Spring is always an exciting time of year in the knife world, as a vast number of the makers, collectors, and knife enthusiasts all prepare for Blade Show, which takes place in Atlanta, Georgia every year on the first weekend of June. The Blade Show is the largest knife show in the world, drawing custom knife makers, knife manufacturers, tool and material suppliers, and attendees from all over the world, and if you want to see the most new and exciting knives, Blade Show is the place to go.

I attended my first Blade Show in 2018, when I tested for my Journeyman Smith stamp in the American Bladesmith Society, and I have attended every year since, save for 2022 when I was in India for the year. Like many makers, I always seek to bring examples of my finest work to sell at the show, and I also submit them in the competitions for custom knife awards. The competition for the custom knife awards is always stiff, but I have won a few in the past. Wish me luck for this year!
So what am I bringing to the show this year?

I have three pieces planned. One is completed, and the final two are still under construction.

The First Piece: Rathambore
This knife is an eye-catching piece, sure to upstage all the other knives on my table at first glance. Rathambore is named after the famous tiger preserve in Rajasthan, India, which is not far from where I was studying during my Fulbright grant. It draws inspiration from the formidable hunting knives, used historically in that region by regal hunting parties to process large game in preparation for the king’s feast. These knives also served as a last line of defense in the jungle against large predators like tigers and panthers. There are many names given to similar types of large knives, including “Khyber knife,” “pathan,” or “churra,” mostly from the region of Afghanistan, but this knife is more stylistically similar to the Indian variant, regionally called a “Chaku” which translates to “big knife.”

Ranthambore is my interpretation of the Indian hunting knife or “Chaku,” and it includes a forged blade with a full tang and integral bolster made of pattern-welded steel. The blade has the geometry of a short saber, with a deep fuller running most of its length and a slightly rounded tip that is sharp all the way around. The handle scales are ebony, and they are fastened to the tang with solid 14K gold domed pins. Along the tang, I added 24K gold koftgari in a vine and flower pattern based on a motif that I observed in a private collection in India.

The Second Piece: Quillon Dagger
Anyone who is familiar with the American Bladesmith Society will know that in order to achieve the rank of Master Smith, every applicant must submit a European-style quillon dagger among his or her five presentation knives. Quillon daggers are notoriously challenging to make, due to the 4-way symmetry of the blade and the complex construction of the guard and grip, and executing one well requires a high level of technical skill and precision. When I made my Master Smith test dagger back in 2020, I forged three different blades for it before I settled on the one that fit my design perfectly. I set the other two aside to finish at a later time.

Now, 6 years after setting those blades aside, I am finally finishing one. I drew up a new design around the existing blade, and now I am finishing it up. So far, the blade is mostly finished and the guard is forged, and over the next week and a half, I will be filing the guard to shape, attach a wire-wrapped grip, turn a pommel, and polish all the components. I’ll be posting regular updates on my Instagram page and YouTube channel if you would like to follow along.

The Third Piece: MagnaCut Chef Knife
Several of my most recent commissions have involved a new super stainless steel called “MagnaCut.” MagnaCut was designed by metallurgist Larrin Thomas to give a better balance of toughness, hardness, and corrosion resistance than any previously made steel, and that balance makes it ideal for high-performance chef knives that need to take a thin edge and hold it for a long time.

Stainless steels like MagnaCut are notoriously difficult to forge, due to the narrow temperature range in which they can be worked and their incredible hardness even at high temperatures. As a result, the vast majority of MagnaCut blades are “stock removal” blades, meaning they are cut out of a sheet of steel and ground to thickness. Stock removal can make an excellent blade, however, the process makes it difficult to incorporate one of my favorite features to have on a kitchen knife: and integral bolster. After a good deal of experimentation and after sourcing some thicker stock, I have successfully forged a number of MagnaCut blades with integral bolsters, which in my opinion combine all the best traits for a high-end, high-performance chef knife. Pictured is my most recent commission for a MagnaCut, integral-bolster chef knife, and I will be finishing up a similar blade to present at Blade Show.

