A company dedicated to heritage craft courses such as handmade walking sticks, bushcraft and the associated skills such as knifemaking & English longbow.
Bespoke courses in traditional crafts such as stickmaking, knifemaking and English longbow making as well as learning to live in nature by getting to know basic bushcraft techniques. Also get up close and personal with a bird of prey experience.
o promote ancient and modern skills in a lively, informative and enjoyable way in order to keep these traditional and ancient techniques alive. An experience which the whole family can take part in and teach invaluable skills which could one day prove useful.
Paddy & Graham have between them 30 years’ experience of blacksmithing and bladesmithing. We run courses in sword making, blacksmith tools, hammers, welding and fabrication. On the sword and hammer making courses the student has the use of 2 air hammers, 2 hydraulic presses and a flypress. All modern tools are also used to make the courses easier for students such as grinders. find us on, https://www.craftcourses.com/providers/art-of-fire-crafts
My work centers on the making of commissioned work for individuals, when creating my projects I focus on the processes of hot forging steel and iron, taking inspiration from the natural world and then translating it into the language of Iron. Surface textures and details bring the forms to life as you pass through a gate or otherwise engage with a piece of sculpture through vision or touch.
Whilst my making philosophy is rooted in the use of traditional forging methods and processes I prefer to create from a contemporary viewpoint that is very much of today. I feel this enables my work to communicate the qualities of the craft that give so much freedom for creative expression and brings such life and energy to the work. These traditional methods and processes are very evident in the medieval ironwork that often inspires me, while the flowing forms and beautiful lines of Art Nouveau and the beauty of nature fire my imagination for new contemporary forms.
High quality workmanship with a passion for detail gives the work energy and integrity. Patience is a necessary quality for both the maker and the client alike; time-consuming design and creative processes are always at work, from the first sketch through to the last hammer blow. Each piece is unique; the soul-deadening mass manufacturing processes that charactorises consumerism is cast aside for the creation of the unique and uplifting.
The British Ironwork Centre is the country’s leading visitor destination for the finest handcrafted and decorative metalwork and so much more!
Set in 90 acres of beautiful, Shropshire countryside, the Centre truly has something for everyone:-
– huge, new showroom and outdoor show areas featuring an endless choice of structural and functional pieces for outdoor or indoor settings and perfect gifts for all of the family
– Shropshire Sculpture Park, boasting a wide variety of life-sized animal sculptures
– Ironbridge Museum of Steel Sculpture, including works of national importance from renowned sculptor, Roy Kitchen, and many more
– A range of interactive workshop days and experiences, enabling our visitors to meet or spend a day at work with our blacksmiths, silversmiths and sculptors and see traditional skills being kept alive
– The Forge Falconry – exhibitions and opportunities to spend time with our experienced falconers
Visit the Centre for the warmest of welcomes, a complimentary beverage and an unforgettable experience!
I’ve been blacksmithing for over 35 years. The way that the metal moves when it’s being forged is a constant fascination to me, as well as the whole myriad of ways that it can be used in and around the home, garden or public environment to make objects that are both practical and beautiful. Although I enjoy conserving and reproducing our great historical heritage of ironwork, I also like to explore the intended site and my environment for inspiration, to come up with fresh ideas when a contemporary design is more appropriate.
I can make forged ironwork in any scale – from architectural to domestic – and can work to commision or for direct sale.
I also have extensive experience of teaching and demonstrating the craft at many levels, and can offer demonstrations and bespoke short courses.
Firebird Forge is both a working blacksmiths forge and a school of traditional blacksmithing. Mort the blacksmith has been hand forging for 15 years and has been teaching the public for the last eight years.
Paul Gilbert F.W.C.B Master Blacksmith
Adam Varley….Born London 1969. Served a blacksmithing apprenticeship and then as a journey man working throughout the UK with many notable artist blacksmiths. Adam founded Ferro Design with designer Beau McClellan in 1994 forging many sculptural and architectural works in Portugal including large artistic installations. He also has had experience with production, working on events and film sets, also lighting, pyrotechnics and computer design. Most recently he has settled in La Creuse, France to set up his own workshop.
Firebird Forge is a full working forge which offers traditional and contemporarily designed commissions in various metals; as well as the usual restoration and repair work. The forge is also run, by appointment, as a teaching school in traditional blacksmithing techniques. Although the forge is open to the general public to allow them to come and learn how to blacksmith on a day to day basis, further training is also given to younger smiths in the form of work placements from college.
Individuals from as far as Russia and Australia have come to learn to forge at the school and the owner, David Mortimer (Mort the Blacksmith), has carried out commissions across the Uk since the year 2000.
Iron workshop, all year round highly professional blacksmithing school and a sculpture park, all in the same place.
Sculptural ironwork for home and garden.
Blacksmith experience days available at my forge in the heart of Bristol.
Family run since 1982, we are based in Worcestershire producing a vast range of work. Small to large domestic to commercial. Working out of a large workshop we blend modern fabrication and blacksmithing to try and forge a niche in the market. Always looking to take on challenging work and produce new products.
About Soulful Iron / Mike Gracia
I’m an artist blacksmith based in Wales (just over the bridge from Bristol). I trained in Blacksmithing at the National Blacksmithing College in Hereford in the late 1990’s and after a long break from Blacksmithing, have now returned to the craft.
I call my business ‘Soulful Iron’ as I believe every piece a Blacksmith creates by hand has an element of their soul that they put into their work.
I use traditional blacksmithing techniques to create both works of art and functional products, be that candlesticks or fireside pokers, ornate forged steel bowls or pattern-welded knives (often called Damascus knives).
