Guitar Cartoon Picture
Meinard Hartmann
This Instructable describes how to do cartoon-style inlay on an existing acoustic guitar. Ever since I first saw a laser cutter, I have wanted to try using it to decorate a guitar. Tech Shop gave me that opportunity. You can do this type of work on your instrument, too. A laser cutter helps a lot, but is not essential, as people have been cutting wood veneer for inlay for centuries. The "cartoon style" approach is good for your first attempt, as it is a lot more forgiving than traditional inlay and marquetry. What makes it "cartoon-style"? Simply that the veneer pieces are surrounded by black lines like they are in a cartoon. That way, the pieces don't have to be cut with the precision used in traditional marquetry.
A guitar. This instructable uses an acoustic, which is generally trickier than an electric (my first go-round was actually a Telecaster, but I didn't document the steps on that one). I would strongly recommend that you use a cheap guitar that won't elicit a suicide attempt if things go south--for the love of God, don't go to town on your Collings or your Clapton-signature Martin with power tools...
The guitar I used is a Takamine G-series 12 string, which was obtained off Craigslist. It played and sounded pretty good for a low-end 12-string, but there are two big downsides to cheap guitars like this. First, low-end guitars are invariably finished with a tough poly finish that is good for banging around but a nightmare to remove. Second, low-end acoustics are invariably made of plywood, so you have to be really careful not to sand through the pretty surface wood into the ugly ply.
7) Refinishing supplies. I happen to love Birchwood-Casey's Tru-Oil (a gunstock refinishing kit) for guitar refinishing, but spray lacquer or wipe-on poly can also be used. You'll also need 0000 steel wool to smooth the finish.
First things first--decide on your design. I used a character based on the work of Vaughn Bod, the brilliant underground cartoonist from the sixties and seventies. I drew the character in bold black marker on a piece of paper, then scanned it into the computer. I then used the editing tools and trace functions to isolate and outline the pieces--in other words, each bold marker line became two lines (one for each side) in the computer. Take a look at the picture and you'll see what I mean.
I then used the design to cut the outline out of a number of different veneer sheets on the Trotec laser at Tech Shop. I used about four different types of wood. If you don't have access to a laser, you can use an X-acto knife, but watch your fingers and use a sharp blade or you'll shred the veneer, which will want to break along the grain with almost no provocation.
Once I had cut the design out of a number of different woods, I assembled the pieces mix 'n' match to get the look I wanted. I then attached then to a piece of paper with a small dab from a glue stick to keep them organized.
First, remove all the hardware from the guitar and put it aside. Now comes the tedious, scary part. Using sandpaper ranging from 150 to 320 grit and an orbital sander, carefully strip the poly finish from the sides and back of the guitar. Go slow and keep the sander level or you could eat through to decorative veneer into ugly ply.
If you are working on a solid-body electric, you can save a lot of time by using a heat gun and a spatula to strip the finish. Unfortunately, that heat will make an acoustic guitar come apart at the seams (and possibly de-laminate), so unless you want to reassemble the guitar body I don't recommend it.
Now, using wood glue, remove the design piece by piece and glue it in the cavity using wood glue or veneer glue. I found that the best way was to glue a few pieces, then cover the design with plastic and weight it with about 25 lbs. of books for about ten minutes to allow the glue to set. After you have all the pieces set, let it cure overnight under weight.
To create the black lines, mix some color into a dollop of clear epoxy. I use 30 minute epoxy so I don't have to work so fast mixing the color and spreading it on the inlay. Allow it to dry overnight. To keep the color from penetrating into the surrounding wood, I went over the inlay and the pocket with a thin wiped coat of tru-oil and allowed it to dry.
The next day, use the orbital sander to sand the design flush with the surface. If your depths were OK, this will remove the epoxy from everything but the lines. It will also remove the upper part of the inlay wood with the tru-oil on it, leaving bare inlay wood.
After the sanding is complete, use a brush to carefully stain the surrounding wood that was stripped during sanding of the epoxy. I avoided staining the inlay, but feel free to march to your own drummer.
Now you can finish the guitar back as a single piece. Tru-oil is the easiest option I have found. Wipe on a thin coat. Allow to dry. Lightly buff with 0000 steel wool. Wipe with clean cloth. Repeat as desired to achieve the finish you want.
