#sharp and shiny

[needles-and-pins]

These are prototypes, so I don't have any on the etsy shop yet, but I'm working on getting different varieties ready for the holiday shopping season.

The one on the left is made with maple, and the one on the right with HDPE. Woods tend to crack when being drilled, so I'd hoped the plastic would work better (and it does work beautifully), but adhesives don't like to stick to it. Fortunately I can make a silicone mold and do epoxy resin in any color.

So I think once I cast some, I'll start making some with different numbers of gems. Next up will be trans... I have some nice big acrylic gems for those. Finally, I wanted to let you know I invested in a sharpening system that gets my blades wicked sharp.

[thewollfgang]

aw my dad bought me a knife cause I was sad

[needles-and-pins]

My most recent commission. Based on the cherry blossom gyuto that's been so popular, this person asked for Hokusai's Great Wave Over Kanagawa on the blade, a seafoam green handle with blue and silver sparkly swirls, and the water tribe symbol on the handle. It was a struggle... I poured eight resin blocks until I got one that satisfied both of us. I had to draw the right part of the wave image because the original isn't that wide. Where I usually use brass for the guard and pommel, this time I used nickel, which has a hardness closer to steel. That said, I'm happy with how it turned out. If you think you'd like something like this, with (almost) any colors or design, gimme a shout.

[needles-and-pins]

Practice does make perfect

See this notch? I drilled this through a 3/16" (4.762mm) thick brass bar. Then I used tiny jeweler's files to cut and shape the metal.

I cut it to fit the tang of this knife blade, 7/32" (5.556mm) wide by 1/16" (1.5875mm) tall.

My cut is snug and straight. It's taken me two years to get a cut this tight. Practice has finally improved my craft.

It's frustratingly slow, but don't give up. You'll get better at whatever you practice.

[needles-and-pins]

My most recent knife is made to cut the wedding cake for a friend’s daughter. The handle is white resin coated with white mica powder, pinned with brass. The guard is also brass. The blade is polished stainless steel, engraved with a diamond drag bit on a CNC router. It’s my third wedding cake knife, but I’d love to make more! If you know of a wedding coming up where the couple (or throuple!) would appreciate a customized blade like this, I’d be delighted to create one with you!

[needles-and-pins]

I've been working on this since May, in between other things. A big, butch Bowie knife with a mahogany handle, with a bas-relief of a rose.

I got a new little CNC router in April, and hopefully you've seen my Pride Signs that showed my first efforts on it. Well, since then I've been struggling to learn learning how to do 3D modelling to make this, which has been an idea I've had since I got the blade last year.

I'll be working on setting up a new web store for my not-Pride-related curios and knives. Until then, let me know if you like it! I take commissions too!

[needles-and-pins]

Another cherry blossom knife. After the first one was featured by the YouTube channel Annika's Leaf, I received a few inquiries from people who wanted one just like it. This is my third after the original, and I was really lucky with the marbling on the handle, which was nearly a failure: the pink started to solidify too early.

I really enjoy making them, and if you would like one (or even a omething a little different) send me a note and we'll talk.

[needles-and-pins]

I...I uh... I made a video of how our pride pocket knives are put together, by hand, one at a time. This one's been hurried along, but you can watch it at regular speed with captions explaining what's happening on youtube.

And, as always, they're available at www.etsy.com/shop/FeelGoodFrens

the background music: gift wrapped caper by Analog By Nature (c) copyright 2009 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/cdk/22397