The Broadleaf Difference

The Handforged Difference

Handforged Ironmongery is a thing of beauty. Each piece is uniquely crafted using a traditional fire and anvil method and the result is weighty, tactile and completely individual.

The Handforged Difference

HANDFORGED ADVANTAGE

The handforged journey starts with single pieces of selected mild steel, which are carefully heated in the fire of a forge until they turns red.  At this point the metal taken from the forge and skilfully beaten on a traditional metal anvil with hammers by expert blacksmiths until it attains the desired shape. This is not quick process – often the heating and hammering cycle has to be repeated many times to achieve the desired result – and it doesn’t produce large volumes of perfectly uniform items. It’s advantage though is that the process of heating, hammering and cooling the steel creates beautiful, individual pieces which are wonderfully tactile and quite unique, It also strengthens the steel,  breaking down the naturally occurring large clumps of carbide crystals into a myriad of smaller ones that are spread through the metal more evenly and creating a more elegant looking ‘fine grained’ steel.

Before

After

HANDFORGED FINISH

 After forging, the colour of steel deepens becoming richer and more interesting. At first glance it is almost black, then in the light more graphite with hints of blue and occasionally red ochre.

To preserve these beautiful natural colours, the most natural solution is to dip handforged ironmongery in hot beeswax. This gives a subtle, matt finish that is rustic yet sophisticated. It can be buffed to a soft sheen if you prefer and  offers excellent protection when used internally.

A more luxurious, and arguably more contemporary rustic option is a Pewter patina, which creates contrasting textures over the natural tones of the handforged steel and a lighter, more silvery looking finish that can be used both inside and out.

Last but not least, there is a Black finish, baked to a subtle sheen in a high-temperature oven to make it highly durable and suitable for both internal and external use. This finish evens out some of the natural texture created by hand forging the steel and creates a smoother, more contemporary finish.

 

HAND FORGED QUALITY

In our view, hand forged door furniture is the perfect partner for our traditional solid oak internal doors. Both have a quality and individuality that cannot be matched by mass produced alternatives, and a timeless character that will continue to give pleasure for decades to come. It is true that traditionally hand forged door furniture is not the cheapest option, but in our view you get what you pay for, and it is definitely worth the extra. Just like a traditional solid oak door, it feels weightier in the hand, it looks and feels more natural, and you just know that it will last.

Want to know more about using our hand forged door furniture with our solid oak doors ? Please get in touch or visit your local Broadleaf showroom and talk to our friendly team. 

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