Brevard, N.C. is a beautiful mountain town that is filled with awesome shops, restaurants, bakeries, and galleries. It hosts an annual Christmas festival and sits on the doorstep of Pisgah National Forest and Dupont State Forest. It’s also home to one of the more ancient methods for crafting metal wares: a blacksmith.

Blacksmithing dates back to 1500 B.C. when the Hittites discovered the process of forging and tempering iron ore. When they scattered in 1200 B.C., their knowledge and understanding of basic ironwork went with them, and the Iron Age was born. For some, blacksmithing might conjure images of the Middle Ages or maybe the Wild West. While modern forges aren’t powered by mighty bellows within swarthy Viking-esque confines, the principles and techniques remain the same.

At Village Blacksmiths, named after Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem, owners Jason Brown and Steve Revis provide instruction in this ancient art form to today’s aspiring smithies. First, the steel is heated in a forge. Then it’s brought out to the anvil where it is tapped and pounded into some pretty impressive items when the pros like Jason and Steve are running the show. The cool thing is that even novices can emerge from the workshop with a tool or decoration that they made from metal with their own two hands.

Village Blacksmiths offer classes that practically anyone can attend. You can make things like dinner bells, campfire forks, wrench knives, and more. Everything occurs under expert instruction where you learn and have a lot of fun. You can also take classes in woodworking and silversmithing.

You can purchase items here that are on display, and the pros here also do custom work for knives, railings, fireplace sets, and more. Get started by looking up Village Blacksmiths in Brevard. Your weekend is waiting on the Ingles Open Road.

To learn more about Ingles Markets, visit their website at ingles-markets.com.