This page contains information about Blacksmithing Classes in the Pittsburgh Area and elsewhere. 

There are schools listed at the bottom of this page, with links to their websites.

In addition, PAABA offers Scholarships.  See the Scholarship Information, below.

 

 

Heritage School at the Conservancy - Arts & Crafts Classes in Butler, PA

 

 

The Jacksonville Center for the Arts - Arts & Crafts Classes in Floyd, VA

 

 

Touchstone Center for Crafts - Arts & Crafts Classes in Farmington, PA

 

 

Center for Metal Arts - Chester, NY

Fall-Winter sessions 2011-12

Saturday October 15: Basics of Blacksmithing. Your own anvil work station and tooling, including an authentic Hofi cast hammer. Center for Metal Arts blacksmith Jon Ledford will guide you through the basic skills of working hot iron at the forge, with time for you to try your hand with each technique. If you have never held a hammer before—or if you just want more practice on the anvil, this is a great class for you. You will leave with your practice pieces to show for a day at the forge.  10 AM to 4 PM. $120 includes all materials.

Saturday November 12: Copper Fold Forming with Darren Fisher. Just in time to make something fun for the holidays with fine arts metalsmith Darren Fisher. Fold forming is a mash-up of origami and forging—the way you fold, and the way you hammer, and the way you open the folded piece determines what you get. Learn some of the basic folds, and take your pieces home. 10 AM to 4 PM. $120 includes all materials.

Saturday December 10: Fundamentals of Forging with Vivian Beer. Vivian is back for a day at the forge! Spend a day with this engaging instructor—Vivian has much more to teach than you could get in a full semester with her, so claim an anvil station for yourself and grab a full day’s worth of instruction! Expect lots of good technical knowledge, and plenty of hands-on time at your own anvil, in a fully-tooled classroom studio. We supply the forge, your own anvil work station, tooling, an authentic Hofi hammer, and plenty of stock to forge. You bring the intention to have a lot of fun at the anvil. 10 AM to 4 PM. $120 includes all materials.

Saturday February 25: Forging the Nonferrous Metals with Darren Fisher. (Snow date 3/4) In this class you will learn techniques for forging silicon bronze, brass, copper, and aluminum. Students who are interested in forging sterling silver are welcome to bring their own supplies for some specific instruction on working this material. Working processes such as annealing, work hardening, and tool prep are covered and treated as the basics.  This class will center on jewelry scale forging, but can also touch on smaller architectural pieces like knobs and handles. Darren will demonstrate several simple classical forms for the students to work on, in order for them to get a feel of how the metal moves, and also walk away with several pieces that can be easily turned into finished jewelry. Techniques will center on using only a few simple hammers and one forming stake, so this class is useful for students with limited studios

Saturday March 17: Patinas for the Small Studio with Darren Fisher. (Snow date 3/31) This class will focus on the patination of copper based alloys.  Copper brass and bronze are the most responsive metals and achieve extreme variations in texture and color.   Most of the patinas will utilize color via chemical reaction rather than paints and stains.  There will also be some demonstrations of texture to help develop patinas further.  If time permits, we can also dive into some simple patinas in silver and steel.  Safety (respirators, if necessary) and proper chemical handling will be discussed.  We will focus on easily obtainable solutions.

More classes are in the works, including the annual return of Fred Crist and of course Charles Lewton-Brain.

Call (845) 651-7550 or email register@centerformetalarts.com to register, and we will soon have the classes posted for online registration on the Upcoming Seminars page.

 

New England School of Metalwork

Hoffman’s Forge
2301 Duss Ave. Bldg. 6A
Ambridge, PA 15003
724-251-9320

www.hoffmansforge.com

Email address:
jymmhoffman@hoffmansforge.com

Click here for a Registration Form and more info

Get hands-on help at one of Jymm's classes

Full Day Classes held at Hoffmans Forge are approximately 6 hours working time, from
9:00 am to 4:00 pm. 12 to 1 lunch break, (bring a lunch, or visit local restaurants.)

Evening Classes are approximately 3 hours each, 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

Cost $85.00 per Student for one day class or
2 evenings class.

$10.00 discount for ABANA, PAABA, ABA, WRABA, & NYSDB members.

Class size limited to 6 students
(send a check to secure your place)

Longer courses and private lessons available.

Student is required to bring:
Personal Safety Equipment
-Safety glasses
-Leather gloves (welding gloves)
-Hearing protection (ear plugs or muffs)
-Leather shoes
-Clothing made of natural fibers (i.e. blue jeans and long sleeved shirts of cotton)
- Signed release form (available on site.)

Hoffmans Forge provides:
all tools and materials.

PAABA Scholarship Information                                                                      

Click HERE for the Application Form

All PAABA members are welcome to apply for a scholarship to help defray the cost of blacksmith classes. 

The requirements are few and the sharing of skills and tips to other members make this benefit helpful to all. PAABA has a total of $750 to disperse throughout the calendar year (January –December). The amount for each request will vary according to the cost of the class. The Scholarship Committee agreed that up to 50% of the tuition will be the amount awarded to individuals.

Requirements:

• Must be a PAABA member for at least one year and current with paid dues.
• After attending class or workshop, a Completion Form is to be filled out by the school attended. The purpose for this is inform the chosen educational facility that PAABA supports blacksmithing classes.
• If awarded a scholarship, student will do a short demonstration at a PAABA meeting and submit an article for the PAABA Newsletter.

The PAABA Scholarship Committee Members are: Cary Brant (Chairman), Jane McClure (Secretary), Bob Selvaggio, John Steel, Dave Lint, Norm Amsler, Frank Mirth, Chris Holt

Please submit application 4 weeks before the start date of the class to facilitate approval, to: