Firebird Forge reviews

22 Dec 17'

Liz Rowland reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"My husband and I had an amazing time with Mort at the forge. From first email contact, Mort was nothing but lovely. His patience and knowledge as a tutor shone through and from the moment we arrived he was kind, instructive and extremely helpful. Although we were complete beginners he took the time to explain things as many times as we needed, no amount of beginner ineptitude was too much for him and he always was on hand to help correct anything that went wrong. We left the forge with a number of exceptionally beautiful items which had been made with his support and guidance, rather than him doing the work for us, which makes them extra special. He never once rushed us and his calm, friendly manner made us feel immediately at ease in the forge environment. We would thoroughly recommend him to anyone looking to have a wonderful day learning about blacksmithing and ending with some fantastic creations. Thank you very much Mort! From Ben and Liz."

11 Dec 17'

Simon Hudson reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Very enjoyable day at firebird forge, Mort has good practical safety rules that make you feel comfortable and he is a nice and interesting person to spend the day with. Mort is very knowledgeable on the subjected and explained everything in a easy to understand way with as much background information as you could want, a good fun experience and I made something to take home and treasure. A great day, thank you."

1 Dec 17'

Bill hutchinson reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Fantastic day, Mort is inspiring, cannot wait until our next day. Really proud of what Mort supported us in making, never believed as a total novices we could achieve so much. Cannot recommend a day at Firebird forge enough, whatever your age or skill level."

30 Nov 17'

Hugo Foster reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"What a great day! Mort is an inspirational teacher and a font of historical knowledge. Definitely coming back for more and building my own forge."

25 Nov 17'

Darren Smith reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"I had a brilliant time over 2 days. What fun and what a great skill to learn. Mort really knows his stuff, was really patient in his teaching. I had a great time and will be back."

25 Oct 17'

KM Chan reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Had a most memorable and fun course day out with Mort! What an amazing experience. My gratitude and appreciation for Mort’s hospitality - from being flexible in accommodating our timing needs and number of participants, to being most supportive and encouraging of our ideas and designs to try. Mort is a most warm character and a person rich in stories - we had as much fun chatting about his life experiences, as we had learning of blacksmithing. I would highly recommend a session with Mort. It will be most enriching in many ways. Thank you sir, we truly enjoyed your company and the day out."

20 Oct 17'

Stuart and Matt Wilson reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Just had a fantastic day with Mort. Absolute beginners he showed us “how” and then let us loose. It is great fun and very satisfying to be able to produce something (with Morts help) in one day. We came away with two small Viking “whistling” knives, one larger blade and also one piece of “jewellery” which definitely exceeded our expectations. Mort is a great guy, friendly, passionate about traditional methods and also full of interesting facts. We loved it and are already planning another trip."

19 Oct 17'

Bob and Pam Salmon reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"THe two of us decided we wanted to try some blacksmithing......we were greeted by Mort and his two lovely spaniels and spent time being shown 'how to do it'. Then it's down to you!!! MOrt is always there to take over and put right the mess you've got yourself in.....It's a lot of fun and you soon appreciate how challenging this art work is !! You come away appreciating the fine metalwork we see around us. ITs a great day and you come away with some very basic skills and some examples of work that you have made....( sometimes with a little help from Mort) THanks Mort...really enjoyable day."

11 Oct 17'

Beth reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"I bought a day for my boyfriends birthday and ended up signing myself up for the day as well. After all the reviews I had read about Mort I thought I couldn't let Sean have all the fun. We had a brilliant day and really learnt a lot. I would really suggest booking with Mort. Such a lovely and knowledgeable chap. He has a rather subtle way of helping you along and I was thrilled with the candle holder I came away with. I think we were quite demanding in the ideas we had for such a short space of time so I would recommend going with simple ideas that can always be expanded and jazzed up if you have time."

4 Oct 17'

Dan Vacher reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Just finished a day at Firebird forge and enjoyed every minute. Completely new to the craft but felt completely safe with Mort, our very knowledgeable instructor, who could strike a piece of metal like you wouldn't believe! Ratio of instructor to student was perfect at 3:1, atmosphere was always upbeat, no question was too silly. Considering booking a second visit already. Thanks for a great day and a bunch of new skills."

4 Oct 17'

Mark Wheeler reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"The course was excellent and covered a lot of ground in one day. I took home two attractive and really useful fire tools - poker and fork - which we will use on our open fire. Mort was very patient and helped out when necessary, which was often. Overall it was a great experience and very good value."

23 Sep 17'

Jane reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Mort what a fantastic course....completely surpassed my expectations. Had to pinch myself- I actually made a Candlebra. The day was interesting, fun and quite simply BRILLIANT. Thank you.."

