Smithies

A smithy is a workshop where metal is heated and worked by a smith, traditionally a blacksmith. The term can refer to the building, the business, or the craft itself. Smithies typically specialize in forging iron and steel into tools, hardware, structural components, and decorative ironwork, as well as performing repairs and metal fabrication.

Historically, smithies emerged in ancient times as centers of metalworking. A forge provides heat, an anvil serves as a striking surface, and tongs hold hot metal. For centuries, bellows or power sources sustained the fire, enabling hot forging and welding. The craft diversified into branches such as bladesmithing, armor-making, gunsmithing, and farriery-adjacent trades, each with its own specialized equipment and techniques.

Standard equipment includes a forge, anvil, hammer, tongs, a hardy tool, a vise, grinders, and a quench tank. Processes include heating, hammering, bending, drawing out, and welding (including forge welding or modern TIG welding). Finishing work is done by filing and grinding. Smithies also restore and repurpose metal items, and may fabricate custom hardware and decorative metalwork.

Modern smithies range from traditional blacksmith shops preserving historical techniques to contemporary metalworking studios and community workshops. Some serve industrial needs with larger equipment, while artisans focus on blades, sculpture, or architectural ironwork. Education and apprenticeships remain common paths to practice, along with safety training essential to handling hot metal and high-temperature furnaces.