Blog
My notes, my journal to what I do, how I do it and what interests me. As well as current events and shows that I participated it.
Boulder – RAW at the Absinthe House
Last year I was part of an organization that helps promote and host shows for up and coming artists, RAW, click here to see pics from that night. It went really well, sold some of my metal art but also made some great connections. This year they have a show in Boulder, Colorado that I will be part of. The hardest part of this event is covering my booth fee. I will send you a free hand forged, metal Aspen Leaf Charm if you buy a ticket before May 30th. Just let me know and I will make sure it went through the RAW site. That way you are...
read moreDENVER – Pancakes & Booze Art Show – April 2013
This year has been great and very busy. With work at Dragon Forge LTD at a constant high end and high quality of work to preparing for my wedding ceremony this September, I have managed to be in a couple of shows in Downtown Denver and in Boulder. These shows always have a wide range of people attending and I always walk away with a one-of-a-kind experience. I am taking this week to get ready for the Pancake and Booze show this Friday. I have some forged Aspen Leaf Charms, a variety of bowls, some Dirty Smith shirts and will be taking my...
read moreVino Bella Wine Bottle Holder
I was asked to forged a wine bottle holder that could hold 3 wine bottles. They also requested that it would be less than 16″ tall. Looking at other models of how to approach such an item, I did some sketches and came up with a concept. I also used three different size of bottles and made this wine bottle holder do a decent job at all three. I forged it out of 1/2″ square bar at first and added a “Vine” texture by using a texturing die under my power hammer. Then work from the sketch as direction for the over...
read moreChased and Forged Steel Bowl
The one that started it all. I went to a blacksmithing workshop a couple of years ago that was about forging bowls. Starting with a flat piece of metal I took the steps of texturing the material, transferring my design on to it and then chasing it with hand chisels, hammers and a lot of patience. This bowl took me better part of the day, though I was also working along side other smiths and probably did a lot more talking than I should have! I was quite happy with the piece when it was flat and hesitant to sink it, but to my surprise that is...
read moreDenver Artists.com – Armory Show
I was featured last year on Denverartists.com and they recently had a show spot lighting the featured artists on their website. The show is actually for 2 months although I have plans on featuring my art in other shows around Denver I opted out, but did make the opening reception. Upon where I met a very interesting crowd. My work, once again, was described as interesting, different, unusual and refreshing. They had a live band there and really was a enjoyable evening. I forged a small table just for the show and it was received well. It...
read moreTool of Choice: The Fire
The fire; the forge I commonly use two different kinds of forges, a gas forge or a coal forge. The coal forge has a particular kind of relationship. With some simple newspaper and air I can get this tool ready in 10 minutes. During that time I am watching the smoke, the slight hint of flame coming up and most of the all the noise. There is a certain change when the air is going through it. This same sensation happens when steel is in the fire. There is a small heat range that is ideal for forge welding, and at times I swear I can...
read moreVideo!
I have been experimenting with how to share the process and push this concept of “built not bought.” So I started filming myself work and sped up the process. “Slit and Drift” where I create a hole in a bar of steel in a different way than drilling or punching a hole. Enjoy! The Adobe Flash Player is required for video playback.Get the latest Flash Player or Watch this video on YouTube....
read moreForged Bowl of Reclaimed Chain
From heavy chain found in the scrap yard, I rolled it up and forged it down and then sunk it. Defiantly an eye catcher and does not necessarily need anything put in it. 8 – 9″ wide 2″ deep 8 lbs Reclaimed Chain bowl $250.00 + s/h Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a dish similar to this if it not...
read morePierced – A Contemporary Design by Rory May
This sculpture is my largest one I have ever done. I forged it for the Raw Artist show, “Mixology,” in that I wanted a discussion piece. Combining traditional forged joinery, and mixing some human anatomy made for a great conversation starter. It was well received at the show and people had come over becuase of it. I ended up refinishing it since I did not anticipate that this sculpture would be touched so much, the finish was wiped off! A pleasant surprise none the less. The piercing is copper and the rest of the material...
read morePersonalized Driveway Sign (custom order)
This is a commissioned order for a driveway. Its about 28″ wide. Forged vines, slit and drifted holes. This sign is also getting a treatment which requires me to rust it first. This was the pic before it goes rusty. I’ll post final pics once its installed This sign costs around $1000. If you are interested in something like this, keep in mind the technical details, size, finish, etc are all taken into consideration when I forge these. If you like what you see but have a budget feel free to contact me. More than happy to work...
