About Red Ember Forge
I love hitting silver with a hammer. The way it moves and changes, the way the hammer leaves distinctive marks on the surface so there’s no question this piece was shaped by a human hand. Completely unique. I am inspired by the open road, exploration, vintage cars, old Route 66 motel signs, mid century modern style, and ancient protective amulets and symbols. I make rugged, hammered jewelry for everyday wear for men, women, and everyone in between. Jewelry that will become a part of you and your own one-of-a-kind self expression. Jewelry that helps you forge your own journey.
Tedra Ashley-W.
Metalsmith
Made by hand, with a hammer, one at a time.
Cuff Bracelets
Comfortable, rugged, and completely unique. In sterling silver, some with salvaged auto steel and Fordite accents.
Motel Pendants
Inspired by road trips and the vintage signs that meant it was time to take a break.
Salvaged Auto Body Steel Pendants
Pendants featuring salvaged auto body steel from vintage cars.
Fordite Pendants
Pendants featuring Fordite (layers of car paint from auto factories of the past).
Naja Pendants
Variations on the ancient symbol of protection.
Journey Symbol Pendants
Forged from silver, these detailed pendants feature a unique symbol made up of the all the letters in a word or phrase.
Other Pendants
Pendant inspired by vintage designs, UFO's and more.
Hat Bands
Leather hat bands with hand-forged sterling silver ornaments and hammered double-ring adjustable closures.
Ear Pins and Ear Wires
Unique, comfortable, and eye-catching in geometric and retro styles, made to fit an ear with a traditional piercing (or two).
Specials
Select pieces at special prices.
Before Red Ember Forge
Before Red Ember Forge, I studied metalsmithing and spent months on one piece. There were gemstones and handmade chains. Some of those pieces are available here..
Logo Patches
My hammer logo to sew onto anything that needs it.
Special Collections
Pieces that deserve a category of their own.
inspired by
Reclaimed vintage style
Salvaged auto body steel from pre-1980 vehicles, like this ’61 Plymouth Valiant resting in a salvage yard field in South Dakota, is often incorporated into one-off pendants and cuff bracelets. Cracked paint and light rust are part of the character, transformed into something both modern and retro.
It started in the early ’90’s when I took two semesters of metalsmithing.
I was earning my BFA in photography then and I spent the next decade plus thinking about how much I had enjoyed those classes, all the while pursuing a career in custom bookbinding. In the early-mid 2000’s I took six years of night classes in metals at our local community college (bookbinder by day, metalsmith by night), spent three more years getting my equipment together, and started Red Ember Forge in January of 2014. I have been slowly growing my one-woman business ever since. There are vocations and there are avocations. This is the latter.
Why “Red Ember Forge”?
When silver is cold-forged, it is shaped with a hammer and the repeated hammer blows harden the metal. At regular intervals, the metal must be heated with a torch (annealed) and the sign that it’s softened enough for another round of hammering is that it glows a dull cherry red, a color very much like that of a glowing red ember.
Many of my pieces start out with the forgoing of a spike shape. I use a variety of hammers, many of them not originally intended for metal but having lived their first lives in a carpenter’s shop, an auto body garage, or even on a cobbler’s bench. I also use some hammers made specifically for shaping metal.
The metal is hammered on steel blocks, old bearing from trains, and sections of old railroad track. My favorite vintage hammer is at the top of this photo, a larger, newer version underneath it carved with the initials of my late metalsmithing instructor so he’ll always be part of the first step of everything I make.
hitting the road
See Red Ember Forge in Person
February 8, 2025 – 10-4 – 201 Lincoln Square, Urbana, IL
The first in-person sale of 2025 will be the Toadal (toad-themed promo art for this one) Eclipse of the Art Pop-Up at Lincoln Square in Urbana, IL. (201 Lincoln Square, Urbana, IL 61801) A great chance to buy some unique and meaningful Valentine’s gifts for someone special or for yourself (because you deserve it!). One day only, 10 am – 4 pm in the spacious hallway at the southeastern entrance to the building. I’ll be there with my full range of work from $27 ear pins to a $400+ perfect little retro gas station cuff bracelet. Pendants, ear pins, Fordite, salvaged auto body steel, as well as “goes-with-everything” hammered silver spike pendants and wide variety of sizes in more basic cuff bracelets like the backroads cuffs and the sleek triangular cuffs. Can’t wait to see you and many of my fellow local and regional artist friends there!
