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'I'm worried about blacksmithing dying out'

BBC Felix leaning over the forge, stoking a fire. He's wearing a black hoodie, grey trousers and protective googles. In the foreground you can see an anvil and a hammer, with various pieces of smithing equipment hanging off the forge. Behind the forge is an exposed brick wall, with hammers hanging from a hook. BBC
Felix Nelson has been running his forge near Bridgnorth for five years

A blacksmith says he is concerned about the future of his trade with fewer people buying the items he crafts.

Felix Nelson, 23, has been running his forge near Bridgnorth, Shropshire, for five years but said this had been his most difficult Christmas yet.

In one key instance, Storm Darragh resulted in cancelled Christmas events across the county and at the same time, Mr Nelson said people were now more likely to buy "cheap, imported" products online instead of "British-made quality steelwork".

"The appreciation for handmade gifts isn't as strong as it used to be," he said.

"People are struggling financially and that doesn't help either - we all know it's cheaper to buy stuff online."

After training in Hereford, Mr Nelson set up his forge near Bridgnorth when he was 18, crafting everything from traditional fire pokers and horseshoes to huge sculptures and delicate flowers.

Normally Christmas is a booming trade for local artisans with markets and fairs a staple of the festive season.

"As traders know, Christmas is the guaranteed income for us - we've lost that and December's been a tricky month," Mr Nelson said.

"Storm Darragh has really taken a toll, many events were cancelled.

"We've lost four figures due to the [cancellations] and, as Christmas comes, it gets tougher and tougher."

In the foreground there's a fire poker with a ram's head decoration resting on top of an anvil - the head is red-hot, it's just been in the forge. In the background you can see the forge with bright orange flames leaping up from the coals; there's tools hanging from the side, like pliers, hammers, and clamps.
Mr Nelson said fewer people were buying local crafts like this intricate fire poker

Over the past five years he had also noticed a drop-off in the amount of people investing in local crafts, with people preferring to order from online retailers.

"We've become immune to buying things on eBay and buying cheap, imported products when really we should be buying British-made quality steelwork," he said.

In the foreground is a sculpture of a pheasant made out of horseshoes - behind it you can see buckets of horseshoes ready to be remoulded into artwork. Next to the pheasant is a large circular structure, again made out of horseshoes.
Mr Nelson's forge has branched out into commissioned sculptures

The ancient skill of blacksmithing has been around for centuries but now Mr Nelson is worried about the future of his trade.

"I'd like to be doing it for the rest of my life but financially, is it stable? Definitely not," he added.

He said he "worries about [blacksmithing] dying out" and that having fewer customers makes things worse.

"Every year we lose blacksmiths due to them going bust and it not financially working for them," Mr Nelson said.

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