Author Topic: Fretboard inlays (Read 268 times)

jazzyvee · « **on:** October 01, 2006, 03:49:59 AM »

I'm planning to have some inlays with my initials on the fretboards of my alembics to personalise them.
I've had a look through the custom archives and saved some really nice inlays with names and initials.

Anyone got any good ones I could get a photo of as I'm going to see my luthier this week and it would be good to have a number of options for him to be able to price me on.

For my SC I'm thinking of having the last fret inlaid as the abalone on the position markers on my bass looks great and don't want to lose them.

As for my Orion guitar and Europa bass I plan to have the existing MOP inlay removed from the 12th fret and replaced with an inlay.

Any examples that you have or remember seeing on the forum, could you put me a link or a photo so I can print them off. Thanks
Jazzyvee

tom_z · « **Reply #1 on:** October 02, 2006, 10:57:35 AM »

Jazzy - my Skylark has a 12th fret inlay which includes the first letter of my surname. Susan cleverly composed an image of a crow (the name of a remarkable dog in the family) with the letter Z running through it.

Not a simple personalization, I realize, but Susan's very elegant solution to my request for a personal tribute.

jazzyvee · « **Reply #2 on:** October 03, 2006, 12:12:43 PM »

That looks way cool and pretty expensive as I would imagine. Here are a couple on the custom gallery that I am thinking about.

or this one

jazzyvee · « **Reply #3 on:** October 10, 2006, 11:56:32 AM »

I've just been over to Jaydee Custom guitars and he is going to do some inlays for me with my initials.

I'm having the 12th fret position marker removed and replaced with a full fret inlay of abalone, like the first of the two pics shown here. But just have my initials cut out so they appear in black against the background.

I'd like to use the Alembic Font for that, do you know what the font is?
Cheers
Jazzyvee

mikedm · « **Reply #4 on:** October 10, 2006, 01:28:54 PM »

I'm not sure that it is a font in the classsic sense. If I remember correctly, I think I've read where the Alembic script was deisgned by Susan. Perhaps if you ask nicely...
However, MD's initials look like a commercial font.
A close, commercially available font is Arnold Bocklin, not sure that's spelled correctly, it was the rage about 30-25 years ago in art school.

Mike

mica · « **Reply #5 on:** October 10, 2006, 02:44:24 PM »

MD's initials are a commercial font - Palmetto that I modified to be less delicate for cutting the inlay and to fill the oval more nicely.

The Alembic script is based on 13th century writings. It's not a commercially available font, but a look around the MyFonts website should produce something that you will like.

I request that if you are going to use a font for inlay artwork, that you purchase a copy of it - type designers work very hard for very little usually.