Day Two starts colder than the first, but that won’ t worry us. Working a few feet from a hot hearth takes the chill off!
Our project for the following two days will be a hanging basket bracket, this will be a much more complex task and will teach us more skills, such as‘ Jumping Up’ or‘ Upsetting’,‘ Tenon Joints’,‘ Riveting’ and my favourite,‘ Leaf Making’. The bracket comprises a‘ Flat back’, a‘ Support Bar’, with‘ Hook End’, a‘ Curved Brace’ and a‘ Collar’. This is an excellent way to experience many of the skills required to make a wide range of ironwork.
The work is hard and a key point I learnt today was that I had to hit the metal much harder, while still being accurate.
It is much easier to get it right the first time than to have to correct a mistake that is made due to rushing. My mistake( lesson), today was the one about not allowing beautifully curled thin ends of a Fleur-de-Lis to get too hot in the fire and burn off!
By the end of the third day we have all made the component parts for our brackets, mine includes a fish-tail scroll and a decorative leaf.
Now John shows us the final step, shaping and fitting a collar. This( along with the tenon joint and the rivet) pulls the disparate metal shapes into one completed piece and with it I suddenly feel an overwhelming sense of achievement.
We are all comparing work as we have throughout the course, picking up pointers from each other and wishing our work was as good as the next persons.
My back bracket and support bar, before assembly
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