We will now interrupt the regularly scheduled programming for this Good Old Blades Micro Podcast. I wanted to talk some about groups and affiliations and um kind of like my experience with uh how all that works out inside of knife making and uh some thoughts and rhetoric around it. So uh, you know, my my earliest experience with knife making and any type of groups or you know clubs or affiliations uh was the the knife makers guild. And uh I was not really too concerned about anything related with the knife makers guild, except that you know there was a lot of you know phenomenal knife makers since the 70s that were in it. And um I I think that in early knife making um goal setting and uh thinking about being in in groups or whatever may might not be like the primary focus. It's like okay, how do I make this thing and how do I sell my work and how do I recoup that so I can roll it back into this you know hobby or business or whatever. And so, I mean, like much like a lot of other people, that's the way that I thought about the guild. That was also the way that I thought about the ABS, and uh, you know, there's uh there's some other smaller groups of guys and and gals out there uh that make make knives and um apply their their artistry and everything. And um, you know, but that's pretty much where it it's it w started and stopped. You know, I was just interested in the guild uh primarily just because uh it represented a lineage of knife making and a um a a way of I guess gauging high-end craftsmanship that was intriguing to me. But I was never like, okay, well, I'm gonna be able to join the guild. Um it was like unobtaining them. You know, when you're making knife-shape objects early on, it's really not the focus. Um as I got to a place where I was a little bit more comfortable with where I was at in my craftsmanship, um, I took knives to be inspected for the Texas Knife Makers Guild, which I think that you'll probably find there are a lot of states that have individual knife making guilds that are started by uh a lot of people that were in the guild at some point in time, but then decided to take that same uh same concept and build it out in an individual state or locale. For me, it was Texas. Um and uh the the technical requirements for the Texas Guild are not as stringent um as the the knifemakers guild, and uh they're not uh as stringent as like the the German Guild or uh the ABS or anything like that. Um but the interesting thing about the Texas Guild to me was that not only does Texas have a uh an unusually large amount of phenomenal knife makers, uh, but that a lot of them are part of that guild. And a lot of what I saw represented online and with the hammer ends and other things that were going on in my state is that a lot of the old timers and a lot of very knowledgeable and very talented makers uh were sharing knowledge actively. And for me, uh when I was uh trying to increase my station as a knife maker and build uh higher quality knives, uh that that that chatter, that that conversation back and forth uh to me was uh very, very helpful. So I was like, uh, you know, I'm gonna I'm gonna join this thing. I want to be inspected. Um I want to have uh some critiquing done of my work to see if there's any areas that I can improve on. And it was really one of the first examples of showing my work off to anybody else other than friends and family and co-workers and people I was like trying to just you know sell the work I was doing to roll it back into more materials and things. So um when I when I got into the Texas Knife Makers Guild, um I was lucky enough to get everything done in one shot. I didn't have to get denied and go back several times and take a bunch of feedback. Um, but I had already spent, you know, four, four and a half years making knives and and consuming a lot of data and trial and erring a lot uh to get my knives to a place where I thought that they might be okay for other people to look at. At the same time um that I did that, I took my knives over to the the guild table, and it was uh it was the last year the ICCE was uh around in the stockyards in Fort Worth, and they um and they looked at my knives and I was able to get fast tracked, um, which in in the guild uh you you apply for uh you have an application that you uh submit and you have to have uh four guild members, I believe it's four, yes, uh sign your work. So they have to independently look at your knives and they have to sign your application endorsing you to get into the guild. However, if you hit a rare moment where you get your knives looked at by a board member, uh they have the opportunity to fast track you because they've looked at your knives and found them to be sufficient for profationary status. And in that case, you don't have to have other guild members uh endorse you. You can just uh enter in for voting into probationary. So I was able to submit my application six months later. I was able to, um it was a little bit less than six months later, but the next show. I was able to get in and um and the rest is history on the on the guild. You know, I'm a voting members uh m member there. Uh I've done knife inspections of my own. I've encouraged other knife makers to uh follow some of the same fit and finish rhetoric of the uh of the guild. Um I've recently gotten into the ABS as an apprentice smith uh because the very earliest um when I was getting into knives, um I was uh forging some and doing stock removal and and had spent some time forging and doing blacksmithing until uh a shoulder injury kind of kept me from being able to do that. So I really liked the uh the rules and the the progression through the abs and also the the notoriety that comes with a master smith stamp. And so for me, it made a lot of sense. Like I I want I want my work uh to hold up to other Master Smiths looking at it and saying, all right, like you you're in, right? Like you've you've come. And uh and I for for me, there is a certain portion of knife making that is validation. Now validation is a big umbrella of uh how do you feel about your work? Um, how does the knife community, like collectors and fa fans of your work, um, how do they validate it? How do other knife makers and and select groups validate it? And then you have like the public at large. Like if somebody just sees your knife and it's like, okay, I want to put it in a in a a knife making exhibit in some random place, you're you have a broad range of validation. And I think that there are some artists that go through their entire lives and they don't really uh get the validation of their artistry um that that maybe would spur them on to do more or to do things different or to be popular in their own lifetime. And there are lots of examples of this. Uh, you know, Pablo Picasso, uh not incredibly popular or um or uh valued very highly for his work. Um there's you know impressionist era uh artists, uh especially uh painting and drafting and sculpting and