(Don't Fear) TVvoodoo's Insanitarium

[TVvoodoo]

OMG! get ready, pack a bowl! put on some Dead LOL

[tobijohn]

I've always considered your straps as art but I've got to say, you have really been in the zone the last half dozen or so. Nothing but net, and from beyond the three point line...

[TVvoodoo]

I've always considered your straps as art but I've got to say, you have really been in the zone the last half dozen or so. Nothing but net, and from beyond the three point line...

Thanks John, feel like I'm doing good work, but some of the people I'm dealing with behind the scenes are fun too. Mostly deals that don't go down, people shopping for handcraft quality stuff, but want it at Walker/Wanker prices etc. Or just lonely guitar guys that want to chat about gear... But generally, most guitar people are very chill. My problem sort of right now is success..... I get four custom jobs in the queue, and then my regular output gets killed, the creative stuff that I just build to make myself happy. It's a balance I'd love to find, but I can't turn down real paying work either, and that's the stuff that really pushes me into new areas a lot of the time.

Today I was set to work on a custom, and within half an hour I got a car dealer wanting three separate newspaper ad designs ((EMERGENCY!!! DEADLINES!!!) , and a law firm wanting ten business cards, custom letterhead and envelopes printed. (I do some graphic design and print brokering, and some apartment schniedering so that I can keep making straps for HAHA). I never even got to pick up that custom strap until about 9:30 tonight.

I'm in my happy place generally, and I think that is showing in the work. Now if I could stop listening to all those political podcasts all day long, I'd be much more relaxed LOL

[TVvoodoo]

Work continues on Phoenix... for addict guitars

heavy duty stressful dye day today... I'd say I was 85% successful with a couple of clams

once it's oiled, antiqued buffed out and finished should be pretty smart looking piece

[nomadh]

I've always considered your straps as art but I've got to say, you have really been in the zone the last half dozen or so. Nothing but net, and from beyond the three point line...

Thanks John, feel like I'm doing good work, but some of the people I'm dealing with behind the scenes are fun too. Mostly deals that don't go down, people shopping for handcraft quality stuff, but want it at Walker/Wanker prices etc. Or just lonely guitar guys that want to chat about gear... But generally, most guitar people are very chill. My problem sort of right now is success..... I get four custom jobs in the queue, and then my regular output gets killed, the creative stuff that I just build to make myself happy. It's a balance I'd love to find, but I can't turn down real paying work either, and that's the stuff that really pushes me into new areas a lot of the time.

Today I was set to work on a custom, and within half an hour I got a car dealer wanting three separate newspaper ad designs ((EMERGENCY!!! DEADLINES!!!) , and a law firm wanting ten business cards, custom letterhead and envelopes printed. (I do some graphic design and print brokering, and some apartment schniedering so that I can keep making straps for HAHA). I never even got to pick up that custom strap until about 9:30 tonight.

I'm in my happy place generally, and I think that is showing in the work. Now if I could stop listening to all those political podcasts all day long, I'd be much more relaxed LOL

Those podcasts can grind on you. If you haven't listened to klavan check out a few for the first 3 min or so. His tag is laughing our way though the end of western civilization.

[TVvoodoo]

Thanks for the recommend @nomadh will check out a few more too I think!

Ok, this morning I completed another Dijon Python which is now listed on 'verb, as well as this No Prisoners Treasure, which I've been working on for a couple of days...



Craving comradery, freedom, bawdy songs, along with guzzling copious amounts rum on the bounding main and the relentless pursuit of booty? This is your strap. "Buccaneer Crazy" is a super cool one, featuring a heavy aged brass buckle showy up front, which is over 3" wide. There is an additional 10" of adjustment on the tail end, plenty of black leather and over 150 aged brass studs and grommets, all on a nice padded leather base. See it on Facebook too, plenty more pics going up on Reverb tonight also.

[TVvoodoo]

A sudden hot breeze assaults you, infested with a fetid aroma of decaying carcasses. Just one wayfaring experience you'll remember forever. ☢ "Tokzik Wazte" ☢ is a guitar strap reminiscent of a carefree holiday in rural Chernobyl, where silently desolate landscapes invite you recline, relax and enjoy all your remaining hours.

Now it reads more brown on camera, but it's actually a green. The kind of green I saw only one time before. It was when I was a gaffer on a film crew, and we were filming on-location at a city morgue. It was early
spring, and they brought a body in, found along the river valley after the snow had melted. I will never ever forget the odour. The bloated corpse was peppered with large-ish circles of a particular green colour. The colour of this strap.

I distinctly recall Craft Services served a vegetarian chili at break. Ugh.



