| Ever cook in your
fireplace? We often did! Colonial cookware and fireplace tools were a passion
of mine (I've had some strange ones in my day! Lol). They had become increasingly
hard to find, even in the old Yankee barns that dot the landscape up in New England.
So like many fledgling smiths (then as now) I decided to try my hand at forging realized
repros. Since, when I was done, and working in old rusted, pitted stock, they
often had the look of authenticity, I always stamped then with my touchmark: a weeping
heart. This way the "knowing" will not be misled if it ever comes to
that. |
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Some of the things the
Colonial mistress would have had in great number around her hearth are trivets.
These are basically little legged stands upon which she would place her pots and pans and
them shove them right into the hot coals. Others might support pots near the
periphery of her hearth where the contents were baking slowly or just staying warm.
The heart motif was very
popular in Colonial times (and much earlier). My trivet is about 8 or 9 inches
across. It forms easily over the table and horn of your anvil: the heart is kind of
a natural shape to "draw" out of strap stock. Where your challenge comes
is in the three legs. You want these nicely formed, re-curved, and with the ha'penny
feet on bottom. I formed mine up, and then handled the more or less
classic ball termination at top of them (which is our common Western decorative heritage
from the ancient Greeks). You will see this through the ages on columns, furniture
legs, etc.. in wood, stone and here in metal. I left short terminal spikes atop the
little balls, which permitted me to hot-rivet the legs through the flat strap later when
attaching. Just like Granddad did, by golly! Lol. Some day we'll discuss
maybe what it's like to learn and do skills and things "just like granddad did"
in infinite detail, and what you "learn" when you take over such motor
habits and "become" a de facto old-time smith or mountain man or
what-you-will. Very interesting insights, indeed. |