Emiliano Carrillo - Sun and Stars Forge

This seax was originally forged as a demo piece for a summer class I co-taught. The demo was on multibar welding and the ​emphasis was on forging close to shape. I try to forge everything I make as close to shape as possible and use it as an exercise in hammer control and manipulation of material. 

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I chose a piece of birds-eye maple for the handle and moose antler for the bolsters. I realized that the handle was missing something, and looked through my sketchbook for some knotwork that might fit. I settled on the design I had come up with for a hair pin some months prior, and got carving. Once the carving was finished I drilled a hole and set the garnet. This piece involved a lot of new processes for me, such as wood carving and the use of stones in a piece. When it came time to make a sheath I was at a loss for a while, I realized I wanted to skip the metal sheath fittings I often use and instead go with something a little more simple. The sheath was designed with some classic Norse motifs in mind and colored with oil. I used two simple leather ties for attaching the sheath to a belt. The leather carving was meant to mirror the handle carving and bring the motif all the way through the piece. The later carving of the bone pin finished off the 'trilogy' of works.