read moreWine Bottle Holder
The way it hangs in the air, working with its weight and the arc of the wine bottle, creates an interesting display. It measures about 2″ wide and around 14″ long down the back. With decorative aspen leaf this would be used in a table setting in displaying a bottle of wine. This design can be customized by material, shape, symbols or style. Wine Bottle Holder 1 $95.00 Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a...
read moreHand Forged Coffee Table
This is a custom order for a coffee table forged out of iron. The client was directly involved with the design. We focused on a simplistic design revolving around the forged arch detail complemented with an art deco feel. This has a black and lacquer finish that is a great focal point for any room in sits in. Below are some pictures of the progress. I draw the table to scale and get approval before I do any forging. Then I print it to 100% scale and work from there. Each piece is hand forged from standard square and flat stock. This...
read moreAspen Leaf Bowls
Hand forged aspen leafs out of mild steel with one copper leaf. Signed and stamped #2 in the run. Clear Lacquer finish. These bowls can be of any size. Each is made one at a time and can be customized with letters and numbers in the non ferrous leaf. 8″ +/- wide 2″ +/- tall Aspen Leaf Bowl $300.00 Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a dish similar to this. ...
read moreForged Abaddon
This is the axe I forged for the demo at Cassleman’s Bar for their “Satan’s Castle” party. The party unreal and over a thousand people came up. This axe is a modified pick axe. I cut off one end, forged a slot and made the blade. I forged the spike out and gave it some twists. I also riveted the blade on site as well. We did a raffle and a lucky guy won the axe. The name “Abaddon” was appropriate due to the comments I received that night and its size. Dimensions: Weight: 10lbs Length: 36″...
read moreBlacksmith at Casselmans Bar – 10/26
I will be at Casselmans Bar & Venue Denver on October 26 par taking in the entertainment and forging outside. Looks like a fun event and something I definitely am happy to be part of. I will be finishing off “Satan’s Axe” and will have a raffle for someone to win it. I have not decided if the axe should be double bit or a spike axe. Also will have some Dirty Smith Shirts, posters and some of my forged metal art available as well. Let me know if you are going to be there and I will share pics when it happens! This is...
read morePraying Mantis
Where I live bugs really dont get that large. On occasion I might find a large spider or in this case a Praying Mantis. I have a light box that I use to do my photography of my forged items, and used this to get some interesting shots of her. So aside from my fascination with life, big and small, here is a small glimpse of an interest I found crawling on the post in my backyard. I also got these pictures to study how the Praying Mantis moves and literally joined together. I take into consideration if that I may want to attempt...
read moreChain Wine Bottle Holder
Using chain I found in the scrap yard, I forged this to hold a bottle of wine! It balances so there is some adjusting you will have to do for each bottle. A great center piece for a dinner table, popping the question or just to decorate your home! Chain Wine Bottle Holder $95.00 Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a dish item to...
read moreCustom Made: Rory May
I received a nice oppertunity through Raw Artists Denver to join up on Custom Made. So I put everything I have into that profile. I am constantly looking for the other networking, artist profile and other forms of communication to let people know who I am, what I do and why its am important trade. I was really impressed with the amount of communication that happened with setting up the profile. The last meeting I had was a phone conversation where they looked over what I was presenting and I also shared some ideas, concerns and direction...
read moreRAWards: Nominate your Local Blacksmith
This is the biggest indie arts awards show in the world! The show is held annually by Raw: Natural Born Artists, an independent art organization. At the end of every RAW season (October), RAW hosts a 2.5 month competition and judging process that selects nine winners out of over 10,000 artists that participate across the United States and beyond. Over the course of the competition, Raw artists engage in online voting, city-based semifinal showcases and a final judgments by the official RAWards judges line-up, which consists of a mix of...
read moreRaw Artist: Rory May Mixology
The Raw Artist: Mixology show went great! Here is a video of the event with an interview of me: The Adobe Flash Player is required for video playback.Get the latest Flash Player or Watch this video on YouTube. I met a ton of people and made some really good connections. This show has pushed me to be more part of the “Denver Underground Scene. ” Also are some pics of the event and the sculpture I forged just for the show,...
read moreCigar Bowl – 6″
Cigar Bowls are here! This cigar bowl is 6″ wide and about 3″ tall and based off of some glass cigar bowls that were made in the 1960′s. It can comfortably hold 3 cigars at a time. A great center piece and conversation starter. -Rory Colorado Blacksmith Cigar Bowl 6 $78.00...
