Document Stand
At one of my former jobs, my desk had a simple metal document stand on it that I loved and wished later that I had stolen when I left. Alas, I didn’t. When I started learning to make things out of metal, I figured I’d just create my own. As I tried to sketch the stand, I realized I couldn’t remember exactly what it looked like. So, I just made one up. I like the simple, utilitarian design.
They can be used as document stands, display stands, photo frames, etc. The large version is 9 x 11 ½ inches and the small one is 7 ½ x 9 ½ inches. Some have the paper tray at the bottom, other simply have magnets.
My friend Adele uses hers to display her grandmother’s handwritten baked-bean recipe, which was one of her family’s favorite dishes when her grandmother was living. Mine is on my desk just left of my laptop. I use it all the time to prop up notes for my writing projects. Sometimes it serves as a phone-holder for Zoom meetings.
Photo by Adele Hungerford
THE PROCESS
The stands are cut from 14-gage sheet metal (5/64 inch thick) but can be made from thinner or thicker metal. That’s just the size I had on hand in my shop.
The big ones are 9 x 15 ½ (before being bent) and the small ones are 7 ½ x 13 (before being bent). They can be made in any size, however.
I used a plasma torch to cut them out, and a bench grinder to round the corners and clean up the sharp edges (I didn’t yet have my belt grinder). I cut slits at the bend with the plasma torch, then used a sheet metal brake to bend the stands. The slits were to help the sheet metal bend more easily.
Next, I used a bandsaw to cut 4 ½- or 6-inch pieces of angle iron (½ x ½ inch) as the paper tray, which I welded to some of the document stands.
I finished up the stands by rubbing on a coat of Johnson Paste Wax. It darkened the stands just a little, but you can still see the rust and other “flaws” that give it character. The wax gives the metal a nice finish and prevents the rust from getting on your hands, clothes and desk.
-Melanie Patterson
© Forged in Words 2021
Coiled Hooks
My sister Becky showed me a picture and asked me to make her some hooks like this. These are not replicas of the picture, but are my version of the hooks she wanted. I liked the way they turned out. They are different sizes because I wasn’t sure how long the piece of round stock should be when I started, so it took some experimentation to get the size I wanted. These hooks are finished except for the screw holes, which I added after taking the photos.
-Melanie Patterson
© Forged in Words 2021
Dew on Grass
Early one morning, the sparkle of dew on blades of grass caught my eye. I rushed inside for the camera and hoped the light would still be right when I got back out. (By Melanie Patterson)
Welcome to Forged In Words
It was quite the transition.
I’d been making a living with words for twenty years, as a journalist and photographer at various newspapers, before I got into metal work.
But don’t get me wrong; writing is still in my blood. If I could use only one word to describe myself, it would be “writer.” I still write, I just don’t make money doing it at the moment. I’m currently working on writing two books and I do other personal writing. For me, not writing is akin to not eating. I can go without it for a while but then I get cranky and out of sorts and you wouldn’t want to be around me.
Photography is right up there with writing. Over the years, I’ve spent hours and hours hiking with my camera in my hand. My family has learned to ignore the camera, which is perfect since I prefer candid photography over posed photos. Since I am obsessed with archiving things, I have thousands of photographs just sitting in my files waiting to be seen. Some of those will be featured on this website.
As much as I love writing, I got burned out on journalism a few years ago and needed a change. In 2015, at age 41, I signed up for welding school at Wallace State Community College, graduating in 2017. I got a job right off the bat and have been welding ever since.
I had also always had an interest in blacksmithing. My Uncle David and Aunt Andrea breathed life into that dream by asking me to take a local blacksmithing class with them at the Cullman Forge a few years ago. I was hooked from the first whiff of the coal forge (even though I use a gas forge in my shop). Since then, I have been learning to forge from the kind and generous blacksmiths at the Cullman Forge meetings, by reading books and watching videos, and mostly by trial and error.
This website, Forged in Words, is meant to tie together three things I’m passionate about: writing, metalwork and photography.
I invite you to forge on with me and take part in the adventures.
- Melanie Patterson
© Forged in Words 2021