The Woodstock Invitational Luthiers Showcase was a highlight this year — a fantastic show and an all‑around great time. I’m already planning to head back in 2010.

I also returned to the Montreal Guitar Show this summer, as well as the Healdsburg Guitar Festival. Earlier in June, I attended the ASIA Symposium, which is always a valuable gathering of builders, ideas, and inspiration. It’s been a full year of travel, shows, and conversations, and I’m still busy in the shop working through orders.

Alongside the show circuit, I’ve been developing a few new ideas that will start appearing on guitars in 2010. One simple but meaningful change is that I’ll be using my signature logo on all of my guitars — not just the 12‑strings. More on that soon.

I’ve also been working on some refinements that live inside the guitar — the kind of details most people never see but definitely feel in the instrument’s response. And this year I joined the Sonic Sitka Project, which has been a fascinating experiment. With any luck, I’ll be bringing the Sonic Sitka guitar to Montreal in 2010. More details on that as it develops.

2009 was busy, energizing, and full of new ideas — a year of movement both inside and outside the shop.