February 1, 2026

Very fun class with these 2 pairs of siblings! They were given a class as a Christmas gift. They, and their parents, came from the east side of the state to make Railroad Spike Knives. They made very nice, and very sharp, knives!

February 1, 2026

Really fun class this afternoon with this family! They all made great Railroad Spike Knives!

February 2, 2026

This has been a super secret project, and I'm so excited I have permission to post it now! Nicole reached out to me last October, wanting to make a wedding ring for her fiancé. We decided to get through the holidays and start a damascus ring in January.

She said she had no experience at all but said she was an "incredibly hard worker, determined, and a fast learner." She was not wrong! She learned every part of making the damascus, even welding the billet.

We used 1095 and 15n20 for the damascus. We did do a twist, but as is the sometimes unpredictability of damascus, the twist show more on the edges. She still got an beautiful pattern though! We did try drilling a starter hole , but this billet only wanted to be in the fire. So she used punches to drift the hole, and then used the horn on the anvil, and more punches, to widen it. Then she used the grinder to shape the outside of the ring, and the Dremel to clean up the inside. In total, it took about 7 hours, over 3 class sessions.

It is truly a stunning ring. It was an absolute pleasure to have Nicole in the forge, and an honor to be apart of such a special project!

February 3, 2026

Coty and Kevin were back tonight to make steel flowers! Beautiful work!

February 4, 2026

Kevin was in yesterday to continue working on his apocalypse knife. Apocalypse knives are a lottle more dramatic, and don't have any rules. Lots of fun to make. He has a very interesting idea for the handle. He'll finish it next month in the Level 3 homeschool class.

February 5, 2026

Steel Flower month for the Level 1 homeschoolers! The first group did a great job with plasma cutting, cold shaping steel, and welding!

February 5, 2026

Dan was in to finish his Billet Knife and the Steel Bamboo. He's made a couple ither knives here, and this knife turned out great too! The Steel Bamboo is beautiful! He added some texture to the stalks, and brought some wood for the mount. Really beautiful!

February 6, 2026

New member of the Guinea Pig Club! Stu's son arranged a class for him for Christmas to make bodkin arrowheads. Coincidentally, bodkins are the current speciality of the shop squire (aka my youngest). Students did great with his first time blacksmithing! And its always fun to have a new project in the forge.

February 7, 2026

Birthday Knifemaking! Jacob's parents brought him to the forge for his birthday! They made great Railroad Spike Knives, and are already planning their swords!

February 7, 2026

Such a fun class with these two! This was her first time in the forge, and she made a beautiful Railroad Spike Knife! He started a railroad spike dagger, and is adding handle scales next time. Great afternoon with them!