Cut Throat Knives
Get a handle on these sharp designs from this inventive Melbourne studio.
Aidan Mackinnon has created custom blades featuring rain clouds, galah wings and a map of one knife-owner’s home town. Since starting Cut Throat Knives in 2015, he’s also teamed up with whiskey-makers, vegan taxidermists and the florist from his wedding (he encased some of her dried flowers in knife handles). Some designs are more straightforward and the knives attract attention for the quality of their blades. Mackinnon works with two bladesmiths and a leathersmith in a Coburg North studio.
What inspired your knife obsession,
Aidan? I came across a guy making chef ’s knives by hand and I knew that I wanted to do something similar. I went from my first class to launching Cut Throat within a year. In your line of work, you must get your fair share of cuts and injuries? We try to take safety as seriously as possible, but accidents do happen. Not only are we working with sharpened tools, but steel at
1,000 degrees can give you
a burn really fast. Almost everything in our space can hurt you pretty quickly, so you have to ensure you’re in the right headspace when stepping in front of the machines. You’ve incorporated some creative material into your knives, including ripped-up American dollar bills. What have you most
enjoyed working with? One of my favourites was the collaboration with Starward Whisky where we used their old barrels to make a handle. The Blood Money design used real US dollars; you can buy bags of shredded currency from the US Mint. It’s great for confetti if you want to make it rain. What’s the story with your collaboration with The Dapper
Dead? I heard about this vegan taxidermist in Scotland who uses reclaimed roadkill to make sporrans (the bag you wear with a kilt), and I knew I wanted to work with her. We decided to create a small run of sporrans with matching sgian dubhs, small ceremonial daggers.
What’s next? More limited editions, including one collaboration with an augmented-reality artist where the blade comes alive through the phone, and another project with a sneaker company. We have our leather line, chopping boards, monthly classes and most likely a trip to Japan to go to the Seki Knife Festival. Who needs sleep, right? Knives from $325 each, cutthroatknives.com.au