What makes me happy...

Made a swap last week: a bottle opener for a big ol' bottle of beer.  Home brew.  Seemed fair and square.  And I added a nickname to the ever growing list of things people have called me: Dr. Blacksmith.

Where now?

All right, for my sanity, I need to create something new in my shop.  Problem is, I don't know what.  I'm considering small knives to learn heat treating, but that's a whole new world that I'm not quite ready to deal with.  So, what else?  I definitely need something new and I have a few ideas, but what do you think?  Leave me a suggestion.

Mixed materials candle holder

 I had a great time...and a very frustrating time making this piece.  It isn't what I had planned, but I am quite happy with it nonetheless.  It is a good bit simpler than I had envisioned, but I kind of like that.  The base is slate and the rest are pieces made on the forge.  I cheated a bit with the candle cups and used pre-fused sections, but worked them into the right shape.  Now I just have to go back a decide what to do with the discarded pieces from the original project.
 

Red Smokin' Hot

I prefer coal, but this is some recent work in my gas forge. 

Twisted Fun

This is a good example of what I have been working on the shop.  I have been exploring one of the simplest and most beautiful embellishments available to the blacksmith for abstract beauty.  The reverse twist, much simpler than the pineapple or grooved twists, but more attractive in my opinion.  Two hooks and a key chain.  They aren't listed on ETSY, but can be if you would like them.  Note the odd waggle at the end of one of the hooks: more exploration and variety!

PS I strongly doubt that this will be the last post with a title like this.  I just enjoy the layers of implicaiton too much to not keep adding them. 

Bottle openers in the stockings

This is the sort of thing that might help you get through the holidays and make for a nice heirloom.  They're simple, strong and only just a little short of indestructible.  I came up with this one all on my own, to create something simple and fairly easy to replicate, but unique and stylish.  The loop at the end can be thinned down for use with a keychain, too.

$10 dollars on ETSY (see the listing below or search for number 34045259)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/34045259/blacksmithed-bottle-opener?ref=sr_list_37&ga_search_query=blacksmith+bottle+opener&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_page=&order=&includes[0]=tags&includes[1]=title&filter[0]=handmade

9/23/2011
The listing is discontinued...but you can still request them and I'll post new ones with pictures of the exact piece.

More discards

Well, every beginning blacksmith and a good number of very experienced modern day 'smiths do it.  They are sitting around, lying at the bottom of a river.  Off in the woods, distant from any obvious source.  Or maybe on some old farm, rusting away.  I am as ethical as I can be and let them be, should I find them in someplace where they might be retrieved or used.  But there are thousands, leaching iron back to its origins.  And, while somewhat poetic, free is free and that just feels like a waste.  So, I dutifully pick up abandoned railroad spikes and turn them into other things.  It takes time and a bit of arm strength to move that much metal into something that you'll enjoy, but they make very, very nice pieces. 

Trash made into treasure

I might not go quite that far, but one of my favorite projects is to take something that would otherwise go unused and might end up in a landfill or giving someone tetanus through the sole of their foot and make something useful.  This is just one example of what I have done along those lines.  This S-hook is made from a piece of discarded re-bar post.  I really like the funky texture that you can see on here.

Older Projects

While you wait for my newest and greatest inventions, here are some of my old favorites.  This is just a little snippet of the projects that I've done in the past.

 Just examples of simple wall hooks to be driven in to a wall like a nail.  They are sharp and the bent portion is above the hook so that you can hit it directly with a hammer.  This is for rustic settings, such as a barn or outbuilding and focuses on simplicity and rustic aesthetic.

 Here's the handle of a roasting fork that I made.  These are pretty simple, but very cool items.  I've done about three with this particular design now and several others that don't match with this.

Well, these were intended as icicle ornaments...not sure that I hit the mark there, but they're attractive anyway.

This was a simple curtainrod project.  The paint and curtain and screw were not my choice...but hey, they worked for the proud owners of the curtain rod, so I guess I should be happy with them too!

 A simple S-hook to hold things.  At this point it is just holding a birdcage on a kind of crappy chain, but the point is the S-hook.  Don't look at the chain, please ;)

Simple wall hook, made from a flat stock bar of iron.

Well, there are a few examples of my work...more to come soon!

I'm not telling!

...who this is going to be given to, but it is going to be given very, very soon.

I am just about finished with this piece. I need to patina the screw missing in this picture and clean up a little of the stain on the backboard. It is a personal gift and not a commission. It has been a painfully long time in the making. I'm starting to do some mixed media pieces. This includes simple stuff like attaching hooks to wooden plates like this, but I've got a really primal-looking piece in the works that is steel and stone. Keep a look out for it. For now, enjoy this project: