It Pays to be Kind

I was floored when I saw the finished piece yesterday! It is a hand carved wooden bowl from a burly hardwood, nested in a hand-forged branch that follows the contour of the bowl. It's absolutely stunning. The images here don't capture just how beautiful this piece really is. What is interesting about this piece is the circumstance under which it was made. We made it for a man and his wife. We have never met them. They didn't ask for the piece, but I know they will love it. You see, last summer we created a large custom order for a new commercial property in California. After we shipped we were informed that the new development lost financing during the banking crisis and had no way to pay the balance owed...which was a large number!

It was painful for our company and we were advised to go after them with any legal remedy at our disposal. We didn't. We stayed in contact as best possible. Theresa (our accounting manager) was very complimentary of the man who is at the helm. We believed him when he said he was trying to pay us. They loved the work we did. So, for good or bad, we trusted him. His response was so impressive that I Googled this man to find out more about him. What I found was that he had recently married! So, I searched and found a gift registry for their wedding, and saw that they had an unfulfilled request for a carved wooden bowl which was no longer available. It took some time, but I found a beautifully carved bowl and commissioned the hand forged base in our shop. I gave it to Daniel...who is a wonderful master blacksmith...and I just let him go with the project. His work is amazing!


Today we will add gold to the delicate leaves, and I will write a note thanking the man who owes us so much money, for the promise he has made to pay...And I will send the bowl and base as a gift from Stone County Ironworks. Some would question my approach. But this economy has presented a tough ride for many business people. A little grace extended...goes a long, long way. Next time, it might be me.


Corky Baker
President, CEO

Duggar Family Tree

Tonight the Duggar/Stone County episode airs on TLC...It's called Duggar Heavy Metal. Everyone around our small town (Mountain View, Arkansas) is pretty excited. Some of us will gather at the Inn at Mountain View to watch the show together. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. We had a great time when the Duggars were here. I have known them for 5 years. Great friends and a wonderful testimony to the value and importance of family. We built a Duggar Family Tree that day...Hand forged with a wonderful organic shape. It was truly a piece of art. The roots of this magnificant tree sit on top of a wonderful hardwood base which has an iron plaque with the family name. Each of the kids played a part in making a gold leaf for the tree. We had a really special friend (who knows how to write small) come over to the forge...and she sat with each one of the children and wrote their names and birthdays on the back of their special leaf. After all of the leaves were hung on the Duggar Family Tree, we presented Jim Bob (dad) with a few more leaves...just in case!


Well, we were so inspired by that tree that we decided to create two different tree styles for other families that wanted to display their family tree. You can see them here at http://www.stonecountyironworks.com/categories/Shop-Products/Family-Trees/.


Every detail is hand-forged by one of our gifted artisans making every tree unique! The limbs are textured, twisted and shaped by experienced hands to replicate the majesty of an established old hardwood tree with enough character to lean against the wind. This is an heirloom quality piece that will be treasured for generations to come. Each tree comes with a twin-leaf pair to serve as a family starter mounted in the highest place of honor on the tree. We will also include a gold pen, for capturing the names and birth dates of each family member. There are 30 mounting places on each tree. Additional hand forged leaves are available individually as doubles (for couples or twins) and singles (in sets of ten). Each leaf is unique like the person it represents, and tastefully finished by hand in beautiful gold tones. This tree is truly work of genuine hand-forged artistry made right here in the hills of Arkansas by renowned Stone County blacksmiths.


My wife and I have six children. We plan to build our own family tree! It's the most important thing I do.


Corky Baker

President and Chief Keeper of the Tree

I’m Grateful for Your Skill

Our custom group did it again!

I get really excited and proud when I see the potential of our custom division come shining through. The drink trolley we produced was a rush project for a grand opening. And this particular hotel is a wonderful paradise. They spared no expense in their desire to see that guests were served with something far greater than utilitarian carts. The mix of iron and wood in this piece struck a perfect balance, and the functionality just made this piece even more beautiful. Notice the drawer. It is literally carved from a single piece of hardwood…no glue ups here. The idea was to have a small place for refuse, but the drawer also provided a nice pouring deck that could then retract into the upper cavity following the curve of the iron. The glass rack and a conveniently towel bar are located just under the upper deck.

As it turns out the cart was engineered to be super heavy…which also made it very quiet. Trust me, no one was running through the halls at 20 mph pushing this tank...and nothing rattled! Bottles nestled son nicely in the lower part of the trolley for display.

