Thank You to Our
2023 SPONSORS!
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EXHIBITORS LIST
(alphabetical by company name)
Glen Henderson
61 Nickel Guitars
The Cigar Box Guitar is not a new concept. They have been around since the mid 1800’s as an alternative to poor people who were unable to afford commercially available instruments. The simplicity of these early guitars was what set me on my path to create a modern version of this classic handmade instrument. They are created using actual cigar boxes sourced from all over the world. Each guitar features mostly locally sourced hardwoods from right here on Vancouver Island. Modern electrics have been installed to create an updated version which adds to the versatility. Each guitar has three strings and is open tuned (G is most common).
There are fully fretted of fretless (slide) versions available and they are all 25-1/2” scale length. The use of up-cycled materials pays homage to those original instruments made only with simple items like a cigar box, a broom stick, and a wire from an old screen door. The quirkiness and uniqueness of these funky little pieces of “functional art” is what makes them so appealing to musicians. A buzz here and a rattle there is part of the fun and also part of the overall charm. Arguably one of the easiest stringed instruments to learn to play, Cigar Box Guitars are as much an expression of art as they are of musicianship. I have created over 250 of these guitars reaching four continents worldwide and each one has a 1961 Canadian Nickel mounted proudly on the headstock (or in some other clever location).
Nicole Alosinac
Alosinac Luthiery
Nicole Alosinac studied woodworking design and construction for two years at Conestoga College of Applied Arts and Sciences in Kitchener, ON Canada. It was after completing this course and working as a cabinet maker that she discovered her passion for the guitar.
Alosinac began working for Jean Larrivee Guitars Ltd in 1999 in Vancouver, BC. During her four years there, she worked in several areas of the factory; bracing and building bodies of guitars, being a member of the quality control team, and becoming the factory and warranty repair person.
Nicole then expanded her knowledge of instrument repair by working at a very busy Vancouver guitar shop. Repairing not just acoustic and classical guitars, but electric guitars, banjos, sitars, ukuleles, ouds, erhus, basically anything that came through the doors.
During this same time Nicole was building up her own shop and continuing her studies with Master luthier Geza Burghardt, a relationship that started during her days at Larrivee. Studying classical guitar construction, guitar repair techniques, french polishing, tool construction and violin restoration.
Nicole Alosinac Luthiery was established in 2003. From the time of opening her doors she has worked on hundreds of minor to major projects, always with the satisfaction of the customer in mind. Nicole continues to study, expand her knowledge and strive for excellence in the art of luthiery.
Brian Harder
Black Raven Workshop
Bernard Funston
Funston Guitars
Bernard Funston began building guitars about 20 years ago, at the suggestion of his then-young children. He launched Funston Guitars in 2005 to begin selling his instruments in a market seldom considered by others: the circumpolar North, including northern Canada, Alaska, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and Finland. His repertoire includes mandolins flamenco, classical, steel string acoustic, solid body and hollow body electric guitars. Funston instruments have made their way into the hands of musicians all over the world. In September 2011 a Funston guitar, commissioned by the University of the Arctic, was presented to Vladimir Putin in Arkhangelsk, Russia to promote Arctic dialogue and cooperation. In 2020 two Funston mandolins were included in the twelve instruments produced from paulownia for the President Carter Legacy Collection. Funston’s work has been showcased in guitar shows, winning the People's Choice Award at the Ottawa Guitar Show in 2014.
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Gord Budden
G Buddy Leather
Hi, I’m Gord.
My journey began as a hobby-slash-therapy in 2010. I was hanging out with a friend at his music store in Nova Scotia where he did lots of creative stuff - from whittling wooden spoons and small wood carvings - to making guitar straps. My first creation, with the aid of my friend, was a dog leash. Then I made a small, hand sewn leather bag and attached it to the leash. Then I carved my dog’s face in it. That was the beginning …
Soon after that, I went to work in the oil patch – two weeks on, two weeks off. I would make some belts and wallets at home and bring them back to work. Soon I was getting orders every week. One day, I had an idea to carve a fretboard into a belt for a friend’s birthday. Though it was a lot of work, the finished product looked great and my friend loved it.
In 2015, I gave up my full time job, put on my leather hat, loaded up the family, and moved to Vancouver Island (kind of like Jedd Clampett). I went to my first market, set up a booth selling leather products and began to gather a following, getting custom orders most every week. At that point I realized – hey, I think I’ve got something here. I love what I’m doing, I’m good at it and people like the product.
