The Surf Thump Model

Photo: Greg Swanson

Andy Nieblas // Clay Wheels

Somehow, Andy and Jake are skateboarding in the Rose Parade.. keep an eye out for them this weekend.

Photos: Jake Zylstra

Scott Owen // PawnShop kings

Rested // Relaxed // Back to Work

Hope everyone benefitted from a few days off. Excited to get back to it.

Photos: Cameron Oden

Merry Christmas + Happy New Year

Merry Christmas from Ciro Bicudo and your friends at Almond

Handplanes // Offshore Tuesdays

Some fun yesterday in the winds del Santa Ana

Dave Allee // Cam Oden

Gully just finished a new batch of hand-planes.

Cash-Yew // Three Facts

It's really windy at the beach today.

Christmas is three days away.

This is the Cash-Yew model.

Photos: Cameron Oden

Jake Zylstra // Surf Thump

Here, Jake Zylstra is perched on a 9'7 Surf Thump in Newport.

Photo: Cameron Oden

The board Jake is noseriding in this photo is a 9'7 Surf Thump with a Balsa T-Band Stringer and a Mahogany D fin. It is currently available, in its lightly used condition, at Almond.

Quadkumber // Sandia

5'7 Quadkumber and 5'6 Sandia Fish

Hand-shaped and continually refined by Griffin Neumann-Kyle.

Snapshot // Balsa Kookumber

Winter 2011 in a snapshot // Meandher Shoes

Photo: Cameron Oden

Would you rather...?

Photo: Chad Cress

Watercolor: Ciro Bicudo

Wearable version: Available Here

Women's Wool Coat

One for the ladies... 100% Wool Coat

Made from extra soft Army/Navy surplus blankets with solid wood buttons.

Hand-Made in California (less than 10 miles from Almond)

Cameron Oden // Chad Cress

Cam, gets to look at a camera from the other side of the lens for a morning... thanks to Chad Cress

Cyrus Sutton // Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Cy! We wish you many Malibu-length noserides today!

(screen shots from Cy's Summer Fun video at the Bu)

5'8 Poplar Inlay Quadkumber

Poplar Wood Inlay // Three-Tone Rail Spray

Weighs in at just about 7 lbs.

Available at 367 Old Newport Blvd.

Men's Surplus Wool Pea Coat

100% Wool Pea Coat.

Made from surplus Army/Navy Blankets.

Styled after the original 1940's Navy Pea Coat.

Solid Wood Buttons.

100% Hand-Made in California (less than 10 miles from our retail store in Newport Beach)

Balsa Kookumber // Surf Thump

5'5 Balsa Kookumber with a white opaque tail abstract and mahogany fin.

9'4 Surf Thump roughly modeled after an old wooden buoy.

Winter Look Book 2011

Open publication - Free publishing - More almond

Winter Look Book Preview

Sneak peak at the Winter 2011/2012 Look Book

Almond Surfboards // Saturdays NYC

A new batch of quadkumbers and fishes just arrived at Saturdays Surf NYC

If you're in NYC, you don't need me to tell you to stop in and check out their shop.

Board Demo // Recap

Great time on Saturday. The waves were tiny, but everyone seemed to be making the most of a perfect, sunny, December day. We had about as many people show up as we had boards, so that's about all you can ask for.

Here's Jake Zylstra on a Surf Thump on a little inside peeler.

Photo: Cameron Oden

There's still one more week to submit your entries for the Pogie // Sandia Contest

Almond Board Demo // Dec 10

Join us tomorrow morning for a casual Board Demo at 34th st.

We're hoping to have a bit of everything available to try.

Clear skies and small combo-swell in the forecast.

Pogie Video // Contest

We're loving the submissions to the Pogie//Sandia contest, and so far the votes are split pretty evenly on which fish you prefer. Here's one for the Pogie camp.

Enter and read the other entries on our facebook page.

Tipping Barrels // Ben Gulliver

I met Ben Gulliver last Spring when he was in town... he bought Moci's used Log Rhythm. Ben does some film making with the guys from Sitka in Canada. Here is an absolute gem of a video that Ben put together...

Beautiful cinematography.

Gully // 9'2 Log Rhythm

Gully with his brand new 9'2 Log Rhythm.

He laid up a pretty fancy huck fin for himself... nice work Gull!

Sandia Fish // Video

If you need some more inspiration for the Pogie vs Sandia contest... here's a brief look at the Sandia Fish, courtesy of Cam Oden.

Music: The Red Fox Tails

Keep those submissions coming, we're loving them.

Simon Perini // Almond

Proud to finally have a T-SHIRT with the work of a very good friend of mine, Simon Perini.

