The forging of a swordsmith

There are many parts to the development of Peter Williamson as a swordsmith.

Family origins & influences

Is creativity nurtured or is it in the the genes? Wherever it originates from, there’s certainly plenty of it in the Johnson and Williamson families.

The forging of a swordsmith – Peter Williamson, Petefire Artist Blacksmith, St Albans, north of London

At the age of 20, in Scalloway, Shetland, Peter’s mother Edna Williamson designed and made her wedding dress, and some of the dresses for her four bridesmaids and worked with the mothers of the four flower girls.

Eunice Williamson, Peter’s grand mother was a seamstress, making and altering garments for men and women, also sewing curtains and other furnishings for homes in post Second World War Shetland, at Home Furnishing, a department store that still exists today in Lerwick.

Ina Higgins, one of Peter’s aunts also worked as a seamstress at Home Furnishing.

There are also actors and musicians in the family, Peter’s great aunt, Sandra Voe and his uncle Robert Williamson are both actors.

Two cousins are professional musicians, both members of long established bands.

Blacksmith Forging Experience Petefire, St Albans, Herts

We’ll be bringing you more bits of the story, below are the titles.

Developing swordsmith skills

Engineering

Starting very young, making, creating, designing & developing

Dorling Kindersley Arms & Armour book

This book was studied thoroughly in the Williamson household, and was really informative in weaponry from all over the world.

Shetland / Norse / Nordic influences

West Herts College

Peter and Edna Williamson, his mother remember the events leading up to Peter going Hereford College of Art, to do the BA Hons in Artist Blacksmithing.

Art & craft

Hereford College of Art