My style is what you might call a “vintage model”. I make everything by hand the slow, careful way, using water based dyes and largely veg tan leather. This leather is processed in an eco-friendly manner, from start to finish, and actually takes months to complete, with no harmful chemicals involved. By taking this extra time, it provides a long-lasting, superior end product.
I use very little social media, preferring to meet and talk to my customers first hand. We start talking and, more often than not, we veer off to something they hadn’t come in for but they’ve always wanted and, before you know it, we’ve designed that extra special custom item. Drop in, take a look and check out what’s on hand and, if I don’t have what you’re looking for, there’s a good chance I might be able to make it for you!
Rye Bear
Gyspy Rye Bear
Growing up on a farm in rural New South Wales, Australia. I started my woodworking journey at a very young age with my father, who is a trained wooden boat builder and traditional timber framer. I then started building guitars at the age of 15 when I apprenticed with violin and guitar maker Graham Caldersmith. Graham had been building classical guitars and violins for over forty years, with a Masters in Areophysics and a comprehensive background in acoustic studies, he built world class instruments using modern building and tuning techniques.
Using the knowledge that I accumulated during my seven year apprenticeship under Graham Caldersmith, I have gone on to create my own acoustic steel string and classical guitar designs. Utilizing modern bracing techniques, acoustic resonance tuning and a clean defined aesthetic. I make instruments with far more volume, sustain, clarity and projection than you will find in most other guitars. For steel stringed instruments I use Falcate bracing, incorporating laminated curved braces reinforced with carbon fiber above and below the brace to make the tops light and flexible at the edges, yet strong and stiff where they need to be. For classical guitars I use a graded rectangular lattice bracing capped with carbon fiber to create an instrument that plays with amazing volume, sustain, clarity and projection from the first fret to the twentieth.
I am currently living and building instruments in Vancouver, Canada with my partner Celina Jacinto and our first beautiful boy Koa.
Luc Cuypers
The Guitar Stand Guy
Born a long time ago in Antwerp, Belgium, to a very serious dad and a somewhat ditzy mom. On serious dad's prompting, got a seriously boring degree (chemistry), followed by several boring years at what is now the European patents institute. Went back to school & got a far more interesting degree (oceanography), left Europe & came to Canada. Yippie, great mountains to hang-glide from. Jobs in science, construction, oil patch, & more. Like to hike, ride my mountain bike, & putter around in my workshop where I build my creations, mostly guitar stands. That's it, folks.
Joshua Harms
Harms Guitars
Specializing in custom handmade headless electric guitars, Harms Guitars combines the finest hardwoods, electronics, and hardware to make each build a unique and inspiring tool for the modern musician. Luthier Joshua Harms is dedicated to best practices for design and build quality, for an instrument that honours the craft, inspires you to play, and draws others in to listen.
Hex Fx
No more unsightly "wart" or "puck" on your handsome guitar!
No more crushing your guitar due to the Roland external "puck" not letting your hard-shell case close properly. Finger-tip control of features found on the Roland Controller.
Our product, the HEX_STRAT, was designed to provide a path to a very simple, non-destructive mounting, installation and use of either a readily available GK-type pickup or re-purpose your existing GK pickups. An important guiding premise to our design is to ensure that the HEX_STRAT installation must be TOTALLY reversible … you are able to return your precious guitar back to its initial condition … with NO visible damage or cosmetic change.
Wayne Irvin Johnson
Irvin Guitars
Wayne Irvin Johnson has been building guitars full time since 2016. Having first learned to play guitar when he was only 6 years old it was pretty clear to those around him that he has a wonderful ear for music. Years later he met James Olson and was smitten with a deep passion to build guitars. In the fall of 2014 Wayne studied under Sergei de Jonge. From there he went on to design and produce his own line of custom steel string guitars. His keen ear has served him well to voice guitars that are amazingly balanced, gorgeous sound and sustain that seems to hang in the air forever. They are fabulous to look at too!
Reuben Forsland
Reuben Forsland is well-known for his respect of traditional building methods, yet is always exploring new design and concepts through the use of rare and exotic woods and materials. His philosophy of building a great guitar extends to lives of the people it will touch through passion, inspiration and music . The art of guitar building is so much more than making a beautiful instrument. The detail of exact measurements and the intrinsic qualities of the different woods is what truly makes a guitar sound the way you desire. Precision in tone, resonance, and differentiation for each note played are the standards for a JOI guitar. Perfecting sound for the clients tonal desires and requirements - starting with my own bracing system, then matching it with the right combination of woods. That achieves two key things: the most ideal sound and absolute client satisfaction.
