Questionnaire for the female uke players!

EllenMelon

EllenMelon

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As well as painted a ukulele for my A level art coursework i am also designing and making an electric ukulele in product design. I had to solve a problem so i decided to make a ukulele aimed at females as there is a lack of designs aimed specifically at us girls! I am designing it for the girls guitar company "Daisy Rock" as it is a similar product and also aimed at females. In my research i have to include a questionnaire so it would be a great help if some of you female uke players could answer a few of these questions for me!

- Would you purchase a ukulele specifically aimed at women or are you happy with the ukuleles currently available?
- What colour would you like the ukulele to be?
- What kind of shapes could you suggest for the body which would appeal to women? (e.g. hearts, flowers etc)
- How much would you be willing to pay for a ukulele like this?
- What material do you think would be best to manufacture the body from? (i am thinking plastic but what kind? i am a bit of a beginner in the ukulele world)
- Would you prefer a cut out or full body design?

If you have any other comments or suggestions which could help me then please let me know. I will keep you updated on how it is going!
 
EllenMelon said:
- Would you purchase a ukulele specifically aimed at women or are you happy with the ukuleles currently available?
- What colour would you like the ukulele to be?
- What kind of shapes could you suggest for the body which would appeal to women? (e.g. hearts, flowers etc)
- How much would you be willing to pay for a ukulele like this?
- What material do you think would be best to manufacture the body from? (i am thinking plastic but what kind? i am a bit of a beginner in the ukulele world)
- Would you prefer a cut out or full body design?

If you have any other comments or suggestions which could help me then please let me know. I will keep you updated on how it is going!
Click to expand...

1. I probably would purchase a Ukulele aimed at women, but I'm also happy with the current range that I've seen (I'm very new at this!)
2. I'd say purple, but I already have my purple Ukulele, so maybe a pinkish purple
3. I kinda like the standard shape, but I could be in the minority
4. A custom? Probably about £150, but I'm talking on my budget that's what I could afford, if I didn't eat for a few weeks!
5. Plastic, I'm not so sure about, I like the wooden ones, they make a good sound.
6. I haven't tried a cut out, so I'm gonna go with a full body...

Hope that helps :D
 
Brad Donaldson designed an instrument for a few of our female members . . . it is a custom with a concave back. I've listed the threads below. Contact info for Brad can be found in the Custom Builders List.
erich@muttcrew.net said:
Brad, I've been meaning to ask you what an "Amy model" is. I've looked around but haven't found anything educational on the subject of Amy.
Click to expand...

Teek said:
It has a concave back. Molds nicely to female anatomy. ;) I understand that the first one was for another UUer named Amy. But it just seems very ergonomic overall to me in the fit against the body, even though I tip the headstock out, and men who have tried this body style like it. I have made the acquaintance of Lori's Amy 2, and it is a meticulously built little beauty.
Click to expand...

http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/f...-designed-a-uke-to-accommodate-a-woman-s-body
 
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EllenMelon said:
so i decided to make a ukulele aimed at females as there is a lack of designs aimed specifically at us girls!
Click to expand...

Wow, do I find "us girls" disturbing. Ghettoizing even.
Furthermore, is the ukulele market rife with ukes that are male specific that your product line would serve as antedote?

I don't know if you're familiar with the brand Luna Guitars. They make products that are a little more female form friendly in that there is a mindfulness of the fact that women's hands are usually smaller. They create ukuleles too.
 
Kanaka916 said:
Brad Donaldson designed an instrument for a few of our female members . . . it is a custom with a concave back. I've listed the threads below. Contact info for Brad can be found in the Custom Builders List.




http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/f...-designed-a-uke-to-accommodate-a-woman-s-body
Click to expand...

I bought one of these, and although I'm not a woman...I find it to be a perfect fit (and more comfortable) for those of us guys who like the (less than) occasional malt beverage! Also, it sounds better than about any other ukulele I've played ...she's my favorite by far! :cool:
 
P.S. I'll take an ukulele with a star shaped soundhole with electronics set up for a left-handed player. I'll take it in any color whether it's battleship grey or pepto-bismal pink. Though I would find the grey more unique.
Edit to add: In one of the smaller sizes, soprano or concert. Though I know size of uke knows no gender either, this femmy thing does not like those big ol' tenors.
 
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I could say a lot about this topic but will refrain. :) Suffice to say that I've never associated the uke with maleness, thus, it would never occur to me to want to buy a uke that is aimed as "us girls." A uke is a uke to me.
 