It is a very nice piece. I want to just say thanks to Daniel who took the lead on the iron, and Neil who did such a nice job with the wood work on this trolley. Good job guys! It’s great to have talent on board!

Corky Baker
President and Chief Bottle Washer

Old Red Barn

I'm not sure why old barns are so appealing to people. I admit that I love seeing a beautiful old barn…weathered and worn with time. You can oftentimes see remnants of red paint and it reminds us of the hours spent with a brush to give that once new barn its first (and usually only) coat of paint. When you look up close, you can see the grooves in the wood, created by wind and dust and rain over the course of 100 years. Every piece of wood ages differently…develops its own character.

As a boy I watched my grandfather in his little woodshop. He made picture frames and shelves from old barn wood. As a young man I found myself following in his steps. I would drive the countryside looking for an old barn and a willing farmer whose generosity enabled my next barn-wood project. I wished that I could do to a newer piece of wood, what took 100 years of nature to accomplish.

After many failed experiments over two decades, I had a “eureka moment” in my shop, and held for the first time, a piece of barn-wood made from new lumber, that made it past my self-imposed requirement of authenticity. I rushed into our house and laid it next to my grandpa's picture frame. Indistinguishable! I still have that piece.

I later built a small machine to prove out the concept. It worked! At this moment, we are building production equipment that will allow us to make weathered wood...hints of red...black stains from rusty old nails...gray sun bleached edges. The advantage is to using new wood is there are no rotten edges or lead-based paints. Plus we have dimensional stability because the wood is kiln dried…

Our plan is to build beautiful table tops with iron strapping, lamp bases...even barn-wood and iron beds. We can also provide bulk barn-wood lumber for rustic interiors with the ability to produce custom hues and colors. I am very excited about barn-wood! I only wish my grandfather could be here to enjoy it with me.

Corky Baker
President and Chief Innovator

In Memory Of Bryans Dad...

Wow. Today we had some visitors…A son, a daughter, a cute little granddaughter and a widow who misses her man. Bryan, the son, had wanted to find a way to honor the life and passion of his recently departed father. His dad loved Mountain View, he loved mountain music, and he admired the art of blacksmithing. So, being an animator and designer who works in the movie industry in LA, he designed the perfect memorial...a very unique park bench with musical notes and a plaque honoring his dad. And then Bryan commissioned Stone County Ironworks to build it. And we did.

It looks wonderful, sitting in a prized location where the bluegrass pickers gather every evening to work their magic in the cool mountain air...downtown by the square, here in the bluegrass capitol of the planet. But today, the family flew and drove to our peaceful town in the hills, and saw the bench for the first time. It brought tears. We are grateful to be a part of a young man's quest to honor his dad. They toured the forge. Took lots of pictures, and left feeling both fulfilled and a little empty. Dad would have loved everything about what we do. Stone County Ironworks really is a very special place.

Corky Baker
President and Neighbor

Get a Corner on The Market

Not literally! I just want people to know what a wonderful thing a simple textured iron corner is. It completely changes the table! Adds a tremendous amount of value. OK...it’s nice to be able to protect the corners of a beautiful wooden table top, but I think this corner is much more about the look! It even feels great! It’s not just Western, although it certainly works for that kind of decor...but it’s almost Mediterranean. We made these for a nice custom order…80 tables all together. The tables were designed for a wonderful upscale resort on the coast. The table tops turned out so nice that we wanted to protect them…but I ended up falling in love with these corners. Anyway, sometimes it’s the garnish that sets off the plate. In this case…the garnish was a simple textured corner, hand-made in Americas Blacksmith Shop! Let's eat!

Corky Baker
President and Chief Garnisher

Hammering Creates Character

You might not be able to tell from the image, but this is a very big leaf! It's 12" to 14" long and probably 6" wide. We made it from flat plate by pounding the leaf with a huge hammer until it puckered between the veining to give it a nice organic shape. When it was flat...it was pretty unimpressive. Just a lifeless hunk of metal...a tropical leaf wannabee. But the heat and pressure of the pounding it took began to build character and form. With all of the cupping and shaping, the leaf became work-hardened so it is very strong now. The textures made it perfect for gold and bronze highlighting which really made this leaf special.

The same happens to us in life. Life can hit hard sometimes. The tough spots, the hammering we all take through difficult moments...will either make a mess of things, or help shape us into a thing of beauty.