Also new in the store, in the Sammy Hagar, Paul Dean and Brad Gillis (RIP) tradition, I present to you Red Rocker!

[Chocol8]

Hot and hotter!

[TVvoodoo]

Today I have the honour of introducing the Well-Hungarian Tribe to something interesting I came up with today. Perhaps you know of me inventing simple libations others don't think of. This one, I call it the "Shandyrella." Wanna be the coolest, summer host with the mostest? I invented this, and it's designed to please



Pour a chilled lager of your choice, plop in three (or to your taste) frozen cubes of unsweetened grapefruit juice. It's really cool in that it gradually gets more tart as you drink it and helps a beer sit for a little longer while on-patio. (this probably not a problem with many WH tribe warriors).

Anyway I can tell you right now it is straigt-up super refreshing, a break from the old same old. Give it a go let me know how it goes. I think it could catch on!

Oh, and these are coming... a series entitled "Blind to The Tyranny"



Also recently built these custom jobs...

[TVvoodoo]

Valerie asked us to outfit her with a comfy guitar strap. A showy blue / silver sparkle "galaxy" fabric caught her eye... we put it on black leather, padded it in the Well-Hung way, by special request made it 2.5" wide. We present: "Valaxy"... it's a stunner…



might even eclipse the Starry Night Ernie Ball Musicman it's destined to sling!

[tobijohn]

Valerie asked us to outfit her with a comfy guitar strap...

Valarie loves you!



Sorry, I couldn't resist. At the time, they were a pretty popular Chicago band that most thought probably would have gone places if the lead singer hadn't killed himself first...

[TVvoodoo]

[tobijohn]

Or maybe the Monkeys?

[TVvoodoo]

Been working with a new material I ordered on a whim over the past week or so, trying all kinds of treatments to get it where I feel it needs to be. This morning some new success, so I figured I'd try the first two straps in a new series I'm calling "Tarnished."




So far I've only been able to get this to a tarnished Silver and Brass look, I think copper might be do-able, probably can do an nice gun blue too if anyone is interested. Quite a striking effect in the lights, metallic, but semi-dulled and aged metallic, y'know? Just like grandpappy's old shootin' iron!




I couldn't help but laugh out loud when it came to mind this looks just like day five with the new guitar with that bright gold hardware. LOL, still laughing. I've been there too, don't worry. Really, you know those old customs with the slightly orangy worn out old gold? Don't think there could be a better match. The beauty of it is, it takes quite a bit of work to get this effect, you cannot just buy these finishes off-the-rack.

Both "Tarnished" straps here are built on 3" wide padded garment leather bases, with beautifully soft and comfy padding, and suedey lining, and they go up to 58" long, so you can easily pull all the coolest guitar moves that you absolutely cannot with shorty factory straps. I saw you try to pull a cool shape with that shorty factory strap, pretty near died laughing, I did. No cool moves available on short leashes, baby.

Also a new Brad's Paisley's strap called "Angry Paisley" being showed off on my F-book and Reverb store, go see!
Ever heard of Burnout Velvet? Until last week, me neither!

[Forecaster]

Great vocal from my favorite male vocalist:

[TVvoodoo]

LOL so many Valerie songs... by the way... here's a photo with the guitar the Valaxy was made for... She's rather pleased



And... Tokzik Wazte found a mate as well...



Some new stuffs...

"Angry Paisley" - 3" wide black paisley burnout velvet



Black Racer...



The Conan the Barbarian themed "Machismo"



And new off the bench today, a new sexy cowgirl attractant series I'm calling "Texas Tickler"



You know the description on Reverb is going to be a hoot, with lots of pics.. go see!

[TVvoodoo]

Coming real soon, some new "1969" straps at a bit less than 2 3/4" wide.



This new paisley is in the store, and very cool


Also four new No Prisoners Guitarra Bandeloros... all kind of like this one...


And... we met a new fella who goes by "Mike" He says he likes guitars, so I guess we like Mike


Happy Friday my Bros

[TVvoodoo]

How's traffic here on AGF my brothers? Sad to say I've been very busy, not spending enough time shootin' the shart with all y'alls.
Just got back from the first real road trip in a year and a half, to visit the in-laws... also did a little material shopping.
Other than that, just trying to make a real go of it here in the strap game, with mixed success, but I ain't one to complain.

Few recent things - "Sunflower", a tapestry strap, in the return of my Carpetbagger series


"Shattered" new in the Star Power series, evoking a glittering smashed mirror (but without all the bad luck).


