An anvil in a dark workshop, sparks flying off a strike

A knife, forged for your kitchen.

Ostrava Steel is two smiths and a coal forge. We make kitchen knives to order, one name on the list at a time.

We keep no knives in stock. Every blade on this page is already promised to someone, and the next one off the anvil can be yours.

A smith in a leather apron working at the anvil, tools hanging on the wall — Marek at the anvil, late afternoon.

Two smiths, one coal forge.

Marek draws the steel out under the hammer. Hana grinds the bevels, fits the handles and puts on the final edge.

We work from a back room in the old steel district of Ostrava, with a forge that is older than both of us.

A glowing billet resting on the anvil in the dark forge — A billet coming up to heat.

Choose a shape. We forge it for your hand.

Four shapes, each fitted to the length of your grip and the way you cut. Prices include the handle, the edge and a linen roll.

Chef's knife 240 mm, carbon steel, oak handle from EUR 640 Petty 140 mm, for the small and precise work from EUR 380 Nakiri 170 mm, a flat edge for vegetables from EUR 520 Bread knife 260 mm, a long scalloped edge from EUR 460

Every one of them starts the same way.

From bar to edge.

About three weeks of work for one knife. Follow it through the shop.

A stack of raw steel bars under a bare bulb

Bar

High carbon steel, cut to length on a cold saw. Nothing about it says knife yet.

The brick mouth of the forge glowing orange

Heat

Into the coal until it glows a dull orange. Any hotter and the grain of the steel opens up.

Hammer

Drawn out, flattened and tapered by hand. The shape of the blade is set here, blow by blow.

Quench

Hardened in warm oil. Ten seconds that decide whether the last two weeks were worth it.

A finished kitchen knife resting on a dark cloth

Edge

Ground, polished and sharpened on stones. The last cut is the one you will feel in your kitchen.

The worn, polished face of an anvil seen from above — The anvil face, worn smooth by years of work.

Look after the edge.

Wash it by hand, dry it straight away, and keep it on wood rather than in a drawer.

Carbon steel greys with use. That patina is the knife settling in. Once a year, post it back and we put a fresh edge on it.

A long scarred workbench with hammers, lit by a single lamp — The bench where your knife is finished.

Join the order list.

We build in the order names arrive. The current wait is about seven months. You pay nothing until your steel goes into the fire, and you can step off the list at any time.

You are on the list. We will write when your steel goes into the fire.