- Would you purchase a ukulele specifically aimed at women or are you happy with the ukuleles currently available?
I'm actually quite overwhelmed by the selection already!

- What colour would you like the ukulele to be?
I don't know about others, but I find white instruments very appealing! I love white baby grand pianos.

- What kind of shapes could you suggest for the body which would appeal to women? (e.g. hearts, flowers etc)
The traditional is great.

- How much would you be willing to pay for a ukulele like this?
Well, I'm not one with a huge budget, I'd say $300?

- What material do you think would be best to manufacture the body from? (i am thinking plastic but what kind? i am a bit of a beginner in the ukulele world)
I'm sorry, I don't know much about the materials!

- Would you prefer a cut out or full body design?
Full body!

Hope it helped!
 
thanks to tiny tim Ukes are generaly thought to be somewhat on the female side already
but we are healing from that era
.
I think its great to market a girly yoook
meanwhile I will stay with my manley uke made from engine parts :)
 
EllenMelon said:
- Would you purchase a ukulele specifically aimed at women or are you happy with the ukuleles currently available? Maybe, but I don't like overtly girly themes, and no pink
- What colour would you like the ukulele to be? I like blues, greens, maybe purple or natural blond colored woodgrain
- What kind of shapes could you suggest for the body which would appeal to women? (e.g. hearts, flowers etc)I think it is difficult to make it a less than standard shape and have it look attractive. I would go with a pineapple shape or figure 8.
- How much would you be willing to pay for a ukulele like this? For an electric ukulele, concert size, maybe $250 - $300 USD.
- What material do you think would be best to manufacture the body from? (i am thinking plastic but what kind? i am a bit of a beginner in the ukulele world) I don't know what would work best for the sound, but I might stick with whatever is commonly used for electric ukes and guitars (maple?) The balance between neck and body is important... you don't want it too be to head heavy.
- Would you prefer a cut out or full body design? I generally prefer full body designs, but there is one I like very much from boatpaddle ukulele (5th photo down) http://www.boatpaddleukuleles.com/instruments.php

If you have any other comments or suggestions which could help me then please let me know. I will keep you updated on how it is going! If you want to put interesting graphics on it, I like moon and stars, nature stuff like leaves and trees and landscapes, maybe clouds.
Click to expand...
I have a video of a few people testing out the Bradford Donaldson Amy #2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjAxHYvzWZo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdrWNmVAGSs&feature=related
As a product designer I appreciate the opportunity to test out, and buy this interesting ukulele. My sister-in-law fell in love with it, and I believe she is going to order one herself. She found it so much more comfortable than the standard ukulele. Teek had an Amy Pineapple made, and it is really really nice! Ukeffect had one made too, and here is his video on it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAm0d1YLp2M
–Lori
 
I've never really felt the need to own a "girly" uke because I consider the instrument to be pretty gender-neutral. I'm not a fan of the color pink, so I usually shun things that are overly girly.

Having said that, I wish someone would make a turquoise blue uke with a tastefully-done mermaid design on it. (Something similar to the Luna Aurora mermaid guitar) I can't see many men playing the Luna mermaid guitar so I figure the uke would be geared towards women.

Cost all depends on the quality of the instrument. As long as it sounds good, I don't care whether it's plastic or laminate wood, but I'd pay maybe $150. I always prefer traditional shape to the cut-out.
 
This thread somehow reminds me of when I went to the LaGrange Rodeo a few years ago during "The Really Tough Wear Pink" campaign for raising money to fight breast cancer. The sponsors donated $5 for every person who wore pink at the rodeo - they did this at the bigger rodeaos all over the nation getting both local and national sponsors to fund it - John Deere you are good!. Anyway, at LaGrange, there were whole stands of men and women wearing pink. Very cool. And I tell you, these are real macho folks out there in the farmland of central California...
 
Nice to see that some people are willing to help so thanks to the people who have sent me links and answered my questions! However, to the people who took the "us girls" part the wrong way i never said a ukulele is a gender based instrument, its just what i am doing for my SCHOOL PROJECT! i am an 18 year old girl, not a ukulele expert and its just something i'm interested in so thought it would be good fun. No need to take the girly part too seriously... its like having a pink car, some girls like girly things! I am simply basing my project on the idea of daisy rock as it is aimed at females, not saying anything about ukulele being gender based. I will not pass my A levels if i design a simple brown wooden ukulele so i was trying to do something a bit different.
 
