Little Bits Add Up! 

Seems like every couple of months, I get asked about how I make my rune pendants. 

The end product doesn't look anything like what I see when I'm actually working on them. One of the best parts of the process is the "surprise" at the end when all's said and done.

The biggest difference between my work and other examples you might see around the internet is that I don't try to get the lines set in the iron in just one blow. When I first started doing designs like this, I knew I wanted my work to stand apart from the herd a bit, so I developed some tools and techniques that would let me vary the length, width and depth of the lines. One look tells you there's no way these were pounded in with a stamp or a single chisel.

Of course, the downside to all that is the time it takes to make one! As much as I like making these pieces, I've resigned myself to using them as something of a creative outlet rather than a rational business decision. That's the blacksmith life, though. Sanity is sometimes more important than keeping the lights on!