Daily Inspiration: Meet Rich Larsen

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rich Larsen

Hi Rich, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I started making knives in the fall of 2019. My neighbor introduced me to knifemaking and helped me forge my first knife. I really enjoyed it and started making knives on my own. During Covid I set up a shop in my garage and started learning as much as I could about the craft. My main focus was Chef knives starting out, as I enjoy cooking. I now also make fillet and hunting knives as well. Most of my early work was given as gifts or sold to friends and family members. In 2023 I filed for an LLC and created Larsenblades.com officially starting my first business. I really enjoy knowing that I am making quality tools that will be used and possibly passed on to the next generation to use.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I had to do a lot of hands-on learning along the way. I watched hours of instructional videos and read as much as I can about processes. I also reached out to other knifemakers with questions and found the community to be very supportive. I learned that if a blade cracked sometimes, it could be reground into a smaller knife. I learned temperature control is very important during heat treatment. My biggest take away would be to treat mistakes and failures as learning experiences and keep trying.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Larsen blades is my hobby turned side business. I find the creativity of making functional art very rewarding. For my full-time work I am a parts salesman for a startup company specializing in the MHE industry.

So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
That the people who buy my knives will enjoy using them. That they will give years of dependable service and look good doing so.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://larsenblades.com
• Instagram: larsen_blades