EllenMelon said:
- Would you purchase a ukulele specifically aimed at women or are you happy with the ukuleles currently available?
- What colour would you like the ukulele to be?
- What kind of shapes could you suggest for the body which would appeal to women? (e.g. hearts, flowers etc)
- How much would you be willing to pay for a ukulele like this?
- What material do you think would be best to manufacture the body from? (i am thinking plastic but what kind? i am a bit of a beginner in the ukulele world)
- Would you prefer a cut out or full body design?
Click to expand...

1) I would probably be less likely to purchase an instrument marketed to me solely on the basis of my gender. Especially if it was pink and sparkly. I just find that insulting.
2) I prefer to see the beautiful wood grain in a quality instrument. But if it has to be colorful... then make it orange. ;-)
3) Please, just a regular figure-eight or pineapple shape. I would not touch a heart- or flower-shaped instrument with a ten-foot pole.
4) Depends on the materials and the construction. If it's a solid-wood uke, then it's worth more.
5) At least make the top solid wood. That's the most important thing.
6) Personally, I like a clean, uncluttered aesthetic. If it absolutely must have some bling, then I'd suggest a simple rosette around the soundhole. No funny heart shapes, though, please! :-D
 
And again, this is my SCHOOL PROJECT! i am not going to manufacture it so stop taking it so seriously. If any of you have actually seen daisy rock guitars then you will know why i said a heart or flower shape as i am actually basing my project on their guitars. Can't get more girly than daisy rock!
 
Ellen...
Here's my take. I am not a girly girl.. but as the current owner of only one mid to low end uke and little experience playing... I am in love with this Uke http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002SSUR46/ref=ord_cart_shr?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER Not only to I love the way it looks, but it sounds amazing as the shop tried to sell it to me.. I love the looks.. but I have to say without the sound I would not want it. Good sound is key.
For a project for school, I would say go for it, design anything your heart desires. Have fun. Even if it did have a heart shaped sound hole someone would buy it. Look what people are paying for a uke with hello kitty shaped sound hole! Amazing...
I love color I am partial to purple, but love greens and blues too. My husband is artistic and I am begging him to buy a dolphin and paint it for me (I will share photos if he ever does it) more for fun and a project for him than anything else.
Most important have fun with your project and enjoy your schooling! I wish I did more of that when I was younger in school! Feel free to PM if you need more ideas...
 
PinkHeart.jpg


A typical Daisy Rock guitar.

HelloKittyuke.jpg


A "GIRLY" Hello Kitty Uke.

No idea why someone should consider the phrase "us girls" as Ghettoising, I guess it's a language thing. In the UK being girly is normal and everyday, there are pink cars everywhere you can even buy pink screwdrivers and toolboxes. In some ways I guess it is also a positive feminist statement as in "I am girly and proud and if you don't like it tough!"
 
I like girly stuff. I'm 53 and I like girly stuff and I'll say it out-loud.

However, I don't really think about having a girly ukulele. I think younger girls may like it though. They probably wouldn't be super-serious about playing, but that's ok too.

Good luck with your project.
 
I don't mean to be rude, and maybe it's just because I went to school before the interweb was in every house, phone, and burger king...but if it's your project...isn't it kind of cheating asking for ideas?

Different schools of thought maybe...I don't know.

Bottom line is, it's your project. If you want to do it on a uke based off of Daisy Rock's Heartbreaker...do it.
 
Skitzic said:
I don't mean to be rude, and maybe it's just because I went to school before the interweb was in every house, phone, and burger king...but if it's your project...isn't it kind of cheating asking for ideas?

Different schools of thought maybe...I don't know.

Bottom line is, it's your project. If you want to do it on a uke based off of Daisy Rock's Heartbreaker...do it.
Click to expand...

She is doing a product design project. Researching the market is a very good idea. It is a design project, not to be confused with an art project, meant for personal expression. EllenMelon, you are on the right track, so don't get distracted by those who don't understand fully. The interesting aspect of your project is how to make something appealing to more women... without falling back on the tired old cliches. There are a good number of women who are tired of the same old thing being pushed at us in the market. I like the butterfly soundhole on the Mike DaSilva ukulele http://ukemaker.com/DaSilva-InstrumentGallery.html, and the bird design on the Moore Betta ukulele.http://www.moorebettahukes.com/GALLERY.html. I prefer details like inlays and shaped sound holes better than an overall novelty shape.
–Lori
 
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