Author Archives: Bill Grandy

The “client” of this modern styled trinket box is my son for his birthday. He’s been constantly bugging me to make a small carved box to store treasures— acorns, coins, whatever he finds on the ground that interests him. I didn’t take him seriously for a long time, but he asked so often, and specificallyContinue reading “Flower and Stars Box”

The Marxbrüder (Brotherhood of Saint Mark) were a German fencing guild founded in the 15th century. This box is hand carved with imagery taken from period fencing treatises and topped with the Lion of Saint Mark, the symbol of the Marxbrüder. The scrolls on the sides quote a verse from fencing grand master Johannes Liechtenauer,Continue reading “Marxbrüder Box”

I was commissioned to make this display box to house a high end replica from the movie The Dark Crystal. I carved a symbol from the movie onto the lid. The wood was dyed purple and then distressed to match the “ancient” ambiance of the crystal. The client put his own dressing inside—the photo withContinue reading “Dark Crystal Box”

This bowie knife belonged to a client’s late grandfather-in-law, who lived quite an adventurous life. It is decorated with imagery requested by the client to commemorate his legacy.

There’s an old German folk song about a man named Bolle. In it, our protagonist makes a series of very poor life choices, including losing his child in a crowd, drinking all of the beer at the fair and getting into a knife fight. When he returns home disheveled his wife beats him. At theContinue reading “Bolle Scabbard”

A recurring image in medieval marginalia is flowing vines and flowers. Occasionally one will see various animals painted in the foliage, and birds were very often used. The client of this scabbard requested that I use that as the inspiration for the decoration seen here. The tip was left bare without a metal chape (whichContinue reading “Bird in Foliage Scabbard”

The client of this scabbard asked me to incorporate a lamb based off a medieval painting and images of the sun as a memorial to a lost loved one. I rewrapped the grip to match the scabbard. Gold leaf was applied to the imagery, and the brass fittings were made by me. The sword isContinue reading “Lamb and Sol Scabbard & Grip”

This replica of a 15th century French box will be finished by the client, a highly talented smith who will make the fancy lock and hinges. The original was sold through Marham Church Antiques. I attempted to match the dimensions, carvings and painting as close as I could, though the original was missing sections ofContinue reading “Bishop Saints Box”

I made a scabbard for this sword and also did some hilt upgrades. The sword is the Henry V model from Arms & Armor, and ordinarily comes with a black leather wrap over the grip. I rewrapped it and tooled the leather with a design inspired by Gothic cathedrals. I also applied gold leaf accentsContinue reading “Henry V Scabbard & Hilt Upgrade”

The client of this scabbard requested an integrated period belt with a leather that, without dyes or paints, was light enough to be nearly white, a la the “white belt of knighthood.” I used alum tanned leather, which was used in the medieval era, and produces a very pale hide. The decorations were tooled andContinue reading “Floral Border Scabbard”