North Carolina / Veteran owned

The hands.
The heat.
The workshop.

Custom bladesmithing with a maker at the center of it. This is where Carolina Crafted Blades takes shape.

Josh at the power hammer, working steel inside his workshop

01 / At the hammer

Meet Josh

The person
behind the pattern.

Josh is an Army infantry veteran and a North Carolina bladesmith. He began making knives in 2013. Old forging methods and modern tools meet in his workshop, where a cutting tool also carries the character of the person who made it.

The workshop’s Instagram is an open door: tools in motion, patterns taking shape, and finished knives held up for a closer look.

Start a conversation with Josh ↗

Made in North Carolina.

From the shop floor

Follow the work
as it happens.

Short, silent clips from Josh’s own reels. Open the original posts for the full context.

At the power hammer↗

Josh works roller-bearing steel here, identifying it as 52100 in the original caption.

Making the pattern dies↗

His homemade dies, tested again with a different layer count to explore the pattern.

A pass through the rolling mill↗

One of the tools Josh returns to for working the steel between operations.

Under the press↗

Developing consistent Damascus patterns that can carry across a matching set.

The selected knife / A silent excerpt from Josh's original reel

The knife behind the 3D study

Every angle.
Every facet.

A sweeping edge. A field of irregular bearing patterns. A red figured handle with a narrow neck, broad facets and a flared butt.

These views of Josh's finished knife guide the interactive model. Watch the light travel across the blade and turn around the grip.

Watch the full reel from Josh

Josh's reddish-brown handled knife in a stitched leather sheath with a vivid red ray-skin insert — Ball-bearing canister Damascus / Josh's October 2026 reel

From Josh's own bench

Steel has a story.
So does the sheath.

Josh identifies this blade as ball-bearing canister Damascus. Its leather sheath carries a red ray-skin insert, framed by shaped leather and visible stitching.

In his post, Josh calls it his fourth leather sheath. The willingness to keep learning is part of the work, right alongside the finished piece.

See Josh turn this piece over on Instagram

Josh's broad polished blade with a green figured grip, a green-and-gold accent band and a brown figured handle end — A recent finished knife / Shape, contrast and a sculpted grip

The details make the difference

A grip with
a point of view.

A narrow neck, a fuller grip and a shaped heel. Green figure meets a bright accent band and a warm brown handle end. The finish catches the light across the facets.

Josh shared this finished knife while asking his followers what they would call its shape. Start with the details that catch your eye, then talk through a direction with him.

Explore the original piece

Stay close to the work

What is on
the bench today?

See Josh’s latest posts for workshop updates, new work and market news.

@joshhenryworkshop ↗

The personbehind the pattern.

Follow the workas it happens.

Every angle.Every facet.

Steel has a story.So does the sheath.