Coco is a 2017 American animated fantasy comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Lee Unkrich, co-directed by Adrian Molina, and produced by Darla K. Anderson, from a screenplay written by Molina and Matthew Aldrich, and a story by Unkrich, Molina, Aldrich, and Jason Katz, based on an original idea conceived by Unkrich. The film stars the voices of Anthony Gonzalez, Gael Garca Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Alanna Ubach, Rene Victor, Ana Ofelia Murgua, and Edward James Olmos. The story follows a 12-year-old boy named Miguel (Gonzalez) who is accidentally transported to the Land of the Dead, where he seeks the help of his deceased musician great-great-grandfather to return him to his family and reverse their ban on music.
Coco premiered on October 20, 2017, during the Morelia International Film Festival in Morelia, Mexico.[8] It was theatrically released in Mexico the following week, the weekend before Da de Muertos, and in the United States on November 22, 2017. The film received acclaim for its animation, voice acting, music, visuals, emotional story, and respect for Mexican culture. It grossed over $814 million worldwide, becoming the 16th highest-grossing animated film ever at the time of its release.[9][10][11][12] Coco received two awards at the 90th Academy Awards and numerous other accolades. The film was chosen by the National Board of Review as the Best Animated Film of 2017.
In the Mexican town of Santa Cecilia, a young woman named Imelda marries a man who eventually leaves her and their daughter Coco to pursue a music career. When he never returns, Imelda bans music from her family and opens a shoemaking business.
Decades later, Imelda's great-great-grandson Miguel lives in the family home with his parents and relatives, including an elderly and ailing Coco. Despite the family's continued ban on music, Miguel secretly loves it and teaches himself to play guitar by watching videos of his idol, the late musician Ernesto de la Cruz. On the Day of the Dead, Miguel inadvertently bumps the family ofrenda and breaks a frame containing a photo of Imelda and an infant Coco. He discovers a hidden section of the photograph that shows his great-great-grandfather (whose head has been torn from the photo) holding Ernesto's famous guitar. Believing this proves Ernesto is his relative, Miguel excitedly tells his family about his musical aspirations. In response, Miguel's grandmother destroys his guitar.
Distraught, Miguel breaks into Ernesto's mausoleum and takes his guitar to use in a local talent competition. Once Miguel strums it, he becomes invisible to all living people. However, he can interact with his skeletal dead relatives, who are visiting from the Land of the Dead for the holiday. Taking him back with them, they realize Imelda cannot visit since Miguel removed her photo from the ofrenda. Miguel also discovers that he has been cursed for stealing from the dead: he must receive a family blessing to return to the living world before sunrise or he will remain in the Land of the Dead forever. Imelda offers him a blessing on the condition that he abandons music, but Miguel refuses and seeks Ernesto's blessing instead.
Miguel encounters Hctor, a down-on-his-luck skeleton who once performed with Ernesto. Hctor offers to bring Miguel to Ernesto in exchange for Miguel placing his photo on an ofrenda so he can visit his daughter before she forgets him, which would cause him to fade from existence. Hctor helps Miguel perform in a talent competition to win entry to Ernesto's mansion, but Miguel flees after being discovered by his family.
Miguel sneaks into Ernesto's mansion and is welcomed by a surprised Ernesto, but Hctor appears and accuses Ernesto of stealing his songs. As the two argue, Miguel slowly pieces together the truth: Ernesto and Hctor were once a musical act on the brink of fame until Hctor grew homesick and tried to leave. Unable to write songs himself, Ernesto poisoned Hctor and stole his guitar and songs to pass off as his own. To protect his legacy, Ernesto seizes Hctor's photo and has Miguel and Hctor thrown into a cenote pit. There, Miguel realizes Hctor is his actual great-great-grandfather and that Coco is Hctor's daughter.
After being rescued by his family, Miguel reveals the truth about Hctor's death, and Imelda and Hctor reconcile. The family infiltrates Ernesto's concert to retrieve Hctor's photo. Ernesto's crimes are exposed to the audience, who quickly turn on him, and he is crushed by a falling bell (mirroring his fate in real life), although Hctor's photograph is lost in the chaos. As the sun rises, Imelda and a fading Hctor bless Miguel and return him to the living world.
Back home, Miguel apologizes to his family for running away and plays "Remember Me" on Hctor's guitar, brightening Coco to sing along with him. She shares that she kept the torn piece of the photo with Hctor's face, then tells her family stories about her father, preserving his memory as well as his existence in the Land of the Dead. Miguel reconciles with his family, ending the ban on music.
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