Originally, forged iron was just that.  For hundreds of years in little towns all over Europe, smiths started with an ingot of iron, and with a combination of heat & hammer, they would cut and forge forge that single block of iron into an intricate gate or panel.  Welding had not been invented yet, so all of the pieces were still connected in the center of the panel to the original ingot block.  Inevitably sometimes pieces needed to be attached to one another, so they were banded together with small straps of iron forged around two separate adjoining bars, however these were weak points in the panels where thieves could pry the bands off, and thereby penetrate the barrier.  Today welding firmly holds all the pieces together and the welds are as strong as the iron itself.

    Forged iron is one of the few arts left where there is still a use-full need, and consequently it is not a lost art, yet.  Unique Environments designs and fabricate utilizing old world methods like forging, combined with state of the art techniques like lazar & water jet cutting like in the spiral stair treads pictured below. Design, forging, welding, grinding, & finish to create iron details that captures everyone’s attention.