The Oberon 2-Day Blacksmithing Course

If you are looking to give a course for someone as a gift, and you don’t know the dates they are able to attend, choose this option. We are happy to create a personalised gift-voucher which can either be gift-wrapped and posted out, or emailed to you for you to print at home (select option when checking out.) Alternatively, if you would like to book a specific course date, but with a voucher, choose the course you would like to book (from the previous screen) and simply select that you would like a gift voucher when checking out.

Our courses make a fantastically unique Christmas, birthday or wedding anniversary gifts. 6th wedding anniversary is iron and 11th wedding anniversary is steel! Giving a course can be a great way of linking to one of the metals and you come away with items that can be kept forever or gifted to your partner. Why not come and do a course as a couple for your wedding anniversary? Please feel free to contact is to discuss ideas or personalised experience.

We will contact you to discuss your requirements following your order. The recipient can then contact us directly via QSB@fireandiron.co.uk or 01372 375148 to book a course date that is convenient to them, when they are ready. Vouchers are valid for 12 months.

*** Please contact us if you have any queries. All vouchers are sent via Royal Mail ‘s 1st Class service. ***

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Our ‘Oberon’ blacksmithing course is led by Giles Clarke with the assistance of Tom Quinnell. Limited to 8 students.

This is a traditional blacksmithing course designed for either: people who have completed our introductory weekend course and would like to expand their skills further; or absolute beginners who are relatively competent with hands-on activities and/or have good stamina. The work rate on this course is fairly intense and fast-paced, and we promise that you will be not only be suitably tired by the end of the second day, but immensely proud of the three items you have made. This is an ambitious course, with regards to the volume of work achieved within the timescale.

You will warm up on Monday morning by getting stuck in straight away with some of the key blacksmith processes whilst first making a wrapped ‘tendril’ fire poker.

Now suitably warmed-up, you will next be making an ornate wall-mounted hanging basket bracket under the expert guidance of Tom and Giles.

On Tuesday, you will be challenged to make a more complex item, using all of the skills and processes you have learnt from the previous day. You will be making a ram’s-head toasting fork. This item is beautifully detailed and incorporates all of the processes found within the craft of blacksmithing.

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Peat Oberon led courses here with us for 24 years. Peat is an extraordinary award-winning traditional blacksmith and a wonderful character. He is an exceptional teacher and has written comprehensive books about the techniques of blacksmithing in many different languages. Peat is based in Yorkshire and - now in his eighties - he made the difficult decision during the pandemic that he could longer embark on the long journey down to Leatherhead to teach with us.

Peat has passed his well-structured and challenging course on to us, and we have continued to teach it here, now being led by Giles and Tom, and the course continues to be extremely popular.

Your course takes place at the Rowhurst Forge blacksmithing and heritage site, where decorative ironwork of a world-class standard has been produced by the same family since 1932. You will be based in the teaching area of our forge, and you will have the chance to see the beautiful work of leading British artistic metalworkers in our well-known Fire & Iron Gallery.

Your course will start promptly on Day 1 at 9:00am and finish at 6:00pm. It will continue on Day 2 from 9:00am until 5:00pm.

Your tutor will guide you through the various techniques involved in the fascinating craft of forging hot iron (‘blacksmithing’). All items you make, you can take home with you.

We will provide tea, coffee, bottled water and biscuits, but please bring a packed lunch with you for both days.

Our booking terms can be found via the menu on our website or by following this link

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Classes are limited to 8 students, each with their own forge, anvil, leg vice and all necessary hand tools (hammers, tongs, drifts, punches, hot and cold chisels, twisting wrenches, etc. PPE is provided - safety glasses, leather gloves, leather apron, and optional earplugs & face masks. All students are required to wear steel toe safety boots. For hygiene reasons, you are required to bring your own safety boots - please read our health & safety information for further details on this.

The emphasis is on learning the seven basic techniques of hot forging during the making of decorative and/or useful objects; students can expect to make several such objects to take home at the end of the weekend.

Past students have described the experience as 'amazing' and 'mind blowing', and the satisfaction of proud makers showing off their achievements at the end of the weekend is very evident. With our decades of experience, and over 1600 very happy students to date, we can confidently guarantee that you will enjoy yourself enormously!

Please do not hesitate to contact Tom if you have any questions or queries - QSB@fireandiron.co.uk