Miniature Tankards and Swords

These little chaps were made as Christmas presents for a couple of friends of ours who are having a baby soon. As they are big folk festival fans, they are partial to taking their ale from tankards, and thusly they announced their pregnancy to the world with a picture of their two tankards, plus a half size tankard, which was really rather lovely!

In our group of friends, we have a sort of separate Christmas day, arranged for whenever we can all physically get together in the same place. This year, as money is tight, we agreed we would all make each other little presents using whatever crafting ability we may have. I decided to make a pair of matched miniature keyring versions of tankards for Craig & Christina (the pregnant couple), with an even tinier baby tankard attached to each. They are shown here before I finished cleaning them up, as I neglected to take a picture when they were done!

I also had a couple of other gifts to make, and as they were both for manly men I figured a couple of miniature swords would be in order. I cut them from spring steel which I filed to shape (while at work, actually, as pantomime season means I am never really at home to work), hardened, tempered and finally honed so that they function as little blades.