Pull yourself together

A friend from Scotland (he occasionnaly wears a kilt) invited me to his birthday party. He will be 70 years old.

In the invitation he wrote that sometimes he feels more like 100 years old.

So for those moments when he feels broken up,

I forged him a means to pull himself together and kick his heels :

Simple and functional

On this rustic armoire a lock both simple and efficient.

It is still elegant when open.

Simplicity does not prevent elegance in details.

And please notice that the holes all holes for the lag screws were forged rather than drilled mecanicaly.

This lock would be a nice addition to a garden gate as well.

Usefull and elegant

To hang your hat and coat in style

All shapes and sizes of coat hooks are offered in the big boxes.

It was not enough. I was asked to design and forge hooks that could not be found in what is forced on us by the industry.

I designed and forged these :

Of course, they had to be 'comfortable'for a hat and a coat and not attack the cloth. The iron went out of its way ...

When you dont see them, they are doing their job. When you see them, its a pleasure.

Prime space for little money

A standing computer station 

Here is the plan.

Dimensions in inches

This commission did not require complicated forging techniques. The challenge was of another nature.

The client called upon a blacksmith that uses the most ancient techniques for forging. The problem was the integration of an object produced with these techniques in a minimalist decor with little space available and where scrolls and leaves of classical blacksmithing would not have been at home.

On the plan above and the photographs below appears a simple, functional design that does the job. And this was one these commissions where the client does not run away upon hearing about the price.

What made this commission endearing was that it permited to insert the forge in comtemporary life, in the habits of young people, those who define the new world.

A general view.

Here, we clearly see the three levels of the station : screens on top, keyboard and mouse on the larger shelf and the hard disks in their disappearing act on the third level.

The boards that make up the shelves are simply inserted in the fishtails forged to receive them. The wood can freely adjust to the humidity variations without risk of spliting.

Neat,  functional, contemporary and absolutely inexpensive.

Flowers and plants, set'em up, ladies & gentlemen, set'em up!

Small stuff you have to replace every other year, the lady did not want any more. Rather, she asked me for something solid, for years to come and elegant and nice to look at before the flowers and after the flowers. Something you would like to have and even be proud of.

This is what I offered.

The uprights are 3/4"x3/8" flat stock, 72 inches long. The struts are 3/8" square. Total width is 44-1/2".

She accepted et voila!

The support is pinned to the ground with two spikes driven in the holes in the foot. The foot is held to the uprights with a pin.

The forged square holes were necessary.

In square holes, the struts cannot turn and point the ends down which should be pointing up!

The holes were forged larger than the struts in order that the support would be easily assembled or taken apart once the parts are painted.

I did not get a commission for the flowers ...

Historical skewers and a pork roast

Solid skewers

My skewers seem to be big and bold. 

They are not the size asian industry has imposed on us. They are not mere heavy wire. They are one quarter inch steel. It is a superior size. It does yield a superior skewer.

That size makes it a real tool in the hand. It does not roll when piercing meat. It does not slip either. You can push through easily.

The skewer holder has its arms full...

They also work æsthetically. They are nice to look at. They are different from what is sold in commerce. They look like ... well what skewers ought to look like...

Historical skewers

That is if we believe Alex Bealer in his "The Art of Blacksmithing" (page 273):

Among the more attractive and interesting items made for the kitchen by medieval and later smiths were meat skewers and skewer holders. The skewers, in simplest form, are only 1/4-inch or 3/16-inch rods or square bars 7- or 8- inches long...

And a shorter version? 

Trussing needle
and a skewer similar with its double twist
to the one Bealer admired a page later.

I also forge a shorter version. 

They are very efficient as trussing needles. These permit to easily close with string the opening of a stuffed bird or to tie the side of a pork roast you have split and opened like a book and stuffed with a lot of garlic, some salt, a lot of pepper (freshly ground is better) and the same amount of rosemary and a little olive oil all around and garlic slices you insert outside and its ready when odors get out of the oven and talk to you...

