Turnstone Guitar Company: Crafting Acoustic Beauty with Sussex Soul

Turnstone Guitar Company, based in Crowborough, East Sussex, is a proudly independent Sussex workshop crafting exceptional custom acoustic guitars that fuse heritage, artistry, and innovation.

Founded in 2015 by Rosie Heydenrych, Turnstone blends traditional woodworking with modern precision, producing instruments known for their tonal depth, elegant design, and sustainable use of native English woods.

Rosie’s journey began as a teenage musician performing in bands, including gigs at Liverpool’s iconic Cavern Club. A handmade guitar gifted by her parents sparked a fascination with lutherie (the craft of building and repairing stringed instruments), leading her to study guitar‑making in London and apprentice on Denmark Street.

In 2015, she launched Turnstone with a vision to build guitars that reflect each player’s individuality.

Today, Rosie and her husband Karl craft a limited number of guitars each year, collaborating closely with clients from their Crowborough workshop. Sussex Modern spoke with Rosie about her creative process, the role of Sussex in her work, and what defines a Turnstone guitar.

Your workshop is nestled in the heart of Sussex – how has the local landscape and community influenced your approach to guitar making and the ethos of Turnstone Guitars?

One thing I love about working in this part of Sussex is the beautiful quality of the natural light and the calm of being surrounded by nature. We moved into this workshop two years ago as the business expanded and I have found it to be an exceptionally inspiring place to create. It’s such a beautiful area and I know that my own peace of mind as well as my work is deeply affected by my environment.

I love going for long walks in the countryside – Motts Mill and Penns In The Rocks Estate are particular favourites. Taking in these beautiful landscapes really helps me to unwind from the extreme levels of focus that guitar making requires. There are some spectacular estates here too of course, I find Gravetye Manor and Hammerwood Park very inspiring – just gorgeous.

The drive from our home to the workshop is also very beautiful – these moments of reflection before and after work are very precious to me.

Turnstone Guitar Company is renowned for its use of native English tonewoods. How do these woods shape the sound and soul of your instruments – and do you have a favourite to work with?

Each piece of wood that goes into one of my guitars has a specific job to do and as such I am looking for a different set of physical and sonic properties depending on the final role it will play within the complex structure that is an acoustic guitar.

For instance I love using English walnut, sycamore, apple, and lacewood for the main body of the guitar which I will often pair with yew, western red cedar or Monterey Cypress – all grown here in the UK – for the soundboard of the instrument. Every choice I make is guided by the musical tastes and expectations of each individual client of course. That is the joy of the bespoke creation.

One of the most popular choices I offer is 5000‑year‑old Fenland black oak – this wood has been reclaimed from the peat bogs of East Anglia and is an extraordinarily beautiful alternative to over‑forested traditional guitar woods such as Brazilian rosewood.

Your guitars are celebrated for their tonal richness and visual elegance. What aspects of your craftsmanship do you feel most define a Turnstone instrument, and how have those evolved since you first began building?

There are two aspects at play here – the sound of my guitars and the visual identity of each instrument. I have always wanted to create guitars with a unique voice – I am not trying to replicate the sound of a vintage instrument or indeed that of another modern luthier, I have always been guided by my own sense of what I find beautiful. In particular I am looking to create guitars with a rich and detailed musical character that will inspire the player to push their own creativity to new levels.

My clients come to me for an instrument that was made with intent and skill to suit them as individual musicians. As such, I know the guitar has been a success when they tell me that they just can’t put it down!

Each Turnstone guitar is a bespoke creation. What does the collaborative process with a client look like, and how do you ensure their personality is reflected in the final instrument?

Like any bespoke creation, communication is key at all times. Our clients have often had experience of bespoke clothing, timepieces, furniture etc but this may be their first experience with a handmade guitar – as such they are often familiar with the process itself just not necessarily in this context.

Our initial consultation with a client helps to establish their own levels of experience with the guitar, their tastes and level of expertise. We make guitars not just for who they are now, but for the player they wish to become – an instrument that will reward them for the time they spend with it.

As well as sonic and visual stipulations – ergonomics are a vital part of the design. Each instrument has to feel comfortable and immediate – essentially a frictionless music‑making device that also looks and sounds beautiful.

A lot is talked these days about heirloom quality creations – my sincere hope is that a Turnstone guitar will be passed down from one generation to another just like a Patek Calatrava or a Cartier bracelet.

What’s the most curious or unexpected bespoke element a client has ever requested?

The acoustic guitar can be a blank canvas for surprisingly personal self‑expression and I have made several instruments that were commissioned as milestones in people’s lives – which has included in memory of lost loved ones. This is something that I find extremely touching, it is a privilege and a responsibility that I take very seriously indeed.

One of my favourite bespoke builds from the early days was a dragon‑themed guitar that featured Fenland oak on the back and sides and 3000‑year‑old ancient Sitka spruce for the soundboard. I engraved scales into the sound hole rosette and even replaced my signature Turnstone bird on the headstock of the guitar with a tiny dragon.

Of course, the primary purpose of a guitar is to make music – I recently completed an instrument for legendary folk guitarist Martin Simpson which was an extraordinarily detailed collaboration in terms of the voice of the guitar and his expectations. I recently got to hear that guitar in action at the celebration party to mark ten years of Turnstone Guitars. It was a very powerful moment – hearing that instrument in front of an audience for the first time and thinking “I made that!”

As you mentioned, this year marks 10 years of Turnstone. What are your hopes for the next decade?

There are so many beautiful independent businesses here in Sussex and we take a lot of inspiration from that. We were delighted to have Rathfinny Wine Estate on board for our recent celebrations – their 2019 Classic Cuvée was the perfect choice with which to toast a decade of guitar making and our 100th instrument.

We are looking forward to exploring more of the natural beauty of Sussex as well as cultural wonders such as the Charleston Trust’s festival and Farleys House and Gallery. This is something we have been promising ourselves for a while now but we have been so busy that it hasn’t been possible. However, this year we expanded our team so we are hoping to get a little more time for that sort of thing.

In terms of guitar making – we look forward to more gentle growth as we go into this next decade. We recently launched the Select Series – limited runs of identical instruments which allows us to offer guitars directly to the public at a more accessible price point and bypassing our waiting list. We do still, of course, relish the process of a full bespoke build as well as our one‑off Artisan Collection guitars – we make one or two of these a year – they are an opportunity to explore new themes and design concepts with premium woods such as African Blackwood and quilted mahogany from The Tree.

As ever, our primary aim is to continue to create acoustic guitars that will inspire and delight their owners for generations to come.

For more information on Turnstone Guitar Company and their bespoke acoustic guitars, visit: turnstoneguitars.com.

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