Looking for guild near St. Cloud.

[Clint81]

I'm Clint and I'm new to blacksmithing and I'm looking for a guild around St. Cloud. My cousin Preston is in a guild.

[pnut]

Are you talking about a club or group to join or a proper guild for professional craftsmen like a labor union? 

There's a list of clubs and groups here you can look at. It's at the bottom of the homepage. Many clubs call themselves guilds but are essentially the same as a club or group of blacksmiths who get together for demos and open forge nights socializing etc. Google ABANA affiliates and blacksmithing groups in St. Cloud. I think there's a club coincidentally  called the guild of metalsmiths who are in Minnesota. Good luck and remember it's supposed to be fun. Unless you're looking for a labor guild and then I guess it should be good luck and remember if you're not working you're not making money. 

Pnut

 

Edited November 23, 2019 by pnut

[Frosty]

Welcome aboard Clint, glad to have you. If you put your general location in the header you find out how many members live within visiting distance. A lot of things are heavily effected by region, tool and equipment prices and availability, clubs, get togethers, etc. you'll learn more in an afternoon with an experienced smith than many times as long, weeks even, trying to figure it out for yourself.

Just out of curiosity pnut are you acquainted with Clint or are you assuming his "St. Cloud" is in the US of A? 

I think it's a safe bet though and "The Guild of Metalsmiths" is what you're probably thinking of, Clint. In this case "Guild" is just part of the name, not an adjective but a lot of the members just call it "The Guild" but they all know what they mean so it can fool folk's who don't read minds.  

Like most crafts Blacksmithing has it's own jargon, it lets us discuss things with precise terms and meanings so we spend much less time explaining sentences. For example, if I say you should "upset" something a person in the child care industry might be inclined to argue but a blacksmith would know I meant you should thicken a piece by driving it into itself, picture standing a rod on end and beating on it to make it fatter. Yes?

Anyway, If something we say doesn't make sense just ask, there is no shame in admitting you don't know or understand something. We're good with explaining things, especially if a person has made a good attempt to find out for themselves first. 

Frosty The Lucky.

[pnut]

Nope, don't know him from Adam. I was assuming he was in Minnesota but I wasn't sure. 

My post was more about my dislike of clubs and groups calling themselves a guild. I guess it sounds old timey and I'm a "to each their own" type of guy so it's just my personal opinion. I think the word guild doesn't mean the same thing here. It's turned into an old timey way of saying club or group, but it's really inconsequential any way. The group closest to me calls themselves a guild. I guess it fits in with the image of the blacksmith that  people have in their heads. I suppose it's my version of "Get off my lawn!!". Dinner at three o'clock in the afternoon is next. 

Pnut