read moreChain Bowl
Forged out of some large machine chain. While it was in the acid bath some copper grabbed on to it. Quite classic! These sizes can range from a few inches to over a foot. Contact me if you are interested one similar to this and the size you are looking for. Skinny Chain Bowl $175.00 Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a dish similar to this. ...
read moreRaw Artists Denver CO
I am always on the look out for organizations, events and shows that are appropriate to participate in. Recently I found the Raw Artists website. They and I quote: RAW:natural born artists is an independent arts organization, for artists, by artists. We’re a community made up of creative individuals across the nation. Our mission is to provide independent artists within the first 10 years of their career with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity. We welcome all genres of art including independent...
read moreCatacombs Picture Frame (custom order)
This was a great job and had an opportunity to design something totally new to me. The following are some sketches, progress pictures and the final result. The client had a 30″ x 40″ canvas picture and was looking to give it a decorative frame. The content of the picture was a challenge at first to design for. I am quite happy how it came out and it defiantly has a life of its own. Thanks for reading and please contact me if you have any questions. Progress pics located below from initial concept, forging and final piece....
read moreCustom Aspen Leaf Hardware
for cabinets, dressers and other things that need a handle A recent order came through where someone had purchased an aspen leaf key chain that I forged and requested if I could forge some aspen leaf hardware. Well of course! I made 6 doubles and 6 Single hardware pulls. The singles stand out 3/4″ from the door. All have a 1/4-20 bolt. These particular ones are 1″ 1/4″ long for the dresser its going to. All have a clear lacquer finish and are $25 / each. Singles Singles: $25.00/each + shipping and handling ...
read moreIron Rose for Norway
Tobbe and Tone, two blacksmiths from Oslo are building a sculpture of forged roses made by smiths from all over the world, a project called “Iron Rose For Norway.” To honor the victims of the unimaginable violence in Oslo July 22, 2011 and to let the love grow from hammers and fire. With Colorado having 2 school shootings in the past Rocky Mountain Smiths hosted a workshop at Dragon Forge LTD to make iron roses to send to Norway. We forged 12 roses that day. Also had a local crew, The Sharpened Axe, ask to come out of...
read moreRail Road Spike Knives
Taking a Rail Road spike one can forge this into many different things. Bottle opener, a small axe, some forge faces into them. I have taken to forging them into knives. The first thing I take into consideration with anything I make is how comfortable is it to look at and, if this is to be held, how comfortable is it in your hand. The length of the Rail Road Spike is just short of being comfortable. That in mind the first thing I do is “fuller” the material. This fuller is just past the middle. The term is a technical step used to...
read moreMagic Wrench Media
The one size fits all designer that I used…myself I have grown up doing the iron work. Not enjoying baby sitters or those large farms of child day cares, I ended up hanging out at the shop with my dad. He promptly set me up with a forge, hammer and anvil. Growing up in the shop and working through in my teens, a lot of discipline was taught…and patience. I still have problems with the patience….lol In my teens a friend and I took a dump truck for a “joy ride.” We ended up running over a shed and owing the...
read morePhoto submission
I take alot of photos with my iphone and use various apps to manipulate them. With my education and knowledge of photoshop I really do try to make them interesting for others to watch. This day I was forging some leaves for a rosette and had to use some of this Osage orange wood. Its very durable, tough and great to use as an anvil. You get a void in the wood and can form the metal to it. Eventually you will need to move to a different place on the wood but for the most part, it does a great job. The flames, sparks and smoke in this shot...
read moreGenerations
We took some staged photos today. I had Amanda help and for the hour and a half that this took to do we had a great time. Enjoy the pics! I watermarked them with Dragon Forge since this was marketing for the company. The Dragon Forge website has not been updated yet, but...
read moreAlready end of April
this year is flying by. Pretty busy at the shop, starting a small business doing advertising, branding, etc is in the works. Helping out the gallery Im part of. Have alot going on and tonight is the featured artist night. Stopping at the studio to pick up the forge, anvil and other tools to do a little demo. Here are the last few items I made for the...
read moreFeatured Artist: Me!
