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Monthly Archives: December 2011
A Whale Tooth Sgian Dubh
Here’s an unusual and very special commission, the handle is made from a whale tooth which was recovered by our customer from the carcass of a beached sperm whale. The back of the handle and the box are made from 5300 year old bog oak. The blade is made from Swedish Damasteel from the foundry we visited earlier in the year. On the lid of the box is an Iona Marble pebble found by the son, set in Sterling Silver and engraved with a personal message.
This was a very unusual and challenging project for me; however I enjoyed working with our customer to develop and shape his design and ideas and I’m very happy with the way it all came together.
Continue reading
Guitar Plectrum, Custom Made in Sterling Silver
Here’s a recent custom made guitar pick we made for Lianne who kindly allowed us to post this picture and her comments.
“Received the plectrum 10 mins ago, I am absolutely over the moon with it. It is totally amazing!! I can’t express how impressed I am!! I will recommend you to everyone and use you always for all jewellery needs. Have a wonderful Christmas and thank you!!
Best wishes, Lianne x” Continue reading
Obsidian Sgian Dubh
Here’s a very interesting commission I undertook for David, a Geologist from Canada, who wished to a have a Sgian Dubh made with an obsidian blade (obsidian being a volcanic glass) and incorporate a pommel stone from his family’s ancestral croft.
We were fortunately able to have a knapped obsidian blade made to my drawing by Tony Stanfield in Oregon and incorporate that into an Ebony handle I carved with a cross-hatch weave. I sent this down to a skilled leather worker, Terry Osborne in Northumberland who made a lovely leather sheath, wet molded to perfectly fit the knapped blade.
For the pommel stone, on a lovely summer’s day we took a family outing and visited the old croft at Caphluich, Tarvie which was built by David’s great-great-great-grandfather around 1800, although sadly now it’s just ruins. We sent a small rock from there to Renato Forno at Scottish Gemstones who cut and polished it to fit our Sterling Silver ferrule top band which was hallmarked with our maker’s mark at the Edinburgh Assay Office.
I fitted the lower ferrule band which I had engraved with a Celtic knot design and finished the handle off with silver pins to the front only for sake of comfort when worn against the leg. This has been a lovely collaborative project to work on and David has kindly allowed us to publish the email he sent when he received his Sgian Dubh;
“It is with great joy that I announce the arrival of SGRS16 to its new home in Canada! …I turned it over in my hands smiling the while. I slid off the black wet-formed sheath to expose the black blade (black in reflected light!) I held the blade up to the light and joy of joys, there is a powerful striped texture to the depth of the blade. The ebony handle is comfortable to the hand, the seven pins handily identify the front of the haft, and the carved ebony just adds to the overall effect. Rab, my sgian dubh is nothing short of magnificent!
Thank you so much… Cheers, David” Continue reading
Sgian Dubh in 5300 Year Old Fenland Bog Oak with Damascus Blade and Iona Marble Pommel Stone
We’d like to share this email and photos. Thank you to Andrew for his permission to post these.
“Rab & Tanya, I have just received the Sgian Dubh, it’s absolutely exceeded all my expectations. My wife Fiona loves the Iona set stone in the bog oak handle. The Damascus blade is stunning, I shall treasure this and always wear it with pride. Once more thank you so very much for a job well done, excellent workmanship. Kind regards, Andrew” Continue reading
Hand forged Sgian Dubh blades from an old school bladesmith
These 6 blades in 1080 carbon-steel have been crafted by George Ezell who’s an old school bladesmith from Alabama. These are only available in a very limited quantity as they’re individually hand forged and finished, the exquisite and varied filework … Continue reading
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