Blade Show is June 5-7 at the Cobb Convention Center in Atlanta, Georgia. If you are planning to attend Blade Show, come find me at table 3S.

Tickets to the show are available at bladeshow.com/buy-tickets/ and if you would like a $5 discount on a three-day pass, let me know on my contact page, and I will send you a discount code. I hope to see you there!

About The Author
Jordan LaMothe is a Master Bladesmith, a Fulbright scholar, a member of the Art Knife Invitational Show, and a teacher of knife-making. His work has won numerous awards, has been published in magazines internationally, and has made him a Forged in Fire Champion. At the end of the day, he makes collector's pieces, family heirlooms, and fine tools including culinary and outdoor knives for the kitchen and field.

A few months ago, a previous client of mine came to me with a request for a chef knife, entitled Eve, to give to his good friend. The guidelines for the commission were rather freeform, but the request was for the piece to be visually stunning and ideally, be made of stainless steel.
Ever since I started making knives back in 2013, I have forged most of my blades out of carbon steels. Carbon steels are forgiving to forge and grind, easy to sharpen, and they forge-weld together readily when making Damascus or pattern-welded material. Over the years, I have received many requests for knives that stay shiny and require less maintenance, so last year I started to add more stainless steel knives to my repertoire.

One of the main challenges with stainless steel however, is that it is considerably more difficult to weld together into pattern-welded steel: so difficult that only a few dozen knife makers in the world do it reliably. I decided to use the commission for Eve to dip my toe into the world of welding stainless steel.

Steel choice

When it comes to chef knives, there are dozens of different alloys of stainless steel to choose from, but for my first billet of stainless Damascus, I thought it would be easier to work with low-carbon varieties that are more malleable and readily available in thin sections, allowing me to weld many layers at once and save the time and risk of re-stacking multiple times. I settled on 304 and 410 for the two alloys to use.

Those low carbon alloys however, cannot be properly hardened, so I had to choose a third alloy as well to use for the edge. For the edge steel, I chose Nitro-V, which I have used for my Farmstead series of chef knives and kitchen utility knives.

Welding and Forging

After choosing the steels, the next step was to weld them into a bar. It took three attempts before I had a suitable billet for the blade, due to the difficult nature of the material. In the final attempt, I first sanded the surfaces of all the pieces to be welded (roughly 80 thin pieces of steel), and then I stacked them tightly together and fabricated an airtight steel canister around the billet. Then I put the canister in the forge, heated it, and forged-welded it together under the power hammer. Stainless steel is more sensitive to heat than carbon steel, so I had to work more slowly and re-heat it more often to keep it from getting too hot or too cold as I worked.

Once the billet was fully fused, I cut off the steel canister around it and forged the blade. I also opted to grind shallow grooves across the billet during the blade forging process, which resulted in the undulating pattern you see in the layers of the finished blade, also called a “ladder pattern.”

Grinding and Finishing

After the blade was forged and heat treated, the rest of the process of making the knife was the same as any other pattern-welded blade. For the handle, the client and I agreed to use a piece of stabilized box-elder burl with a lively, figured grain. I paired the burl with a polished stainless steel bolster and a black Richlite spacer. After a few more days of sanding, fitting, sculpting, and polishing, Eve was complete.

The Display Stand
One unique feature of this commission was that the client requested a stand to accompany the knife and display it on the countertop when it was not in use. I wanted to create a stand that was both functional and sculptural, helping to elevate the piece and showcase the craftsmanship and handwork that went into it.

I decided to incorporate a branching tree as a reference to the Garden of Eden. The branches would support a magnetic panel that was shaped to match the knife blade, and the magnetic panel would allow the blade to be retrieved and replaced easily and quickly.
I forged the tree and the base out of low-carbon steel, leaving the hammered surface with a rich, dark patina. I chose curly acacia wood for the magnetic knife panel, embedded over a dozen magnets into the wood, and covered the front with bison calf leather to provide a soft contact surface for the knife. The finishing touch on the display stand was a sterling silver nameplate, which I hand-engraved with the knife’s name: Eve.

