Firehound Forge

03/09/2026

I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Real Art Alliance at Bloodstock Festival earlier this Summer, specifically about Ai and how it's touched on my business. Made for a welcome break and excellent natter, you should go check them and their work out!

For those interested, I have a fairly brisk opinion on Ai's place in art (it doesn't have one).

https://www.instagram.com/p/Dc1aXcqOexY/

03/09/2026

Just a small restock for the market stall & the last three weeks of my life 😅

Two hundred dice, sixty leaf & ammonite keyrings, sixty pieces of jewellery in the form of rings and pendants, two dozen roses, two dozen bowls, twenty belt hooks, twelve wee' snails and a half dozen toasting forks.

03/09/2026

Last bits of ironwork getting finished up, travelling smithy being packed & tools put away for this weekend's venture. Where will I be this weekend? I'm glad you asked and I really should have said earlier!

This weekend I'll be at the first ever Libertalia Festival, the new festival run by Fantasy Forest. I adore bringing blacksmithing to Fantasy Forest Festival each year, so can't wait to see how Libertalia evolves and rather flattered to be there at it's grand opening!

Experience an unforgettable weekend and join the next chapter of Fantasy Forest!

03/09/2026

So the results are in! Top three contenders were;

Sir Mix-a-Lot; 7
King Rollp; 5
That noisy bloody thing in the corner; 3

So please allow me to introduce Sir Mix-a-Lot 😂

29/08/2026

A little snapshot of this weekend's work; twelve spoons, two dozen roses & two hundred dice on route to being done for final two shows of the Summer trade route. Slow and steady :)

26/08/2026

Blacksmith PSA on experience days & emails in general; I have fallen behind on admin, but am trying to catch up!

There have been several emails and experience day enquiries over the last month that I haven't gotten back to and I would like to sincerely apologise for the general slow response times. I'm normally pretty slow but this Summer I've been noticebly worse.

Truth be told I've been flirting with physical burn out a little too hard this Summer and she's starting to catch up with me. Mental health is completely fine, this isn't a cry for help and I'm in a grand ol' mood loving life. This is a prime example of the spirit is willing but the body has put the check engine light on! 😅

I had the amazing opportunity to add a massive new festival to the Summer trade route, the upcoming Libertalia, as well as Empire Lrp 4 which has become the event I round Summer off with. Trying to keep up with commissions, grow the Patreon, post on social media, restock the travelling smithy, set up a new accountant and the usual admin of small business has been a challenge I've heartily enjoyed rising too. I've just ignored the advice I give to so many others of "Choose a time to rest or your body will choose for you".

As a result, I shan't be teaching at the upcoming Empire 4, as I fear I may be slightly broken'ed from coming straight from Libertalia.

I'm also going to stop taking blacksmith experience day bookings until late September, when I will get back with the last dates available in October & the first ones for 2027.

Thank you for your patience adventurers, stay safe & hopefully meet you on the road soon!

25/08/2026

Patreon supporters voted for "something stirring" for August's Patreon reward so, please forgive the inherent pun. Not a spoonerism in sight!

A stripped down version of my whimsy spoons, these tea spoons should give you a 5+ to your hot beverage skills. For goodness sake, though, check biscuit structural integrity before you dunk. Nothing like a biscuit lost at tea to ruin a morning brew!

25/08/2026

New Patreon post out for August rewards! Did you know I run a Patreon? It's a merry combination of a Firehound Forge mail club where you get cool hand-forged rewards monthly & help me keep the fire lit with your support!

You should go check it out, maybe even join as a free or paid member. It's all a massive help and I keep somewhat of a travel blog for all those behind-the-scenes blacksmithing rants about being busy, the weather and life at large 😁

Good morning you glorious bunch! I'll keep this one short, as I'm in the last rush prepping for the last two shows of the Summer trade route

24/08/2026

A long ol' weekend's work and a decent restock of some of my smaller items for the last of the Summer trade route!

It's always a fine line between making effective use of time and staying efficient, to not going made making the same item again & again.

24/08/2026

Being a market blacksmith means lots of small stock. Work-in-progress shot from the weekend, bonus points if you can guess what's on it's way to being what :)