james terrio
Sharpest Knife in the Light Socket
- Joined
- Apr 15, 2010
- Messages
- 22,618
Some of you already know, my dear wife Angie is a huge part of my life, my best friend, and my biggest supporter. Without her, THK would not exist.
Since today is her birthday, I figured I should honor her and let you all know how much she does "behind the scenes" to make your knives happen.
Angie stood by my side in word and deed, when I was developing and testing really tough bushcraft/survival blades that actually cut well... while so many cats were making half-sharp prybars. It would have been a whole lot easier to do what everyone else was doing. But I had a different vision, and Ang believed in me. If you like the way THK knives perform and stand up to abuse, you have Angie to thank.
Angie's the one who sews your THK sheaths together. By hand. One locking stitch at a time, with incredible attention to detail and an uncompromising attitude about quality. A few short years ago, she had no idea how to do that. But she volunteered to help me, learned as much as she could about it, and very quickly started kicking behind.
I don't even know how many times she's found a "mistake" (that no one else, including me, would ever notice), and torn the whole thing apart and started over. I think her work is among the very best; and you, our friends and clients, seem to agree... but she's still not satisfied with it. She continues to study and learn and develop her technique, to get even better. If you like THK sheaths, you have Angie to thank.
Angie's the one who first encouraged me to get into the kitchen-knife market. She adamantly supported my efforts for years while I studied what makes a good chef's knife, and built prototypes and customs, and slowly but surely "cut my teeth" and developed my own designs. If you like THK kitchen knives, you have Angie to thank.
In some circles, I'm known for comfortable handles and well-balanced knives. Angie has had a big influence on that, as well... if a knife feels right to a 6'3" 250# man with XL mitts, that's one thing. But if it also feels right in a much smaller woman's hand, that's a whole other level of usefulness. Every knife I make goes through Angie's hands, and her input is invaluable to me. If you like THK handles and balance, you have Angie to thank.
Angie's the one who encouraged me to go to my first Knifemaker's Guild show, and Badger show, and BLADE, and Beckerhead Gathering. To get out my silly self out among folks and show my stuff and take my licks and learn from all of it. I would never have learned half of what I know without those remarkable experiences, and all the truly amazing people I met. If you've met me, you have Angie to thank.
Miss Angie is an integral part of pretty much everything that goes on in my shop, in ways I just don't have time to describe.
Thanks, baby. I couldn't do this without you
Since today is her birthday, I figured I should honor her and let you all know how much she does "behind the scenes" to make your knives happen.
Angie stood by my side in word and deed, when I was developing and testing really tough bushcraft/survival blades that actually cut well... while so many cats were making half-sharp prybars. It would have been a whole lot easier to do what everyone else was doing. But I had a different vision, and Ang believed in me. If you like the way THK knives perform and stand up to abuse, you have Angie to thank.
Angie's the one who sews your THK sheaths together. By hand. One locking stitch at a time, with incredible attention to detail and an uncompromising attitude about quality. A few short years ago, she had no idea how to do that. But she volunteered to help me, learned as much as she could about it, and very quickly started kicking behind.
I don't even know how many times she's found a "mistake" (that no one else, including me, would ever notice), and torn the whole thing apart and started over. I think her work is among the very best; and you, our friends and clients, seem to agree... but she's still not satisfied with it. She continues to study and learn and develop her technique, to get even better. If you like THK sheaths, you have Angie to thank.
Angie's the one who first encouraged me to get into the kitchen-knife market. She adamantly supported my efforts for years while I studied what makes a good chef's knife, and built prototypes and customs, and slowly but surely "cut my teeth" and developed my own designs. If you like THK kitchen knives, you have Angie to thank.
In some circles, I'm known for comfortable handles and well-balanced knives. Angie has had a big influence on that, as well... if a knife feels right to a 6'3" 250# man with XL mitts, that's one thing. But if it also feels right in a much smaller woman's hand, that's a whole other level of usefulness. Every knife I make goes through Angie's hands, and her input is invaluable to me. If you like THK handles and balance, you have Angie to thank.
Angie's the one who encouraged me to go to my first Knifemaker's Guild show, and Badger show, and BLADE, and Beckerhead Gathering. To get out my silly self out among folks and show my stuff and take my licks and learn from all of it. I would never have learned half of what I know without those remarkable experiences, and all the truly amazing people I met. If you've met me, you have Angie to thank.
Miss Angie is an integral part of pretty much everything that goes on in my shop, in ways I just don't have time to describe.
Thanks, baby. I couldn't do this without you
