Forge a copper feather keychain with fire and hammers in one of the most memorable hands on team building activities in the Bay Area. In this beginner blacksmithing class your group learns to draw out, taper, texture and finish soft copper into a stylized feather you take home.
The class runs three and a half hours and is priced at $150 per guest for private groups of 3 to 6 guests. No prior experience is required. Your instructor walks the group through the project step by step, teaching basic blacksmithing and forging techniques, and two people share each anvil and take turns at it.
What's Included
- Three and a half hours of guided forging time in a working blacksmith shop
- Extensive safety training before anyone
Forge a copper feather keychain with fire and hammers in one of the most memorable hands on team building activities in the Bay Area. In this beginner blacksmithing class your group learns to draw out, taper, texture and finish soft copper into a stylized feather you take home.
The class runs three and a half hours and is priced at $150 per guest for private groups of 3 to 6 guests. No prior experience is required. Your instructor walks the group through the project step by step, teaching basic blacksmithing and forging techniques, and two people share each anvil and take turns at it.
What's Included
- Three and a half hours of guided forging time in a working blacksmith shop
- Extensive safety training before anyone picks up a hammer
- Protective equipment, including aprons, goggles and ear protection
- A tour of the smithy and demonstrations of each step
- All copper, tools and forge time for the project
- A copper feather keychain you forged yourself to take home
What You Will Make
The stylized copper feather teaches the core concepts of coppersmithing on the softest of the beginner metals. It is harder than it looks: you will need to watch the glow of the metal and quench strategically. The finished piece is designed as a keychain, and it can also hang as a holiday ornament or be worn as a necklace, so each guest chooses how to use it.
Concepts taught include safety, tools, mallets, hammer control, tongs control, heat, tapering, bending, fullering and texturing. Guests leave with a sense of accomplishment, a feather that is unlike anyone else's and great photos of the group working at the forge.
Why It Works for Groups
Few team building workshops put everyone on equal footing the way a forge does. Nobody arrives knowing how to taper hot copper, so the whole team learns together, and sharing an anvil means partners coach each other, trade turns and celebrate each strike. With 3 to 6 guests per private class, it is one of the most focused team building activities for small groups.
It also works well as one of the more creative team building activities for the season. The class is a natural fit for a team building outing, a Christmas party, a birthday or a bachelorette party, and couples have used it to celebrate an anniversary. As holiday team building activities go, a hand-forged ornament makes a keepsake people actually keep.
About the Smithy
The host is a women-owned blacksmith shop run by an artist blacksmith who began forging more than fifteen years ago while earning a fine art degree, then spent a dozen years teaching blacksmithing while building an ornamental metalwork business. Today the shop has employees, some big pieces of equipment and a steady calendar of project based classes and team builds. Outside of teaching, the shop forges functional art for homes, from grand forged bronze railings to screw-on cabinet hardware, working in bronze, steel, brass and aluminum. The crew has also demonstrated forging at Maker Faire.
The smithy sits inside a shared studio complex of independent art businesses near the Richmond shoreline, a short walk from the Bay Trail. It is an active working shop, so expect fire, noise, welders, grinders, woodworkers, shop dogs and shop cats. The shop aims to feel like a safe place for all people and describes itself as a strong LGBTQ+ ally.
How the Session Runs
- Arrive, meet your instructor and take a tour of the smithy
- Complete safety training and get fitted with protective equipment
- Watch a demonstration of each forging step at the anvil
- Draw out, taper and texture your copper feather with a partner
- Finish the piece as a keychain, ornament or necklace and take it home
Good to Know
- No prior experience is required
- Guests 16 and up are welcome
- Blacksmithing is hot, labor intensive work, so guests should be in good physical condition
- Wear all-natural fibers such as cotton jeans, t-shirts, wool or leather, plus closed-toed shoes; synthetic fabrics melt when heated
- Bring a water bottle; there are no nearby food options
- Plenty of street parking near the studio
Plan Your Forging Class
Share your preferred date and group size to check availability. With per-guest pricing of $150, all materials and protective gear included and a finished copper feather for every guest, this is one of the most fun team building activities for adults who want to make something real together.
