Knives and cutlery are important in all cultures as tools and works of art.  They are essential in everyone’s daily life on some level, but they can embody much more than just simple tasks.  It is my goal to bring about a love and appreciation for both the art, and what the knife means to us as people.

I started my career as a ceramic sculptural artist and carpenter.  I earned my degree in ceramics from the University of Edinboro Pennsylvania, then went on to teach sculptural ceramics in Erie.  In 2013 I began to make custom knives out of my garage with simple tools. I was able to apply what I had learned in the different trades to knife making and give myself a head start on the road to learning the process.  It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with the craft and soon after I was able to make it a full-time job.  Today I am based in Austin Texas, and able to sell my knives around the world. 

I take many different influences in my work but most notably from traditional Japanese blade aesthetics.  It’s my goal to apply a more modern approach to those influences by using state-of-the-art materials and processes in creating pieces that honor the past.  All of what I do is crafted by hand, but I do not make my own steel.  I prefer to use a variety of steels such as: S35VN, S45VN, 3V, 4V, 1095, CPM-Magnacut, damascus, and san-mai. 

My featured work includes many different styles of Japanese knives and a few of my own designs, the Drake and the Oni.  I am also experienced in antique blade restoration.  If you are interested in purchasing a knife, please visit the Availability page to see what is for sale or send me an email via the Contact page for custom knives or restoration inquiries.  Subscribe to the email list to gain access to exclusive blade sales, custom orders openings and other news.

Thank you for looking!

Chris Adelhardt