21 Sep 17'

Karolan reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Thank you David for a great day. It was such a fun, relaxed and interesting day. Lovely to come away with something unique as a bonus. Karolan"

16 Sep 17'

Neil Robinson reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"I had a truly fantastic time learning from Mort, he is a very knowledgeable and skilled blacksmith who has taught me the basics of blacksmithing in just one day. The workshop is packed with everything would ever need and the location is beautiful. Whether you are looking for a great one off experience or want to start a career in blacksmithing, this is were you should start. Thanks again Mort is was an amazing day!"

26 Jun 17'

Dori Vana reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Great teacher. Fantastic human being. Very knowledgeable and professional. I really enjoyed my day. Would have no hesitation recommending Mort."

5 Jun 17'

Marc reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Had a very enjoyable day and managed to produce a number of pieces. Mort is clearly a very knowledgeable bloke and ensured we all left with something we'd made ourselves. I plan to go back again."

3 Jun 17'

Peter Austin-Mepham reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Above and beyond excellent, worth every penny and more. One of the best days I've had in a very long, Very informative, friendly and helpful man. Would 100% recommend this course 5"

23 May 17'

Adam Lynch reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"The course was fantastic. I was given the chance to stay for the weekend as a birthday treat where I (with a lot of help) made a small knife and a fairly large axe head. It was the first time I've been to a forge and being there gave me a great introduction into what kind of environment it is. Mort kept everyone interested and really pushed each person to make sure we got the most out of the weekend and made the best project we could. He is very knowledgeable, friendly and gave lots of great advice and taught well. Thanks to Mort I had a great time, learned a lot and produced an axe head with a much higher quality than I thought I would leave with."

21 May 17'

Robert (Bert) Parker reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"My wife paid for me to do a 1 day course in Knife making, and I loved it. The forge has all the tools you could imagine, plus a few more. Mort is a great guy, and a very helpful teacher. He talked me through the proper technique for using a hammer on the steel, and kept trying until he found the right way to describe it for me. I was amazed with the piece he helped me create, and the pieces he makes look incredible. I would recommend this course to anyone intersted in knife making."

14 May 17'

Christopher Pearson reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"Fantastic day ! Thank you Mort. I hadn't been in a forge since I was at school 41 years ago but the sights and smells came flooding back to me. Morts skill and guidance soon had me hammering hot metal and I loved every minute of it ! I wasn't particularly good at it but that didn't really matter because I was been taught by someone who knew exactly when to step in and help or redemonstrate and when I was in need of a brew there it was ! Experiences like this are very rare in this high tech world,so if you want to get away from it all for a day and immerse yourself in something completely different under expert tuition,this is the one for you !"

25 Apr 17'

Ginnie reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"I had such an amazing day. It was really well organised and run by Mort. He is facinating to listen to and incredibly knowledgable. He also makes a great cup of tea! I was really thrilled with the techniques I learned and amazed at what I was able to produce with Morts help and guidance. I would recomend this course to anyone. Real value for money."

23 Apr 17'

Wolf Shankland reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"This was such an awesome experience, a day of traditional blacksmithing out in the majesty that is Ashdown Forest. Mort was an excellent and immensely skilled teacher!! His knowledge of historical weapons and smithing were a great assest when it came to forging the head of my Dane Axe. He also has the patience of a saint. The location is prime, far from prying eyes and overlooking the forest gives you the best enviroment to forge in, (though recommend you follow the directions given on the receipt once purchased other wise you will get lost) This was totally worth the price (and sore hands) and i am still happy with my axe head!!! If you want to learn from a skilled blacksmith this is the course.5"

7 Apr 17'

Andrew Bingham reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"I had an amazing day. Mort is an excellent teacher and can help you to forge almost anything. Will certainly be recommending and going back myself."

30 Mar 17'

Giovanni & Vikki reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"We decided to book a course as part of our 25th wedding anniversary celebrations. We chose Mort for a few reasons - lots of good reviews / lovely part of the country / Mort seemed more flexible in having 2 people to train at once. Mort entertained us not just with his teaching abilities but also with this excellent historic knowledge of the craft. We spent the day working together on making a candlestick that actually looked close to what the design drawings we came up with in the morning. Very happy with the result. We went well over our allotted time for the day but we were not charged extra for that. Thank you Mort! Recommended!"

26 Mar 17'

Kat Schulz reviewed: Firebird Forge Blacksmithing School

"We had a great time blacksmithing. Despite being even less built for it than I thought, I managed to take home a beautiful piece that looked remarkably close to the design we came up with. Mort was patient and helpful and made sure two blacksmithing novices had a fun day and some tangible, good looking results to take home. Recommended."