Tai Chi Sword for a Mother

Here it is, the first sword I have made in almost 5 years. So the story behind this sword is quite interesting so read on if you wish.

So for those of you who don't know, the last sword I made was Final Fantasy VII AC: Masamune back in 2010. From then on I had decided to quit sword making indefinitely. Reasons being it simply wasn't doing anything for me anymore. In the following years my activity on Deviant Art would wane and the era of sword making was long forgotten.

That was until on the night of my birthday on the 2nd of December in 2014. I was celebrating my birthday with my family when my mother asked "Do you still make swords son?", I replied that I had not made any swords for years. I curiously ask why and my mother said she was thinking of getting a sword to practice Tai Chi with. You see my mother is old and has been practicing Tai Chi for 10 years and wanted to explore Tai Chi Sword exercises. 

So my mother wanted me to make her a sword and give it to her as a Christmas present. The question was, did I still have it in me to make another sword?. I work as an architectural model maker in London and my workplace is essentially a workshop with all sorts of tools. I started constructing the sword at work in my off time, all the while my workmates were offering helpful advice.

Whereas most of my swords were handmade, this sword was almost completely made using machine tools like table saws, band saws, disk sanders and pillar drills. The blade and grip are made from beech hardwood, most commonly used for furniture making for their strong composition. The guard and pommel are made from american walnut, also a hardwood and my favorite type of wood to work with. It looks like chocolate and smells of chocolate, and a very expensive piece of wood, often used for the manufacture of revolver and pistol handle grips.

With the sword constructed I applied 3 coats of Danish Oil to bring out the wood grain and seal the sword against moisture. The final step was to attach a sword tassel, because all tai chi swords need sword tassels. I put the sword in a decorative sword carrying case and eagerly awaiting the arrival of Christmas.

The look of my mothers face when she opened the gift on Christmas morning was glorious. She was so happy when she saw the sword she immediately started swinging it around madly in the living room. She couldn't wait to show off the sword to her classmates at her tai chi school saying that her son had made it for her. Making the sword was all worth it, because almost all of the photo's you see of myself on Deviant Art with my swords, were taken by my mother. So one could surmise that my success on Deviant Art through sword making was made large in part to my mother, and that the perfect gift would be a sword to call her own.

So what have we learnt ladies and gentleman? that in this day and age you don't get many chances to make a sword for your own mother that she intends to use daily.