Jayden has spent the whole of the term shaping and creating a stag’s head coat rack. He has been a part of every single process. The idea behind the project was to enable Jayden to see that one item can have many uses, and that things change over time, similar to growing up.
Jayden is almost seventeen and enjoys all crafts (apart from wet felting). We challenged Jayden to build this iconic structure out of wood. He split the logs, cleaved the stump into a plank, cut it to length and then started to shape it, using a saw, a mallet and an axe, then he finished it off with a rasp.
As we discussed how to get the eyes, nose and mouth shaped, the idea of burning them in came up. Originally, we were going to heat a piece of metal in the kitchen garden hut’s fireplace and burn dots in the shapes needed. Then the idea evolved, and Jayden was motivated to use our forge sessions to create eye-, nose- and mouth-shaped brands with Jake our blacksmith. Jayden bent and shaped the metal into the correct shapes and then hot branded the eyes, nose and mouth in. The face looked outstanding but lacked the finishing touches to really bring the project together.
Jayden and Jake then came up with the idea of forging some ears for it. “This is an easy task,” commented Jayden. They used sheet metal cut to shape, and then the swage block to give the ears some depth. However, then came the problem of attaching them. So, Jayden was shown how to make nails and became proficient enough to make six beautiful nails in twenty-five minutes, something even blacksmith Jake said was astounding. After everything had been created in the forge, Jayden used the nails he’d made to attach the ears, with only a little bit of help from staff.
The next stage was finding suitable antler-shaped branches. Jayden scoured the site, and a small oak tree was asked for permission for him to take a branch or two. Jayden used loppers to shape the antlers, as they had started life as huge pieces of wood. With the draw knife and rasp, the antlers were shaped and the holes augured out for them to sink into. With a little bit of fettling, the antlers were stuck fast in the holes with a friction fit.
The stag’s head coat rack was finished, and all was well until Jayden went to mount it. Realising that we had no bracket to hang it on, the forge was called for again, and within one session, Jayden had shaped the bracket, made some nails and attached it ready for hanging.
We are astounded by Jayden’s effort and dedication to this self-generated project. In anticipation of his next creation, we’re all looking forward to Jayden working in the forge again.
Nick Lee Teacher
Jayden’s Words
I am very impressed with myself, I bet everyone’s going to love it! My favourite part was the eyes, nose and mouth! I made them by using metal! I had to use a hammer to hit the metal in the correct shape, then I heated up the metal and used it as a brand to burn the eyes, nose and mouth in. It was very, VERY smoky, so much so that we coughed so much, like we had asthma. Special thanks to Jake, Johannes, Nick and Becca for making this possible, I really appreciate it. I felt really proud of myself for doing such a tremendous task, but I’m glad it all came together.