For many, blacksmithing is an enjoyable hobby that enables them to create something and work productively on a project that yields tangible results. However, if you are passionate about blacksmithing and wish you had more time to practice your craft, you may consider making blacksmithing your full-time job.
Blacksmithing is a good profession with a stable salary, flexible hours, and a creative license. As a blacksmith, you can usually dictate your own hours, create a variety of pieces, and keep an active mind and body as you work.
This article will explore blacksmiths’ roles and responsibilities to reveal its benefits. Keep reading to learn more about blacksmithing as a career and why you may find blacksmithing an enjoyable and rewarding profession.
What Do Blacksmiths Do?
As a blacksmith, you may serve many roles. Many blacksmiths are self-employed, and you can make practical pieces, such as specialist tools and security grills, or more artistic pieces, such as furniture and gates.
If you are a self-employed blacksmith, you can create pieces that you enjoy and sell them at craft shows or fairs.
You can also allow people in the community to place orders so you can create custom designs and pieces.
Basically, running an at-home blacksmith forge can enable you to create your own small business while doing something you enjoy.
If you work in a larger forge, your work will still generally be individual, but you may benefit from teamwork for larger items.
As a blacksmith, your days will include drafting designs, forging and heating metals, and operating equipment and tools to finish your project.
There are many routes to becoming a blacksmith, such as taking a college course that focuses on blacksmithing skills.
Some schools offer bachelor’s degrees in blacksmithing, but the most common and easiest route involves obtaining a 2-year vocational degree in blacksmithing.
However, if you are eager to begin a career in blacksmithing or do not have the resources for college, you can apply for a position with a current blacksmith who is hiring and is willing to give you on-the-job training.
Similarly, you can get a blacksmithing apprenticeship, which will allow you to jumpstart your blacksmithing career while learning from a professional.
After your apprenticeship, you could find work under another blacksmith or start your own business.
If you are business-minded or desire metalworking, creativity, and flexible hours, blacksmithing may be a good career for you.
Salary
When contemplating a career change, salary is an important aspect to consider. In 2017, the average structural metal fabricating blacksmith made about $38,450 annually.
This salary varies based on the blacksmith’s reputability, experience, and specialty. In addition, the salary of self-employed blacksmiths varies widely, and it’s hard to collect accurate data for this population.
Many blacksmiths may work as farriers in addition to their blacksmith job, enabling them to make additional money.
Farriers fit and create horseshoes for horses, so blacksmiths are a great option to fill this position due to their metalworking experience.
Few people are experienced enough to make horseshoes, so having undergone training as a blacksmith gives you an advantage over others when finding this job, which can bring in an average of $20,000 per year when working part-time.
Therefore, working as a blacksmith while doing farrier work on the side can provide a steady salary throughout your career.
However, if you want to start your own blacksmith business, it is important to acknowledge that you will need to purchase a range of supplies, such as a forge, anvil, and other tools.
While these supplies may be expensive up-front, they should last for many years without requiring replacement.
Steady Work
Although blacksmithing has declined over the years as machinery enables mass production of goods previously made by blacksmiths, these craftsmen still have a place in the market.
Customers continue to search for high-quality and reliable work that mass manufacturers cannot provide, and blacksmiths have the skills to produce these items.
People value creative work, especially when it has been customized. During an interview with a modern blacksmith, he revealed his custom pieces like fire pokes and interior furnishings generally have a two-week waiting list.
Furthermore, blacksmithing is a fascinating craft to many people, so customers may request anything from music stands to cannons.
As a blacksmith, you may work on several pieces at a time and will have a creative license to make your own schedule and pace your pieces at your convenience.
Because you make your own hours, your schedule will be flexible, and you can even make blacksmithing a part-time job if you have other responsibilities or want to find a slower pace.
Overall, blacksmithing is a steady yet flexible career. To run a blacksmithing business from home, you may need to work over 40 hours a week when finding clients, but you can manage your own workload and pace clients once you have a reliable client base.
Is Blacksmithing A Creative Profession?
Blacksmithing is a very flexible profession that offers a lot of creative licenses. To become a blacksmith, you need creativity and an eye for design and form.
As you practice, you can develop your own unique style, which will help you grow your customer base and increase profits.
While you work on commissioned projects, you can also create your own.
You can discover what you most enjoy making and replicate it or practice patterns until you become skilled at making this object, which may enable you to specialize in your favorite pieces or sell specialized goods at a craft fair.
This profession will enable you to keep a creative mind and explore your creativity while encouraging you to maintain an active mind and body during forging.
Furthermore, due to people’s fascination with customized goods that match their needs, you will be able to create a wide variety of goods rather than repeating the same mundane tasks.
Customizing goods will allow you to be creative as you forge and allow you to add your own touch to your pieces. Even if you are working from a sketch of a customer’s request, you will still need to choose the appropriate materials and interpret different aspects of the design.
As a blacksmith, you can create almost anything. If you focus on blacksmithing artistically, you can create sculptures, decorative items, or even knives and swords.
Fortunately, even if your work concentrates on functionality, you can get creative with decorative aspects of furniture or other objects, such as fire pokers. No matter your specialty, you can forge goods that show your unique talents and catch customers’ eyes.
Blacksmiths build pieces that will last long periods of time, and perhaps forever. By adding your personal touch to a piece, you can create something that holds meaning for your customers.
When you are passionate about something, you can add value to it, allowing you to make more money for your craft while also being creative and making something your customer can cherish for many years.
Conclusion
Overall, blacksmithing is an ancient profession that remains relevant today. It is great for anyone who enjoys creativity, metalworking, or is interested in starting a small business. Unlike many professions, blacksmithing produces tangible results that you can review and revisit.
Generally, working as a blacksmith provides a steady stream of income and a decent salary, while the unique skills gained from blacksmithing can enable additional income from working as a farrier.
Blacksmithing will provide a creative outlet and allow you to create things that others can cherish and use in their homes throughout their lives.
