Retrenched Cotswold dad forging a living for his family
A Gqeberha engineer was forced to turn his hobby into a full-time job after retrenchment left him without an income to provide for his family.
But word has spread of single dad Jacobus Meiring’s ability to turn raw steel into one-ofa-kind blades, and orders for his unique, utilitarian handiwork are coming in thick and fast.
“When I was a kid growing up on farms, I would sharpen all kinds of things and make what I thought were knives,” Meiring said.
“Now that I have set up a workshop dedicated to the art of knife- and blade-making, I realise what it really means to be a bladesmith.”
The long-term plan was always to turn a profit from the pieces he made in his garageturned-forge in Cotswold, but that plan was expedited when the construction company he worked for landed in financial difficulty in recent months.
Covid-19 was the final nail in the coffin and his steady salary dried up in November.
“I kind of expected it to happen at some stage. People were being laid off and I knew it was only a matter of time.
“Luckily I had something to fall back on and I actually did my first paid knife commission in September.
“Eventually my non-paying job started interfering with my blade-making, and when I was officially retrenched in January it was almost a blessing in disguise.
“Now I can focus all my attention on developing my skills, learning new techniques and making unique and quality products.”
Meiring said his biggest motivation was providing for his two daughters, aged 10 and 13.
“At this point I’m selling knives to pay for school clothes,” he said, laughing.
In recent months, JPM Hand Forged Blades has grown in leaps and bounds, thanks to word of mouth and the help of Meiring’s girlfriend Barbara Morisse, who is manning his social media accounts.
Orders have included knives, swords, axes and the occasional request that leaves Meiring scratching his head.
“Let’s just say I get to meet some interesting people with some crazy ideas.
“But that’s what makes this work interesting.
“I often have to look up what some of these so-called weapons look like and so far I haven’t been presented with a challenge that I have not been keen to take on.”
One of his biggest challenges so far was a 820mm ancient Greek sword, a replica of the weapons wielded by the Spartan warriors in the film 300.
Meiring said it was his biggest blade to date and it tested the limitations of his equipment, but he welcomed the challenge.
“One of my most popular blade commission was a kitchen knife I made two weeks ago. We posted a picture at 4pm on Saturday, and by 6pm I had three more orders for the same knife.
“I was blown away by the response and immediately fired up my forge to start working on those orders.”
“And even if all these knives are based on the same design, not one of them will be identical. That is the beauty of handforged blades.”
Meiring said he hoped to grow in skill and reputation to the point where he could break into the competitive international market.
“It only takes one influential person to buy one of your products and you could be set with orders for life. But for now I am happy to make everything from a biltong knife to a Spartan sword for whoever wants it,” he said.