Getting back to the anvil, to the hammer

For some time now, an accident prevents me from forging.

But I will get there shortly. That I make sure of. I clean the path that leads to the anvil, to the hammer.

First, you go along my wife's painter's studio

The forge is around the bend, on the left

Almost there

The doors just wait to be opened

I had to make another fire poker

A client asked for a fire poker. I offered the simple one I forge and sell at a minimal price thinking that every fire place needs one of my pokers as do outdoor fires.

A simple and may  I say 
" to the point" fire poker 

I was asked rather to adapt the cube twist handles I forge for cabinet hardware.

These cube twists make lovely handles 
and generate numerous  how-d'-you-do-that-?.

Done.

And the client asked for a longer one, same design, to poke outdoor fires.

This fire poker is forged in a 1/2" steel bar. It's a hefty poker.

It is also all business and very efficient with it's double hook pushing and pulling logs in the right place. And I think it's nice to look at.

You may find explanations of the cube twist  on the following site IForgeIron.com or if you would rather write to me it will be a pleasure to explain.

For the New Year...

The year went by, working hard,

and with pleasure.

My best wishes

From dream to reality.

I have added a page here to show how to forge reality into the dream of a client.

It also demonstrates that the blacksmith does more than pound iron with a hammer.

Here is  the link :

http://yvesforge.blogspot.ca/p/forging-dream.html

A security system, yes, but with elegance

Increase the security of your home and it's esthetics while youre at it...

Often enough, lovely homes otherwise, suffer from certain details. For instance, basement windows or ventilators barred with straight bars. Like prison bars.

The grill I have forged with a wheat stalk motif has the same defensive virtues as a set of bars. It does not share in its esthetic flaws.

This wheat stalk motif can also be used for a railing

Such a grill takes too much of the burglar's time, demands too much effort. These guys are always in a hurry. They will not mess with this grill.

It is thus possible to increase the security of your home without compromising its style. You can secure the basement windows and decorate them at the same time.

Better than a set of bars isn't it...

And think about it : this grill or any that I forge are not crippled by power outages...

The "wheat stalk" motif, the "Flight of Birds" motif, a bit of history

My wheat stalks are a reproduction of those appearing in Jean-Claude Dupont's book, "L'artisan forgeron". They were doing, and probably still do guard duty in a colonial house in Varennes, north of Montreal, along the St-Lawrence River.

Jean-Claude Dupont,
L'artisan forgeron
Éditeur Officiel du Québec / Les Presses de l'Université Laval
Québec, 1979

We find another motif in the Place Royale in Québec City. This motif is called the "Flight of birds".

Photo Jean-Pierre Lavoie, 2009
Musée de la Civilisation

It must be noted that regulations in  Montreal and Quebec City demand that ventilators be grilled.

With forged grills, you can increase the security of your home, deny easy access to burglars to the basement or the little window in the bathroom without giving your home a prison look.

Finaly, "Wheat stalks", "Flights of birds" or any motif can be installed in front of ugly bars.

A wardrobe for kids & two for the parents.

In the country, at home, you cant be without it. At a minimal cost get a maximum effect.

A  true & inexpensive solution

If you rent a country home, you cannot modify the wardrobe so that the kids can hang their clothes. It's difficult if not impossible for them in a standard wardrobe.

My system solves the problem easily. You hang it like a simple coathanger and the kids suddenly have their own wardbrobe.

And if like everyone you could do with a little more wardrobe space, the system I forge doubles the space for your shirts, blouses, pants, etc.. And all this without expensive renovations.

The father's shirts on top, 
the boy's shirts on the bottom, all on hangers...

A gourmet coat peg

To  come home and hang your coat on a mushroom builds up an appetite.

Unedible...

There is a fullness in this mushroom not unlike that of my coats...

That a mushroom or any other organic form might evolve from an iron bar I heat and beat between my hammer and my anvil will always astonish me.