Chuck McDiarmid
McDiarmid Guitars
My path to building guitars is far from what most would consider normal. I didn’t plan to become a builder, but like many things in my life, it presented itself as anopportunity and I’m seeing where it takes me. Most of my professional life I’ve worked within the sport of rowing, coaching and developing athletes. This is a career I continues today, living in Victoria BC and working for Rowing Canada Aviron. As RCA’s NextGen Program Lead I support athletes who have the goal of competing at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. As for music, I grew up playing the bagpipes. In my twenties I attempted playing guitar and drums in bands with friends. As the years passed this all took a back seat to life, family, and career.
I started building guitars later in life. When my son turned fifteen, we decided to build a bass together. This got me hooked, I couldn’t stop thinking about how to improve the next build. After a couple years of experimenting, learning, and creating expensive firewood I decided to turn my weekend hobby into a weekend business. In the spring of 2018 McDiarmid Guitars was born. Since this date I have focused on getting my guitars into the hands of musicians, gathering feedback on the feel and sound. Their feedback, good and bad, challenges me to develop and improve my skills.
I can be found most weekends, in my shop, surrounded by sawdust.
Emmet McCusker
McCusker Guitars
Emmet McCusker has been making musical instruments since 2005. Initially an electric guitar maker in the style of Paul Reed Smith, he switched focus to acoustic guitars in 2009. His current acoustic instrument designs include OM, 000, and Parlour sized guitars and A-style mandolins.
In his workshop in the Cowichan Valley Emmet creates hand-made instruments using traditional building methods with exotic woods from around the world as well as beautiful local and reclaimed woods. Recent guitars have been created from very local quilted maple, fiddleback maple, figured English walnut, Tasmanian blackwood, Macassar ebony, Gabon ebony, African limba and sitka, englemann and adirondack spruce.
As a prospective client, you are welcome to tour the studio and browse the extensive hardwood and softwood collection and select the woods for the guitar of your dreams.
Warren Murfitt
Murfitt Guitars
What started out as my desire to build one tiny little Parlor guitar in the back room of my studio workshop, quickly took over my life. Guitar parts and sawdust everywhere, wash it down with a good dose of country music and I’m in heaven! I am a minimalist and I like tight, clean lines. No fancy inlays but rather choice detailing designed to compliment the instrument and speak directly to it’s new owner. I love to use reclaimed woods that I have salvaged locally. For example, my new line of FirCaster electric guitars are made from one piece of ancient reclaimed Douglas Fir. No unsightly glue lines, just tone and old age. I do like a good story and I value new client input into their instrument. Guitars should not only play a great tune, but they should tell a good story. Warren Murfitt was born in British Columbia and studied sculpture at the Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design. He has worked as a treeplanter, carpenter, artist and musician. He lives and works in Vancouver.
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Caleb Blake
Natural Collections
Caleb Blake, a Canadian woodworker and entrepreneur, founded Natural Collection in 2019 out of his two car garage in Calgary, Alberta. Caleb and his wife have since moved their family and the business to Vancouver Island, B.C, where they are finding new connections to family, nature, and the local art and music scene.
The business was born out of a passion for woodworking, a love of all things music, and the desire to build and grow a successful business. And the vision from four years ago still holds true today: to build musical instrument stands and displays with the highest emphasis on quality and design. A stand that doesn’t just hold your instrument, but showcases it in a way that turns your instrument into a piece of functional art.
The Natural Collection product line of floor stands, wall hangers, display cabinets, and performing stools began first with the Floor Stand. And although its design has evolved over time, it still remains the companies best selling item. In 2020 the Walnut Floor Stand won first place in the ‘furnishings and home décor’ category for the ‘Made In Alberta Awards.’ Not to be outdone- the Performing Stool took first place the following year in the same category. Caleb's stands have been featured in magazines such as Western Living Magazine, Premier guitar, Avenue Magazine, and Home in Canada.
Andy Nezil
Nezil Guitars
Mr. Nezil first studied classical and steel string guitar construction under luthier Michael Dunn at Douglas College in New Westminster in 1985/86. He then continued his lutherie studies in the form of an apprenticeship at Larrivee guitars in North Vancouver under the direct guidance of Jean Larrivee. Since then he has built a wide range of acoustic stringed instruments from renaissance harps, gitterns, rebecs, to classical guitars and steel stringed acoustics. Mr. Nezil has made Victoria his home in '92 and since 2009 has specialized in the production of custom hand carved arch top jazz guitars of the highest quality.
