About me:

I was first exposed to blacksmithing and blades at the age of 10 years old when I was taken to a renaissance fair hosted by the SCA. Once I was exposed, I was hooked, I spent years trying to find a mentor, a school, or even an active forge to go to and learn anything I could. Unfortunately, I would not find anyone to learn from, so I learned what I could through researching bladesmithing over the years. All the while trying to find a place to actually gain experience and always returning to the renaissance fair that started it all. Every year asking any blacksmith there anything and everything I could to further my knowledge and possibly impress someone into humoring me and my ambition. however, more often than not I was brushed off, ignored and even laughed at by the bladesmiths I was idolizing because to me they were like rock stars. I carried on like this for years only really learning what I could find on my own and picking up various crafting skills such as leathercrafting, woodworking, jewelry, even flint napping and other skills like engineering and chemistry. There was no way that I could know that there would come a time where I would use all of these skills once I could start forging myself.

I was going to university for a degree in biochemistry so as to get a job in the medical field doing R&D on medicine when everything changed for me. As with everyone else, when the Covid-19 pandemic upended everyone’s lives I had to make a decision. However, I saw the quarantine and isolation as an opportunity to actually pursue this craft I’ve wanted to for so many years. I also managed to find a school of Industrial arts relatively close by in Oakland CA, called The Crucible. So I signed up for a blacksmithing class the same day, But the class was not enough, and on Christmas 2020, I gave myself a forge, and immediately started hand forging Damascus, and 5 months later I started the Forged In Ire Forge.

Now I am running my own business and still attending occasional lab time at The Crucible to access equipment inaccessible otherwise and all the while I’m gaining experience and growing rapidly every day. If you want, follow along with me as I grow, succeed and occasionally fail in my endeavor to learn all I can about this amazing craft we call bladesmithing.