uh even musicians uh and composers that have had this like it's it's like this the the term starving artist is really uh analogous to the struggle of validation. And um I it sometimes I think is important to understand that the the first type of love like the the like the first uh love is self-love as far as uh self-esteem goes. And you have to be able to look at your work, whatever it is, it doesn't matter whether it's knives, it's anything. You the product of who you are as a person, you have to have some self-esteem. And then once you achieve that, um it's it's easier to shop that around and and take the constructive criticism or um lack of validation from other groups or um you know people, whatever, uh, because sometimes that just happens. Um and and so I I I caution everybody not to just like hop into a ton of groups that it's like same think where everybody's doing the same thing and everybody's thinking the same way and everybody's producing the same thing, and you get into this this um this trough of uh lack of creativity or personal expression because a group is more important to you than your individual artistry. I think that that's like the pitfall of any group. But in the right situation and and in the right context, uh affiliation with other people, especially in the same craft, guilds, um societies, um, cartels, whatever it might be. Um, the the idea is in in that in that in the right ecosystem, you can take an already um budding inspiration and personal uh expression and turn that into a more intensified version of you. Um, you know, for instance, you might see something that somebody does really well on stippling or engraving or finishing or um the way that they're fluting stuff or adding embellishments or whatever it might be, like the curvatures of their blade or how they're doing stock removal or how they're moving steel as a bladesmith. All of those you take from other people and you say, I really like this thing about what they do, and I really like this thing about what this other person does, and you kind of mold that into you just collecting um um experiences and turning that into uh what will be your own work. And that's really great. Like when when you find when you like hit that stride, when you can be as a part of a group that helps foster uh creativity and innovation, uh to me, that is one of the uh uh the best applications of group affiliation. Where I again I think that uh the pitfalls are is where you lose that individual individuality. And and that can happen pretty easy. Like I I will tell you that there are people that know that I exist inside of the Texas Knifemakers Guild, but it's not like I'm a household name. Um there's there I I'm I'm just part of the group. It's not like I I stand out. I'm not the president of it, I don't uh sit and do hammerins all the time. Um there there are several guys in there that uh you see all the time, and they are uh you know primary uh contributors in mainstays to the group in the same way as the the the the large guild, uh the same way as the Georgia Guild, uh the same way as like the slip joint cartel. There are uh people who are uh take on leadership roles and you see them all the time, but um there's lots of groups where you are uh you are just a piece of it, and uh you can get lost in it. And I think it's important. Like you, you and your artistry and what you bring to the table is unique. And if you don't distance yourself at least somewhat from a group and and pursue individuality, uh it's very easy to get lost in in that. And from a marketability and visibility perspective, you know, there's there are some uh collectors or some customers that sit out there on um on guild guild groups or uh things like that and and watch for up-and-comers or watch for people that they really like, you know, get down to the um the vein of um making uh so that way they can kind of curate whatever it is that they're looking for. Um but by and large, I don't know that that people really care. Like I'm not sitting there uh looking for um whatever I'm interested in, furniture or paintings or things like that, and going into individual groups and waiting for artists to come around. Uh it's kind of like they that maybe they they show up somewhere randomly, and I'm like, I really like that work. Let me follow them, check them out for a little while, maybe I'll buy something, um, or commission it, right? And it's the same way with knives. Like you have to understand that there are lots of uh there are lots of ways that nobody cares about what it is it is that you're doing unless you make it a personal point to show the world by yourself. Um, for instance, the the Texas Knife Makers Guild or the Guild, uh, we're not gonna get popular on TikTok and that like it being viral goes directly to a maker, right? Um the the organization is the entity that receives the bulk of the of the attention, not the individual. Um, you know, you want to go viral or you want to have a lot of attention, you want to get listed in magazines or articles or um interviews or um you know things like that. It's not about the the collective, it's always about the individual. It's why you see uh band members break off and do so solo albums. Um and so it's important to know that there you have to be able to foster uh your own individuality and your own uh rep reputation in order to um really see the investment um turn into a return. Uh groups are great, um, they're great for you applying your craft and to uh learning from others, and I think that that's really kind of the the a largest component of ancient apprenticeship and guilds and things is to impart it so that way that artist could go on and do their own thing and make a reputation for themselves in their own right, regardless if they were part of the guild or not. Um so I hope that helps. You know, don't don't look too much into groups. There's plenty of bad reputations in groups. Um, you know, there's plenty of drama and bureaucracy, and I think it's uh important just to remember that you know, with any group, especially with artists, you get a bunch of people together and artists have ego. Uh that's just the way it works. We're not in a single comp uh, we're not in a single entity that is a company, we're all companies within ourselves. And so uh, you know, people sometimes are going to shake things up and you know be rude to each other and be egotistical and pre-modonnas and everything. And it's just important to know that if you uh keep your uh nose clean and out of that kind of drama and whatnot, and just really try to do your best, uh your best work and be affiliated with a group that just helps bolster um what it is that you're trying to do. That I think that's really the point. Like pick and choose the groups that you're in uh carefully, and it has to align with what your intention is for your personal trajectory in your craft. And if you can do that, I think that uh you'll be off to a great start.