This photo is of one of Perini's favorite targets, NSW shredder Simon Patchett.

Now available in-store and online.

Pogie vs Sandia // Win a Fish for Christmas

There are TWO twin fin fish models that we make here at Almond. ( Pogie Fish // Sandia Fish ) We want to know which of the two fish models you prefer; and why.

The winner will receive a Pogie or Sandia Fish for Christmas, from the surfboard making elves at Almond.

We want to hear your most convincing arguments for your favorite of the two models, as well as what you would do with it if you had one. So, write us a paragraph or two on your own facebook wall and tag @Almond Surfboards & Designs, so we can read it and pick our favorite response. The winner is entirely based up to our judgement, so get creative. The recipient of the new fish will be announced the last week before Christmas... but get your submissions in early, before we go cross-eyed.

Andy Nieblas // Mini-Simmons

Andy Nieblas giving a 5'4 Mini-Simmons a go, at 54th street, Newport Beach.

Photos: Cameron Oden

Arctic Surf // Ben Weiland

Our friend Ben Weiland has one of the raddest websites we've ever seen.. it's called Arctic Surf. (He finds remote surf breaks in the arctic and antarctic regions of the globe) We loved the concept so much that we asked Ben if he would do an Arctic Surf t-shirt for us this season. (His open-mindeness is your gain)

Here's a bit more about Ben and Arctic Surf, in his own words:

Who are you?

My name is Ben Weiland. I am a graphic designer and illustrator. I also occasionally write and make electronic music.

Where did you grow up?

I was born and grew up in Germany. I moved to Southern California when I was twelve or thirteen.

When did you start surfing?

I started surfing when I was fifteen. My parents bought me a 7'2 turquoise shortboard at a garage sale. Some older guys from a church surf club would pick me up to go surfing every Saturday morning. It took many weekends of getting worked by the whitewash before I was even able to paddle out to the lineup.

What inspired you to get into art and graphic design?

I've been drawing since I was a kid, and I always spent a lot of time doing it. I would draw batman, ninja turtles, and dinosaurs for hours. My interest in graphic design started with the internet. In seventh grade I made a web page, and I wanted to make it look cool, so I began to learn how to use Photoshop. Designing and building a website go hand-in-hand, but eventually I realized that I enjoyed the design part way more. The first thing I drew in Photoshop was a plesiosaurus, and I applied a ripple effect to make it look like it was underwater.

Tell us about Arctic Surf blog... where did the inspiration come from?

In my free time I like exploring Google earth and looking for potential surf spots. I found a handful of quality breaks in snowy places and thought it would be interesting to have a page on my website devoted to showing these images. It was such a strange idea to me that there could be dozens of perfect waves in the coldest places on the planet, and no one knew about them or had ever surfed them. My friend Cody Iddings encouraged me to turn the web page into a blog.

Where is the most remote place you've gone surfing?

Earlier this year I surfed in Yakutat, which could be considered the surf capital of Alaska. There are only a few communities in Alaska that have road access to the coast, and Yakutat has a handful of great breaks located just outside of town. It was at the end of the spring season, and the water was actually warmer than I expected. It was pretty surreal to be surfing with a white mountain range and glacier in the distance.

Where is your next surf trip going to be?

There are so many places I want to visit, but a few of the main ones include northern Norway, Tierra Del Fuego, and Iceland. I'm hoping a few of these will come together next year.

What is the most intriguing spot you've discovered in your Arctic Surf search?

There are a few places in the islands off the coast of Antarctica that look like incredible setups. It's really expensive to get there, and the weather is very unpredictable, so it's hard to say whether these waves will be surfed any time soon.

Have you ever played the Antarctica level in Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer..?

Haha yes! I actually just recently found a video clip of Kelly Slater surfing in Antarctica and was wondering whether that trip inspired the Antarctica level. I had no idea that he had surfed there, I wish I knew more about how that trip came together. But regarding the game, it's pretty nice to be able to surf in Antarctica from the comfort of your home.

Final words:

Thanks Dave for the interview and thanks Almond Surfboards!

Dave Allee // 9'7 Nathan Adams Model

Exploring Blackies last weekend on my new 9'7 Naters model. Haven't been doing much logging for a while (blame the cash-yew) but it feels good to get back on something fresh and new and distinctly familiar.

Surfer+Craftsman // Woven

The new Surfer+Craftsman Woven Shirt by Almond

Hand-made in Santa Ana, CA

I know what I'll be wearing 5 days a week...

Cam Oden // Almond Woven

Cameron Oden, testing out the athletic performance of the new woven shirts; on his coffee-break commuter.