For the Curious

Why I Make Didgeridoos

For awhile now, I've been questioning why I make didgeridoos. It seems there are a growing number of didge makers in this world some of whom make great didges and others of whom make entry level sticks. I believe I fit somwhere in the middle as many, many of us do.

While this has become part of making a living for me, that's not the entire reason why make didgeridoos. I make them because I love working with wood. I'll admit that for a white bred girl, working with wood seems like the least likely thing I would do, but I love it. My grandfather was a woodworker and things seem to have seeped in. There is a medatative quality of working with wood, hollowing a stalk out, shaping the inside, sanding the outside, carving out a mouthpiece and carving the bell end ans seeing a didgeridoo come to fruition.

Another reason I love didgemaking is there is the beautiful moment when you hear a didgeridoo's voice for the first time. Some didgeridoo makers hear the didge's voice many times over as they carve and play, carve and play, carve and play to achieve the sound quality they are after. I would love to spend this kind of time with a didgeridoo and probably can given the space and tools to do it. I would love to do this because I love sounds and the physics of sound and to be able to shape the inside of a didgeridoo is much like shaping a waveform with digital synthesis. The difference is with a didgeridoo, it's more tangible.

The biggest reason though why I love didgeridoo making is the happiness it brings others. It brings enough happiness to me but when I see the love someone has for the instrument that came to them, then that reason alone can be enough to be in didgemaking. Case in point...I recently met a man named Gary at a local festival. He was running a vendor's both that a group of us busked next to one Saturday. He was so excited to join in. He asked if he could play the didge I had and I said "sure." I have to say, I've never seen anyone take to didgeridoo quite the way Gary did. He was so much fun to play with and watch. He kept saying over and over in excitement, "I gotta get me one of these."

Well....Lisa came up with the idea that the next day Gary would get a didge one way or another. We took a few didges to show him and again he was like a kid in a candy store. Then I handed him a Didgitube to take home with him until he could get a wood didge. He was overwhelmed..... I was very grateful to be able to do this because I could see how much it meant to be able to play. Not work at it but just Play.

Now, I would love to be able to make didges to give away all the time but I do need to make a living as well. But when I see how much someone loves this instrument, it's a joy to be able to help that along. I know how it feels to find that instrument that you resonate with. It's like finding that partner that is "The One."

A Commitment to the Planet from Bluewood

There is no doubt we are in a time of great change and transformation. To go along with these times, Bluewood Didgeridoos is also changing and morphing to live, breathe and operate within the planet’s means. With this said, here are a few things we are either changing or getting ready to change.

Woods

We are looking at graduating from yucca to cedar because it is a wood that is native to the Northwest and because it seems to us to be sensible to use it reducing the carbon footprint it takes to transport yucca here to the Northwest. Will we go cut cedar trees down? No, all didgeridoos will be carefully selected from fallen branches but we will also make sure there is plenty left in the forest to nurture new growth. We also like the idea of cedar because it's easily workable without the use of powertools. So, handmade means just that...handmade.

Finishes

We have also started finishing didgeridoos with a tung/linseed oil on the outside. This finish is made right here in Washington State by TreehouseLab reducing the carbon emissions in getting it here. And as for the inside finishes/ well, we're also looking to change that from epoxy to a whey based finish produced by Vermont Natural Coatings

Services

Our services are also starting to change. In the coming months, Bluewood will start offering a service for people to consign their didgeridoos through an internet hub for a small fee. We are also looking for ways of reconditioning used didgeridoos and then offering them to new homes at affordable prices and didgeridoo repair. We’ve already implemented a program for folks who buy a Didgitube to return it for a $25 credit toward a purchase for a wood or yucca didgeridoo once they decide to upgrade. This offer is good for any wood didge we offer onsite. The Didgitube will then be reconditioned and readied for a new home.

in the end...

Even though we are a very small business, we feel it’s very important to take care of our planet by only doing what we really need to. After all it’s the only planet we’ve got and we love it. If all of this sounds good to you, let us know. And if you have any ideas on how to implement some of the visions presented here, also let us know. We would love to hear from you and we’ll give you credit for your help. It’s a way of building community through this extraordinary instrument. We thank you for your business because without it, we wouldn’t be here. But most of all we thank you for your presence. Take care and we hope to see you soon.

In gratitude,

Pam and Lisa

Taking Care of Your Didge...

People sometimes ask me how do they take proper care of their didgeridoo so it can last a good long time. Here are some answers...

....more curiosities coming soon!