Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dylan Somsel. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Dylan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I obtained a very old bastard file from an old farm, and knew that the steel could be used to make knives. I decided to try and make one myself, and after improvising the tools I needed was able to complete one. After enjoying that, I began piecing together the proper equipment and the more I did the more I enjoyed it, once I began to build up a fair amount of forged objects that were beginning to take up space, I decided to try and sell them.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a 20 year military veteran and work in EMS primarily. I got into my craft accidentally, attempting to make something for myself. It shifted from a one time project, to a hobby and quickly to a passion. I do general blacksmithing, however, I tend to make more knives as many of my customers are military and want custom orders rather than the items I have pre-made. I have recently began working on folding knives and will continue to perfect that and eventually will lean more heavily in folders. I generally forge smaller less extravagant useable and decorative items due to limited time being able to work in the forge. This is a side business and not full time. I am currently based in North Carolina, but will be transferring the entire shop to Michigan in the near future.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

One thing people can do is help increase the trend of buying locally whenever possible. We used to have a proud economy where things bought were handcrafted and built to last. So many things are outsourced overseas to the lowest bidder.

Supporting local artists and small business owners helps your immediate community and keeps these local artisans able to do what they love while contributing to the positivity of their particular craft.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Other than the pure love of the craft, what motivates me to continue and to improve in blacksmithing is the idea of providing handcrafted quality items that can be used for decades and passed down generations.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ets.com/DCSBladeworks
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/dcsbladeworks/

Image Credits
Dylan Somsel