ben edmonds’ hand-crafted blok knives fuse carbon steel with wood

ben edmonds’ hand-crafted blok knives fuse carbon steel with wood
all images © edward fury

hand-crafted in a world heritage 17th century building in derby, england, ben edmonds‘ ‘blok knives’ kitchen range represents how beautiful, primal and unique knife craftsmanship is. the selection of three; the 8″ chef, 4″ paring and 10″ woollen editions, are made from carbon steel with a fine grain structure, that will form a patina on the surface, in order to display the tool’s work history. the handmade mosaic pins hold the protected wooden handles that are made from a variety of timber ranging from burrs to burls, with the metal blades.

‘there’s something very raw about making a knife. it’s back to basics and for this reason I don’t like to over complicate my production. all of my focus goes into making kitchen knives,’ said ben.

ben working at his desk sanding the handle of a paring knife

he added, ‘people pay for hand crafted, and for that unique perfection. I’m always looking to improve, and make a better knife, but every knife has to be hand made… I’ve considered taking on an apprentice to help with the finishing, but then the whole process loses its romance.’ 

with a waiting list for five months, these individual models are produced for famous chefs and can be personalized with text or graphic blade etchings.

the inspection of the ‘chef’ blade

the former graphic designer hand sanding a wooden handle

 the complete chef knife

products in progress

the paring knife

the 10″ woolen handle special edition

blank carbon steel blades

a patina builds up on the metal’s surface, creating a display of the product’s work

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