Shepherds Hill Homestead » Heritage Skills
Sermon of the Axe
I’ve been on an axe binge lately. I’ve made several tomahawks/hatchets and my current project is a double bladed axe I’ve been commissioned to forge. While forging towel holders and camping tripods is good, there is just something incredible about forging an axe from start to finish. Taking a piece of scrap metal and bringing forth a strong useable tool. I thought I would go through the process the best I can using text and try to bring the significance to anyone reading with a quick walkthrough. First, I gather my materials: a 10″x2″ piece of steel(I like using old lawnmower blades and a piece of high carbon steel for the edge(piece of old file). Once my materials are ready, I get my forge burning hot and clean. After the old … Read entire article »
Filed under: Andy's Blacksmith Shop, Blacksmithing, Messages
Blacksmithing a rose-video
A short clip of working a rose … Read entire article »
Filed under: Blacksmithing
Autumn Candles Now Available!
We are sold out of candles at this time – will update when more are available. Autumn is finally here and our hand-dipped candles in beautiful Fall colors are ready! Limited supply!! … Read entire article »
Filed under: Candle Making, Sarah LeAnn, The Store
Knitted Flowers
My knitting basket has been sitting idle far too long, so I decided to spend this rainy Labor Day creating some simple, knitted flowers. There are many types and styles out there and they can be used to embellish sweaters, winter-caps, bags and just about anything else! I did a quick search and found a basic pattern…then I made some adjustments! I never seem to be able to follow patterns as-written! Happy … Read entire article »
Filed under: Heritage Skills, Knitting
The Blacksmith Shop
I started blacksmithing not too long before Erin and I were married. After we were married I began working on my own forge. I started off first with a brake drum forge, but quickly realized that I couldn’t do what I wanted to do with it, so over the winter and spring I began working on another forge. I finished it in May. In this post I will go over the basic things needed to … Read entire article »
Filed under: Andy's Blacksmith Shop, Blacksmithing, Heritage Skills, The Robinson's
Pottery Wheel
This is a pottery wheel that I built using a truck axle, a barbeque grill and a tractor seat. I wrote an article about it in “Countryside Magazine” around July 2003. It was a fun project! I can send you the plans if you’re interested. My plan is to focus on these and other projects as time goes by. Check back often to see items in detail. We will do our best to update the site regularly and keep … Read entire article »
Filed under: Heritage Skills, Paul's Workshop, Woodworking
What Makes a Candle??
WAX There are several different types of wax available today. …… Paraffin Wax Paraffin is a by-product of crude oil and is readily available for sale. It is good for candle making as it is relatively inexpensive (about $1.00/lb) and has a good melt point (135* F) so it burns fairly slow and clean, but can sometimes smoke. But for anyone wanting to make natural or environmentally-friendly candles, this may not be the your best choice. Beeswax This wax gets 2 thumbs up on both quality and being environmentally-friendly! The bees make wax-cells in which they store their honey, so it is a natural wax. It has a very high melt-point (150* F) so it burns very slow, clean and does not smoke like other waxes will. But, because of this, it can be very … Read entire article »
Filed under: Candle Making, Heritage Skills, Sarah LeAnn
Candle Making Links
Here are some wonderful link to Suppliers and how-to sites! Cajuns Candle and Soap Making Supplies Bitter Creek Candle Supplies LoneStar Candle Supply Discount Supplies Candle Wic Candles and Supplies LoveTwoKnow- Candle Making Send us an email … Read entire article »
Filed under: Candle Making, Heritage Skills, Sarah LeAnn
Make A Quilt
Log Cabin Wall Hanging Quilt Basics of Quilting One of my FAVORITE ways to spend an afternoon is to quilt! It is such a soothing, satisfying work. Quilting has been around for centuries and was born from practical need. Truly making a quilting is just constructing a fabric sandwich. You need a top (this is the part that is usually pieced in pretty designs), a middle of batting, and a bottom (a solid piece of fabric). Once you … Read entire article »
Filed under: Heritage Skills, Homemaking, Plain Lifestyle, Quilting, Sewing
Lye Soap Making
This page will show you how to make lye soap in an iron pot over an open fire. It has a lot of pictures to help you get the picture of the process. If you do a search on the internet of soap making, you’ll see references to laboratory scales, exact temperatures and other discouraging terms. Let me begin by saying that your grandmother probably made soap just fine without these and you can, too! … Read entire article »
Filed under: Heritage Skills, Making Lye Soap
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