Handcrafted, one-of-a-kind eco-friendly wooden surfboards. Sharing the experience with workshops where you build your own. Southern tip of Africa. Since 2007.
Burnett Wood Surfboards builds wood surfboards and related surf craft. I share the craft through workshops where participants build their own wood surfboard. The mission and commitment is to build environmentally responsible surfcraft.
05/05/2026
Made this set of Alaia boards for a corporate client…
These boards are always so interesting to shape. Starting with a solid block of wood it feels a lot like you’re shaping a blade. The blend of concave, belly and edges always fascinate me because it’s not a stretch to see all of these features in what is the modern surfboard, and feel like the original surfers had a lot figured out hundreds of years ago.
04/03/2026
A spot the wood for the trees kind of thing…🌲🏄♂️
This was a 5’.10” shape made on a workshop a few weeks back.
27/02/2026
Enjoyed shaping this beaut bodysurfing handplane and seeing the grain show itself.
This one is based on a favourite handplane made about a decade ago and that goes amazingly well. Looking at this one makes me want to take it for a surf but it’s off to its new owner.
20/02/2026
A 7’9” custom that left the shed this week.
surfing
18/02/2026
Epic to have had Ollie, 14, in the workshop shaping his own wooden surfboard. Here he is adding the finishing touches to a 5’.11” thruster.
I’m always amazed at seeing how people engage with making a hollow wooden surfboard. From Ollie to all ages up to 85, the oldest ever workshop maker, there’s one thing in common: The pure stoke of working with your hands, shaping a beautiful natural material into a surfboard.
Well done Ollie!
To book a workshop space to make your own ride in 2026 feel free to get in touch. It takes five days but there are also 1-2 day shaping workshops available.
12/02/2026
Two hollow wooden surfboards made on a workshop a few weeks ago, grazing in their natural environment just before being picked up by their makers.
07/02/2026
Hot. Dry. Windy. Flat. Dusty, in my case. One really shouldn’t be thinking of winter swells right now but the mind does wander to days like these when the swells roll in and the wooden 9’.6” can come down from the ceiling.
📷
05/02/2026
This 8’ hollow wood board took a crazy amount of time, but I just let it flow at its own pace and tried not to rush. Stoked with the end result.
capetown
03/02/2026
Creative clamping on the fish shape from the last post…
29/01/2026
New board order on the go…making a wooden surfboard is a combination of thousands of steps (ok, I’ve never counted them but that’s in the ballpark, surely).
All those steps have taught me to lean into every single one, even the mundane ones. There’s beauty in every step.
26/01/2026
Great to have got the 2026 wooden surfboard workshop programme off to a start with Rob and Derek last week.
They both made their own wooden surfboards starting from a pile of planks through to the final wooden surfboard.
Amazingly, I’ve now been doing these workshops for 13 years! If you want to make something remarkable in 2026 visit my website through the link in bio or DM me for details so you can book yourself one of the limited spots available. 🌳🏄♂️🏄♂️