And now for something completely different… blacksmithing!

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For quite some time now I’ve loved the idea of blacksmithing. There just seems to be something about heating up metal over a hot forge, the ring of the anvil, that harks back to times gone by. I’ve always joked with my wife that if I didn’t do web development I’d do blacksmithing. Two problems with that, though; I’m not artistic at all and felt that was a real stopper for me, thinking that you really needed to be an artist to be a blacksmith. And I was always put off by cost; anvils, forges, metal, hammers, grinders… oh my, that all seems expensive! (There’s the third problem as well of me being set in my ways, not really putting myself out there and doing things outside of my comfort zone, but we just don’t talk about that, ‘k?)

However, I have an amazing wife and a wonderful family. And for my birthday earlier this month my wife and kids managed to get me one hell of an anvil (it must weight well over 300lbs!) and a leg vice. They came from a family friend who I found out used to be a farrier and was looking to sell his (not used for a very long time) equipment. The rest of my family got me some hours tutorial at a local workshop that has a couple forges and teaches the basics of the craft (amongst many other things).

So what excuse was there left for me? None! All I need do is clean up the anvil, fix the leg vice, build a forge, take some lessons, buy some material, and practise, practise, practise. Oh my, that actually seems like a lot. But you know what? It’s time for me to break out and do something else, push myself a bit in a different direction. I really can’t wait!

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