Im the featured artist at the River Canyon Gallery this month. My date is April 30th. Will also be doing a blacksmithing demo as well. Here is the flyer...
read moreCustom Driveway Deco Sign (custom order)
This sign gets installed on Sunday. Installation went great! Sign looks awesome. I used as much as an “art deco” theme and tried to design the shapes I saw in trains. The copper really reads well. Always to keep in mind that I work one on one with someone who is looking for custom work. So there might be a project that you personally don’t like, that doesn’t mean I can’t help you achieve that custom sign to your liking. These are easily shippable and am not restricted by location either. Here is a link to...
read moreThings are picking up
Pushing forward and keeping up with everything going on. The studio, Dragon Forge LTD, has been a constant push to get the resent projects done. The little things I have been making are going to slow down. Taking on some side projects, like websites, digital art, etc and finishing up an small sign for a house in March. I do apologize if you are looking to see what new items I have made. It might be a little...
read moreCigar Bowls are here!
I think I have worked all the kinks out on how to makes these and will be available to order in February. The concept is to use with cigars or any other similar items. That you can use it as an ash tray and rest the item in the void suspending the lit tip in the air. This bowl is about 5″ wide with a bees wax finish. I can forge a variety of sizes with holders that vary from 1, 3 and 5. The odd numbers seem to look best. Cigar Bowl $100.00 Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a cigar bowl similiar to this. ...
read moreA Portrait
This is a head sculpture that I had done with a character in mind created in 2006. It stands about 14″ tall and is an expression of forged metal using negative space to create volume and depth. Please contact me if you are interested in a custom sculptural piece similiar to this. Prices start at &600...
read moreSquish!
Here is a shot of me using the 50 ton press to set the bottom plate in a pipe and squishing it to shape it into a bowl. After this is alot of clean up, texturing, upsetting the edge and wax treatment. The video shows it a little more “white” than yellow. That piece was about 1,800F. The stuff falling away from it is called “scale.” When the steel is hot and reacts to the air, the surface is the first to cool and a thin layer on the outside will fall away. I lift the bowl to show the...
read moreHook
This is part of a design I’ll release soon. It started out as 1/2″ bar forged down to 3/8″. The loop is going through what is called a “slit and drift” hole. With a hook on one end and the mass grows to 1″ on the other. Done by hand at the anvil and assisted some by the power hammer. I am a huge fan of Art...
read moreBogart Bowl
This was an experiment with the challenge of combining the non ferrous with the steel. We had a bunch of drops from some threaded pipe. I welded them together to make a pattern. Then using drops of brass, copper and bronze I used a torch and melted each drop into a void. At which point I soaked the whole thing in the gas forge until it was a decent red and forged everything flat. My welds held, the non ferrous didn’t burn up and really looked interesting flat. I sunk it, mounted it and yeah…technically it was difficult. 10″...
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RailRoad Spike Knives
These started out as a Rail Road Spikes and are fun, typically is why they are bought. They are forged a little longer so there is more room for your hand and I do something decorative to the handle. I will shape the blades and polish them up. Contact me if you are interested in one, otherwise Ill post them when they are available. Thanks again for reading. A little fact about RR spikes: The spikes were designed to bend if the track moved. They did not want these to break, thats why they are not any particular tool steel and have a...
read moreHappy Saint Clement’s Day!
“Come all you Vulcans stout and strong, Unto St. Clem we do belong, I know this house is well prepared With plenty of money and good strong beer, And we must drink before we part, All for to cheer each merry heart. Come all you Vulcans, strong and stout, Unto St. Clem I pray turn out; For now St. Clem’s going round the town, His coach and six goes merrily round. Huzza, a, a.” Saint Clement whom legend has it was martyred when he was thrown into the sea with an anchor tied around his neck. Two of his followers are then said...
read moreMedia Kits
On occasion I can help assist in the advertising side for a company, individual and/or a group. Use the Contact form if you would like to talk about the digital and/or print advertising that you have in mind. Click Here For More...
read moreMetal Aspen Trees
Had a call to make 3 aspen trees for the next railing. The process is not anything traditional but more sculpting using a welder, grinders, chisels and hammers.
read moreOrganic Bowl
1/4″ plate textured and sunk. Has a bees wax finish. Unpredictable designs since I let the steel do what it wants in this situation. This current bowl has been sold but will make another in this technique if wanted. Organic Bowl $125.00 Please allow 2 weeks for me to forge and deliver a dish similar to...
read moreS hook chain
Forged one at a time and linked together, S hook chain is an attractive way to decorate a large variety of things. s hook chain $50.00 a foot ...
read moreBearded Axe
This guy has a mild steel body with a 4140 tool steel tip. Its an attempt at a replica, heat treated and made for a battle! Not intended for splitting wood. Contact me if you have any questions Bearded Axe 5 $150.00 ...
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