Corky Baker

President and Chief Leaf

The Nature of Iron

People are mesmerized by when they see what we do here. It’s a tension of contrasts…Converting cold, lifeless iron into warm, wonderfully crafted organic shapes that reflect the beauty of nature. The feeling we get when we find the perfect oasis outdoors is extended somehow, when we bring nature into the spaces where we live, work and play. That is why the artisan blacksmiths here at Stone County Ironworks love the challenge of replicating nature in so much of what we do. Basic blacksmithing techniques haven’t changed in 200 years. Nor has the source for inspiration. We still look at nature to help us innovate. The perfect scroll, for example, is demonstrated so wonderfully in the shape and structure of the nautilus. The textures and colors of an interesting branch are amazing when replicated in iron. Every day our gifted blacksmiths labor meticulously over a single hand-made pine cone, or a leaf…in an effort to make someone, somewhere say…”wow.” We have over 1500 items in our portfolio…and our custom group can make anything we don’t have. We want to help people select or dream-up the perfect item so that we can make it right here in the hills of Arkansas. When others are inspired by our work…we are inspired to work even harder! Our simple desire is to make something beautiful, that people will treasure…a work that replicates the beautiful outdoors… It’s the nature of iron.

Corky Baker

President and Chief Naturalist

I Love Our Place!

Stone County Ironworks started as a modest blacksmith shop...literally a one-man show. So now...30 years later...even though we have almost 80,000 square feet of manufacturing space in several buildings...we still enter through a modest front entryway that looks just like an old blacksmith shop. It's a daily reminder of our roots...where we came from.

When people visit the forge they are always surprised and delighted. Surprised with how big our operation is and delighted with just how small we seem. I guess that front entry is helping somehow! I hope we always remain humble and grateful for the opportunity to do what we do every day. It is a privilege to serve our customers...it's an honor to be Americas Blacksmith Shop!

Corky Baker
President

Innovation Rules!

Innovation rules! We worked and worked to try to find a way to create hand forged bamboo. It's tricky though because bamboo has these interesting double ring hump things every so many inches up the stalk. Anyway...Tiny (who isn't) one of our master blacksmiths figured out how to do it and it looks so realistic! A lot of what we do replicates nature...not all...but a lot. Pine, Sequoia, Aspen and Birch, Sassafras, Vineyard...These are all very organic looks and we have a large market for that style of forge iron. But bamboo? Who would have thunk it? Anyway we built several items. A beautiful bamboo bed using iron lashing to wrap the joints. An incredible bamboo lamp with delicate bamboo leaves that look so realistic. I'm not sure what to do with it yet. I would love to get your feedback. The look is really different from anything we produce today. Its hip and kind of sophisticated in an elegant way. I like it a lot. It really looks rich in hand rubbed bronze with 24k gold accents on the leaves. I hope you like it too. If you have some creative ideas as to how we might make use of this very distinct look...Let us know!

Corky Baker
President and Chief Feeder of Koala

Beautiful custom coffee table

Wow we made the most beautiful custom coffee table today. It is huge! The top measures almost 5’ x 5’ and is clad with hand fired copper. It was a real challenge because we can source copper only in 48” x 10’ sheets…so we worked with our client to devise a way to make the table in three sections…and then we joined them back together.
We used metal straps to cover the joints, and hand finished them to coordinate with the warm, natural patinas found on the copper. The straps were essentially a band-aid…but they added such a wonderful dimension to the table. It’s so interesting how that happens. It’s a lot like life. We are so quick to judge the imperfections! And the techniques we use to overcome them add such a wonderful shade of character to our lives. These straps have somehow become the crowning element to an already wonderful piece. I had my doubts…but I just as easily could have expected something wonderful. Wow.

Corky Baker
President and Chief Table Dude

New e-commerce website

My team and I are working so hard to get our consumer e-commerce site launched. I have mixed emotions. We are committed to selling the way that people wish to buy. And while we have had a fairly extensive web presence for a long time...through other web retailers...other companies just can't afford the investment required to sell 50,000 different options...finishes, upholsteries and wood species online. It's up to us!

I don't relish the idea of our valued customers thinking that Stone County is a competitor. We are searching for great store-locator software so that we can point folks to brick-and-mortar and even e-commerce stores.

In the old days they would probably find 50 to 100 Stone County items on display...even more sometimes. We still have some stores that try to carry a real selection. Not as many though. And those that carry a large selection do very well. So we decided that it is best for all concerned, that we go online. We will be launching in the next week or two. If you have questions or concerns call me. I'm open 24-7!
Corky Baker
President