iron woodrow Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 i was having a chat with a member on this site (who shall remain nameless) about female smiths, and the view from this fellow was that "women can never really be smiths" i disagreed whole heartedly, and would love to open up a show and tell of the fabulous work out there from lady smiths.... so prove me right!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beth Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 oh dear... its a jolly good job this dimbo remains nameless :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramsberg Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Pictures or links with pictures, are worth the words of a thousand idiots. . .http://www.blacksmithchic.com/http://www.blacksmithchic.com/gawk.htm Caleb Ramsby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenbeast Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 what a ridiculous view point. what was the reasoning? If it's build size then surely there are smaller than average men that 'can't ever be smiths' and that's not to mention the better application of the hammer without raw strength Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beth Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 has our friend not considered that giant muscles are almost irrelevent in mastering blacksmithing skills ( i presume that is the advantage he percieves he has over females - not always the case like green beast rightly said.. ) more important are the non gender specific skills of determination passion patience good eye tenacity and humility you need in order to learn. even MORE so for women, due to the boring years of people with attitudes like his, muddying the water. thank god people tend to use their brains more on the whole these days, when assessing a female in the craft ... shona johnson who works with her family in rathobyres forge in scotland certainly knows how to move metal, and could probably arm wrestle the plonker who commented on women smiths too if she could be bothered :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenbeast Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 wowsers, nice pic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iron woodrow Posted February 23, 2012 Author Share Posted February 23, 2012 thats one neat shoulder on that job! if the offender has seen any of these posts, he sure will be hiding now!!! thanks for the support! i knew i could count on you lot!!!! this was his reasoning!!!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_LA_R4ifYk while this may be a great video of sheer grunt, i think beth said it best! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 What a bozo! Here's a few great women smiths (besides the ones on IFI) :http://dragonflyforge.ca/becky.htmlhttp://www.colleendupon.co.uk/Colleen_du_Pon_Artist_Blacksmith.htmlhttp://www.lucysandysclarke.com/ http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23395932-shes-hot-the-blonde-blacksmith.dohttp://womenwhodesignthewest.wordpress.com/2010-exhibitors/maegan-crowley-blacksmith/http://www.bellaironworks.com/http://architecturetourist.blogspot.com/2011/07/copper-bronze-and-steel-corrina-sephora.htmlhttp://www.melissacole.co.uk/ That's just a few I know of and Wow! what work they do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvmikeray Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I loved this work by Susan Hutchinsonhttp://designcarolinas.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/SHCG-Susan-Hutchinson-2-e1311392007541.jpg I am sure we can go on and on :D !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaylan veater Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Hi All, Just to add my thoughts. I watched Alison Finn from Freedom Metals in Colorado come to our Bonneville Forge Council Conference and do some amazing forging. I think that thoses that put forth the effort practice, practice,and practice and have the desire to always to better will become great. No matter the gender. Gaylan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FieryFurnace Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 (Aimed at Beth's post #5.) Now THAT'S a tennon! LOL Of course ladies can be smiths. If a woman turns out nice work, then by golly, she's a blacksmith! (I hope it wasn't a mod that said that though, because some of us are liable to dissappear! LOL OK that was a joke!) Linda Metcalf (Elmer Roush's wife) can turn out some very nice designs. I took a class under Clay Spencer and Julie Clark was in that class. She did a very nice piece, and forged the socks off of nearly all the other guys. (Including me!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbruce Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Dorthy Steigler was president of ABANA.......Gender is no reason to slight your own potential as a smith, what is persistence and a love of what you're doing.....I'd love to see the reaction if a man were to state here: ''Women can't really be smiths'', I'd be the first to jump in his face..... :ph34r: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmoothBore Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 What IS a "Blacksmith" ? Today, the term is bandied about quite freely, ... and is applied to anyone who works hot Iron or Steel. But traditionally, a "Journeyman" Blacksmith, was expected to posess and exhibit ALL the skills that are associated with the Trade. Many "Ornamental Ironworkers" are referred to as "Blacksmiths", ... even though they have no interest or experience in "Tool-making", or in the Fabrication of Mechanical devices. So basically, ... there is no single description, that adequately defines a Blacksmith. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Oh, and we can't forget Elizabeth Brimm, known for her pillows and ladies clothing in iron.http://www.abana.org/resources/galleries/members/ebrim.shtml Being a Southern gal she says her mom told her it isn't lady like to be a blacksmith, so she wears a pearl necklace when she hammers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbruce Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 What IS a "Blacksmith" ? But traditionally, a "Journeyman" Blacksmith, was expected to posess and exhibit ALL the skills that are associated with the Trade. Can anybody name one?..... :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HWHII Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Some one should remind him this is 2012 not 1912. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I don't see that anchor making video as sheer grunt. It is pure teamwork and coordinated cooperation. A group of equally trained women would have no problem doing the same job to the same quality, although a group that size of equally trained women probably did not exist at the time of this video. 1842, this article mentions women chainmakers and blacksmithshttp://books.google.com/books?id=1Q0z_FHJVLEC&pg=PA297&lpg=PA297&dq=woman+blacksmith+chain+maker&source=bl&ots=aGcgvj5ZpU&sig=SuzsCiiAlGO2kjdE58_K0a7ZO3k&hl=en&sa=X&ei=x1NGT7e7BIbm0QGE3JHxDQ&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=woman%20blacksmith%20chain%20maker&f=false a thread from ABANAhttp://www.abana.org/resources/discus/messages/4/261.html?1329232263 Also remember there were laws in England that a women could work as a journeyman smith only in the shop of her father, husband, or brother. These laws were there because women were fully capable of the job, and society (the men in charge) were nor willing to let women have the power of business ownership. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maillemaker Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I remember reading about a woman smith in colonial-ish years (can't remember the specific date) who was making a name for herself at sixteen. So much so that a contemporary poet penned a poem praising her milky white skin (when it wasn't covered in coal dust) and powerful biceps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 In England, in the chain making factories, the ladies made all chain that was 3/8" round and under. This was all by hand and they did this until 1968! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ten Hammers Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Beth, you go girl. I have 2 grown daughters and 6 granddaughters. Hopefully one of the granddaughters will take the trade. They all like the fire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Seelye Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 has our friend not considered that giant muscles are almost irrelevent in mastering blacksmithing skills ( i presume that is the advantage he percieves he has over females - not always the case like green beast rightly said.. ) more important are the non gender specific skills of determination passion patience good eye tenacity and humility you need in order to learn. even MORE so for women, due to the boring years of people with attitudes like his, muddying the water. thank god people tend to use their brains more on the whole these days, when assessing a female in the craft ... shona johnson who works with her family in rathobyres forge in scotland certainly knows how to move metal, and could probably arm wrestle the plonker who commented on women smiths too if she could be bothered :) Wow! That picture says tons! Awesome hoist set up, Great control. It proves its not all about brute force but ALL about skill, training, common sense and a fine attention to detail. Beth, that was awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Funny we have Guild Regulations from the Medieval/Renaissance periods restricting women to working only in the blacksmith shops of their Father, Brother or Husband---so we know that women were smithing centuries years ago as people tend to not make laws against something that's not happening... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Beginning my smithery school in 1970, I had very few women students for the first 25 years, although a number of women inquired wanting to be horseshoers. Dorothy Stiegler was an exception, coming to Turley Forge in the early 1970's. A little prior to the turn of the 21st century, I began to get a greater proportion of female signups. One Turley grad was Kathleen Holmes who was already a skilled welder when she took my class. She organized and curated a successful, national show of women's art smithing work in 2005 titled, "Women Do Iron," which took place at two galleries in Aztec, New Mexico. Finesse in smithing is an essential. I sense that women learn this finesse before most men do. Men who are neophytes tend to think it's all the work of the biceps and eventually, they may gain finesse. I think the same may be said for design sense. Not that men don't get it; it just might take longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tzonoqua Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 oh good grief, really??!!! I think they should be named (and shamed!!) I challenge that person to come forward and express their views to me directly!!! I'm surprised that someone really believes that you have to have a penis to be able to swing a hammer!!!!! :P Go and ask my customers whether they think I'm a blacksmith or not. To me those are the people that I care whether they believe I can deliver the work they want. And guess what, they pay me well for what I do, so go on, call me a blacksmith!! :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacques Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 why is this brawny smith wearing gloves? and why is this person using a hoist? a real artisan would be handling that "toothpick" by hand! Because she has got a brain and know how to use it, unlike us. (I am also kidding.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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