create storage.

His Kibe design, which means "stairs" in his native language of Georgian, features a distinctive stepped design that can be used to display objects, as well as housing a series of draws to hide things away inside.

Kibe storage by Revaz Berdzenishvili
Kibe can be used to display objects or hide them away in drawers

"Many efforts were made to make Kibe delicate and simple to use," said Berdzenishvili. "Clean lines, shadows and light interplay to draw attention to its design."

"The piece does not require glue," he added. "It consists of the main enclosure and five storage units. It leaves minimum cardboard leftovers after assemblage."

Tessellate by Abigail Whitelow
Abigail Whitelow created a modular furniture system called Tessellate

Abigail Whitelow, who is based in London in the UK, created a modular display and storage system called Tessellate.

It comprises six modules, which can be arranged in different ways to create a coffee table, a sideboard, or a variety of different shelving configurations.

Tessellate by Abigail Whitelow
The modules can be configured as a coffee table or shelving

"It's perfect for houses of all shapes and sizes, and can be easily adapted, giving endless possibilities to a cardboard box that would usually be discarded," said Whitelow.

"Each module of Tessellate is an assembly of nine unique components – four modules can be created using The Frame packaging."

Tessellate by Abigail Whitelow
Four modules can be produced from a single The Frame box

The five finalists were selected by the jury ahead of 15 other shortlisted designs, which included a planter, a sneaker rack and even an amplifier for mobile phones. View the shortlist here.

The final results of the competition will be announced in September. The winner will receive a top prize of $10,000. The runner up will receive $5,000, third place will receive $3,000 and the fourth- and fifth-placed entrants will receive $1,000 each.

The results of the public vote will be announced at the same time, although there is no cash prize for the popular vote.

Photography is by Benjamin Swanson with set design by Jam Studios and retouching by The Wizard Retouch.

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Guy Lends His Friend His Pair Of Shoes For A Wedding, Receives Funny Live Updates From Their Perspective

One groomsman didn’t have the right shoes for the wedding he was attending, so instead of buying a new pair just for that one night, he decided to ask around if someone had a pair that would fit the dresscode. And as luck would have it, one of his friends owned a pair that was perfect for the occasion.

As a thank you, the groomsman decided to amuse his buddy. One-by-one, he started sending him live updates of the wedding, only they were from his shoes’ point of view. There was dancing, there was dining, there were new acquaintances being made. Everything you’d expect from an unforgettable night.

After everything was said and done, the groomsman uploaded screenshots of their conversation on Imgur, and they immediately went viral. I guess people know a true friendship once they see one.

“The wedding was nice, it was a small ceremony because of the pandemic, but they have plans to do a proper celebration for their anniversary, COVID-permitting,” the groomsman told Bored Panda, adding that only a few other groomsmen knew what was going on. “I had to be a bit crafty to get the photos during the ceremony, but I think I was pretty sneaky for most of them. I did require a photographer for some of them to get the proper angle, But I would like to claim that last photo as my own. Pretty proud of that one.”

Here’s what people said after reading their conversation



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IOC designs Solari workstation in collaboration with Gensler

Dezeen Showroom: trestle legs and a customisable, J-shaped privacy screen distinguish the Solari desk system, developed by Italian office...