John McQuarrie
Northwood Guitars
John McQuarrie began building guitars in high school woodshop class. After working with Jean Larrivee from 1987 to 1994, John started Northwood Guitars building primarily steel-string acoustic guitars.
Keenan McCormack
Rooster Electric Guitars
Hello my name is Keenan, i have been obsessed with guitars and rock and roll music. As a carpenter, over time I got the confidence to start building and designing my own guitars.
Living in Vancouver, I had the good fortune of living next to a master carver and westcoast artist, Jimmy Joseph. Together we created many indigenous carved electric guitars. With his and his familys blessing, I began carving my own designs in the westcoast style.
Like many guitarists I’ve always loved Les Pauls and the Gibson brand. I’ve recently taken a few Gibson guitars and turned them into playable works of art!
Sam Houston
Sam Houston Guitars
Hi There! My name is Sam Houston and I make archtop guitars out of my small workshop located in Fernwood Victoria BC Canada. My goal is to create responsive acoustic instruments that have a unique blend of traditional design and modern construction and innovation.
Shaw Saltzberg
Shaw Guitars
Shaw Saltzberg is the producer of the Vancouver International Guitar Festivals (2017 – 2022). The Victoria Guitar Show marks Shaw’s first appearance as an exhibitor at a guitar exhibition. Shaw is a super-fan of lutherie, knows many of the world’s best craftsmen and loves hanging out with people who share his passion. He can’t decide if he’s an amateur, a professional or somewhere in between – you decide! Thanks to Trevor and Rueben for the opportunity. Prior to retirement Shaw was a booking agent representing clients such as Diana Krall, Sarah McLachlan, Barenaked Ladies, John Fogerty, Colin James and many more.
Sigmund Johannessen
SJ Guitars
Sigmund Johannessen was the owner and instructor of Summit School of Guitar Building and Repair since 1995 till it closed in 2020. He now owns and operates SJ Guitars and Luthiery Training, where he teaches, builds and repairs. Sigmund will be displaying Arch-top Guitars along with one of his students Justin Smith who will also be displaying some of his work.
Tim Butler
Tim Butler Paint
Hello guitar heads everywhere. My name is Tim Butler of TBPaint.
I paint and finish guitars. I've always had a love for instruments of all types. Lately I have been a bit obsessed with the old Japanese and Russian guitars from the 60's. The weirder the better! I also appreciate the natural beauty of wood and am just as happy when i get to finish something like that. I specialize in low VOC water based paints and laquers. I have done some work for Trevor Woodland at Vigilant Guitars with plans for more in the future. I love painting guitars!
Tyson Soth
Tyson Soth Guitar Co
Tyson Soth builds unique, responsive, comfortable guitars in his shop in Spokane Washington. He's a master of many trades, but found his calling in building acoustic guitars. He specializes in pairing together the most attractive tonewoods he can find in order to build guitars that are as beautiful to look at as they are to listen to.
Trevor Woodland
Vigilant Guitars
Vigilant was founded in 2015 and has quickly grown into a business specializing in extended range instruments (7, 8 and 9 strings), multi scale instruments utilizing exotic woods and environmentally conscious products. I manufacture instruments to be as unique as the musicians who play them and I’m always happy to try new technologies, products and processes to make your dream guitar!
Dan Vincent
Vincent Guitars
Always grateful for the people in my life that have made building guitars such a wonderful adventure. Such a wonderful cast of characters to be inspired by, share laughs with, and provide a seemingly never ending supply of some of the most amazing woods our planet has to offer. Also grateful to be building guitars in one of the most incredible parts of the
world, Powell River. Look me up if you’re in the neighbourhood!
There’s so much to love about guitar building, including always having something nice to dig my fingers into. My focus is on acoustic steel string. I consider myself a traditional builder with my influences coming from the world of responsive guitar builders. I am truly blessed having the opportunity to have the worlds finest tonewoods pass over my hands.
My customer testimonials would indicate that whatever I’m doing, is working well. I pride myself on craftsmanship and finishing. As a long time advanced mediocre player (lol), I know the tone I am after. Coming up on 50 builds, my goal is to create client/guitar love affairs.