Check my small online shop to discover my past and current pieces and prices, from hand forged christmas decorations, to hand forged presents and hand forged viking jewellery, and enter link description here
Commission work also undertaken.
Hello. I’m Owen Phillips – Artist Blacksmith at Gate Foot Forge.
…and it’s all been something of an accident! A background in Industrial Design and 15 years doing graphics is a strange route into this profession, but here we are. From a childhood spent tinkering with things, a love of machining and metalwork at school and an Industrial Design degree furthering those skills and developing design and visualisation techniques, I was all set up for a career making stuff with my hands. Then I somehow fell into graphics and spent a decade and a half sitting on my arse staring at a screen.
It was only back in 2019 when the hobby – which was clearly a result of an itching desire to make stuff – began to get out of control and accidentally became my job!
How did I get here?
I have always made stuff with my hands. My childhood was spent taking things to bits, and making things out of the parts. Through school, the stuff I enjoyed most and ultimately succeeded at was the practical metalwork and woodwork under what they term as “Design and Technology” nowadays. I further developed these skills at University and then, for most of my adult life, space to tinker was always a limitation. That was until 2016 when I moved back into my childhood home in a little hamlet called Gate Foot. Finally I had a workshop space.
During one tinkering session, I ended up building a small forge in order to heat treat a blade for a knife project I was working on. On a whim, I shoved some metal in there to get it hot and bend it about and came out with my own hand-forged flint striker…. and a bit of a blacksmithing bug!
The little forge was replaced with a slightly bigger one and I began to bend more stuff about. I consumed books and YouTube videos and began to learn the traditional techniques that would latterly have been passed down, craftsmen to apprentice, for thousands of years.
Roll on Christmas 2019 and lots of my friends and family find themselves getting hand-forged trinkets as gifts, and the inevitable questions get asked; “are you selling these?”, “is this a new venture?”, etc. And I have to admit to myself I’m enjoying it a lot more than sitting and clicking at a screen – and the stuff isn’t coming out half bad. I resolve to try and spend a bit of time tinkering away and pushing it to see if it goes anywhere – while maintaining my freelance design job as regular income.
Then along came a little thing called COVID-19. My design work – for which my clients are mainly in the hospitality and events sectors, all but dries up. Strangely, while the world goes bananas, I have an opportunity to push the forge business ahead and see what happens…
…and it turned out that quite a lot of people wanted nice hand-forged things. The orders rolled in. Within a month I’m shipping products from my garage to the USA, Canada, Europe, Australia and have an order book with 3-weeks’ wait. I’ve re-invested most of the profit at the point back into tools and equipment and so haven’t quite broken even – but I have been only working half a week whilst childcare for a 2-year old isn’t available due to the lockdown.
Three months later, lockdown is easing. Nursery is open. I can work nearly a full week… my order book is still full, I have a full workshop of tools, and I appear to have accidentally become a blacksmith…
Not many people can say they genuinely love what they do for a living. I consider myself fortunate that I can get up in the morning, light my fires and spend my days working on a craft as old as the hills which I still consider to be some kind of magic.
Ironart of Bath is an architectural metalworking and restoration business based in Bath, UK. For details about our architectural metalworking and heritage ironwork restoration services please visit our primary listing here on the BABA website.
We also offer one-day ‘Introduction to Blacksmithing’ courses here in our Larkhall workshops. These days are aimed at the complete beginner and are tutored by two of Ironart’s most experienced smiths: Jason Balchin and Martin Smith.
These one-day workshops are open to anyone aged 16+ and make a unique and memorable birthday or Christmas present gift. Choose from a selection of items to make and take home. We’ll supply you with all safety equipment, tools and materials, hot bacon sandwiches and a steady flow of tea and coffee to keep you going.
The one-day workshops run from 8am – 2pm and the cost is £95.00 per person.
Email ironart@ironart.co.uk or call us on 01225 311 273 to book your place. Please note that these are on a first-come, first served basis and payment is required in full to secure your place. (p.s. We can make suggestions for accommodation locally if needed.) Please note that space is limited so book early to avoid disappointment!
Feedback from previous one-day forging workshops ….
“The things to make were interesting, and the different techniques fun to learn. The level and pace of the training was excellent, and it was great that we could each proceed at our own speed.”
“I had a fantastic time, and achieved so much more than I expected to. I really want to do another course with you guys: that heart shaped hook is next on my list!”
“Just to say I really enjoyed it. Our teacher was really patient and hit the right level of help/letting us get on with it. The day made me appreciate the skill involved. Would recommend the course.”
“Well organised, good fun and good bacon butties!”
“Andy and I thoroughly enjoyed the day at Ironart. Martin provided great instruction and within no time at all we had made several test pieces with scrolls and twists.”
- Terms and Conditions of booking:
Amendments to bookings may be made up to 14 days prior to the date of the class. If you find you are unable to attend a class less than 14 days before the date of your workshop we regret that the course fees will only be refunded if we are able to fill your place. These rules apply equally to gift voucher bookings.
If through unavoidable circumstances Ironart Ltd has to cancel a workshop, all course fees will be refunded in full or if you wish, transferred to another course. We regret that we cannot refund any other costs you may have incurred in advance, such as travel and accommodation.
Ironart Ltd cannot accept liability for any loss, injury or damage to course participants or their property. Copies of Ironart Ltd Public Liability Insurance certificate are available on request.
Whilst the dates & prices for the courses are correct at the time of going to press, Ironart Ltd reserves the right to make alterations to dates, times, course content & prices.