"Holey Man" a custom order now enroute...


and another recent custom... "Midas Paisley" which is a dead-on match for a slightly greening goldtop, slightly metallic, a "Brad's Paisley" number


Also welcoming Mike "The Hammer," newly enlisted soldier in the much-respected/feared Shock & Awe Militia.
Soon to be in command of our Austin, TX chapter once #79 is fully deployed.



probably some more things I haven't mentioned, getting ready to ship my youngest off to University in the fall, going to be an empty nester, kind of scary. What the hell do you do to fill the empty spaces?

[TVvoodoo]

Once upon a time there was a Golden dragon, who wanted to become KING of all Dragons.



Sure, his golden metallic hide was all glowy & showy, but it just wasn't scary enough to intimidate any of them other dragons.

Driven by his ambitions, he flew far away, over the Mountains of Torment, to ask the Almost Invisible Red Warlock for help. With little gold, and even less power, he had only the promise of a future favour in return for the magician's evil assistance.



Well, that crusty old wizard waved his Wicked Wand of Thornsbane-Paine to cast a spell of deepness, dark. Clouds of black swirled over the mountain, lightning, fire, rain and hail! As all the chaos & crisis finally began to cleared, the gold dragon was newly born, standing magnificently on a boulder, suddenly a terrifying blood red!



It was a shimmery magical red, a candied-apple glowing with metallics hinting through a scarlet hue.
It was the sort of red a king would wear, a colour so majestic, so imperial, it was the only colour befitting The Dragon Royale..

"ROOOAAAAAAARRRRRR!!!!!!" sayeth the dragon... (shooting flames for probably about three miles)...
"The time has come for... "

...to be continued

[TVvoodoo]

"....Retribution!!!!"







From The Nearly Invisible Red Warlock's spell cast upon an ambitious dragon , a brave knight's quest to marry the beautiful princess , to remnants of a majestic leather cape once worn by fire-breathing kings . The legend of The Dragon Royale guitar strap has it all. Full tale over on F-book.

Also a whole bunch of pics on the making of "HoneyDripper" if you dig leather project stuff.



Next up, I'm going to try NOT to cut my ear off.

[Chocol8]

Honey dipper looks like it will be awesome!

[TVvoodoo]

Being as it's rather unfriendly to post project posts here, I'm keeping this to a minimum. Many more pics words on f-book, The Tone Rooms or TGP.
Anyway, new project, pretty ambitious. You all know the painting well."Sterrennacht" or, Vinnies view from his room in the asylum. True story.



Major tooling job



lots of dye stages




I can tell you this. I am beginning to feel the cray of this dude.
Apparently the original work is valued at somewhere around $100,000,000.
I'd be overjoyed with 1/10 of one percent LOL!

Many more deets to updated elsewhere, I'll show finals here probably though, i still love my AGF bros, in a brotherly kind of way.
Molson time!

[nomadh]

Coming real soon, some new "1969" straps at a bit less than 2 3/4" wide.



This new paisley is in the store, and very cool


Also four new No Prisoners Guitarra Bandeloros... all kind of like this one...


And... we met a new fella who goes by "Mike" He says he likes guitars, so I guess we like Mike


Happy Friday my Bros

That's some good pr. Hopefully you'll have a pile o orders from that.

[TVvoodoo]

@nomadh his guitar videoblg channel has a whole 25 followers LOL!

But, I've spoken to him and he's a super nice dude... he recently purchased a Shock & Awe, and I massively discounted a custom order for him to review. They've probably arrived by now, but I think he's in Disneyland for a family vacay... I am hoping he's pleased with those. I need to get the word out for me to be able to keep doing this.

[TVvoodoo]

Few shots of Starry Night, by Vinnie Van Gogh, as interpreted by someone who's not quite so insane, so he claims.



Dig this toilet flush of sanity vortex



This cypress tree is still my favourite part. I think i was channeling ol' Vinnie while this was happening. Or, could be it was all that yellow paint I was eating. Van Gogh was famous for wanting to eat yellow paint, some say because he thought it would make him happy. Others say it was because he was trying to off himself... yellow paint (probably with tons of lead) in it, with a turpentine chaser was kind of his thing. Dude had issues, he did.



I figure for a fella hasn't painted any pictures since grade school, I give myself a solid B+. Could have made it a bit more bluey overall in the village and sky. With all the chaos and paint strokes, so much going on, I wonder if all the texture tooling work underneath the paint was even worthwhile. But it does make it feel fantastic, helps it catch the light in different ways to add interest. Seems like it's going to hold up very well too, flexes real good, doesn't crack... I don't know if I'd make this my every day sort of strap. More for special, I think. Already have an order for another like it. Yay.

LOL! I feel like the next one will be a little better. More pics in other places I've mentioned before.