If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
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​About The Author
Jordan LaMothe is a Master Bladesmith, a Fulbright scholar, a member of the Art Knife Invitational Show, and a teacher of knife-making. His work has won numerous awards, has been published in magazines internationally, and has made him a Forged in Fire Champion. At the end of the day, he makes collector's pieces, family heirlooms, and fine tools including culinary and outdoor knives for the kitchen and field.

In December of last year, I began working on a batch of 5 chef knives intending to finish them in time for Christmas. The premise was to make a single billet of Damascus steel and turn it into 5 chef knives, each with a different combination of handle shape and blade grind. Due to the time constraints of the holiday season, I chose to leave one of the five knives unfinished and finish the other four. Now, two months later, I have finally been able to finish the last of the five knives from that batch. So what makes these chef knives unique? Let’s talk about some of those details.

Damascus Steel:
The five knives in the video are all forged from the same bar of 256-layer, twist-pattern Damascus steel [link to Damascus blog], made from alternating layers of 80CRV2 and 15N20 carbon steel. I have worked with this combination of alloys for many years, and I chose it because the two steels are forgiving to weld, give a high contrast when finished and etched, and they hold a keen edge. I chose the twist pattern because of it’s visual appeal. When the layer count in a twist pattern is just right, the blade becomes shimmery exhibiting an effect called “chatoyance,” or “like a cat’s eye.”

Blade Grinds:
I chose to use two different blade grinds for the five knives in the video. Three of the knives used my gold standard, full-convex grind. The full-convex grind allows for a thin but sturdy edge and reduced friction in the cut, and it is my go-to geometry for my chef knives. On the other two knives in the batch, I chose to use a more complex grind called a saber grind, or S-grind for short. These particular S-grinds divided the blades into three distinct sections: a convex section near the edge, a flat section near the spine, and a concave section in between the two. The concave section in the S-grind helps to keep food from sticking to the side of the knife when cutting, and it also adds a dramatic visual effect to the blade as it reflects light differently off its various sections.

Handle Designs:
When it comes to handle design, I always try to balance visual appeal with ergonomics. I like to shape handles with dynamic, curving profiles and smooth contours that feel good in the hand. To add to the aesthetic appeal of these knives, I chose a variety of figured, stabilized woods for the handles including cherry burl, walnut burl, and curly koa. On one of the five knives in the batch, I decided to sculpt the handle in a style I call “flowing facets.” For this particular knife, which I titled Flow, I chose Indian Rosewood for the handle, whose dark grain helps to reveal the more dramatic contours of the handle shape.

To see a visual explanation of what we just talked about, check out the YouTube video that I made that follows that batch of five knives from simple bars of steel through to completed chef knives, and the last of those five will finally be available for purchase on the website this Friday, March 20. I am also including a second knife in Friday’s drop, entitled “Osprey,” which includes many of the same techniques and design elements as the knives in the video, but with a stunning feather-pattern Damascus blade and a highly-sculpted handle.

If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
Also during the winter, I spent the vast majority of my time in the shop filling commissions for pieces that I already had on the books for several months. But in and among the commissions, I like to release a few knives for people who don’t want to wait 6-12 months for a knife, or who like to see the knife in its completion before buying it.

If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.

​About The Author
Jordan LaMothe is a Master Bladesmith, a Fulbright scholar, a member of the Art Knife Invitational Show, and a teacher of knife-making. His work has won numerous awards, has been published in magazines internationally, and has made him a Forged in Fire Champion. At the end of the day, he makes collector's pieces, family heirlooms, and fine tools including culinary and outdoor knives for the kitchen and field.

Many of the finest knives, daggers, and swords I have made have been on-commission. A client comes to me with an idea, and I work with them to design a piece that meets their needs and matches their vision, while staying true to my own style and artistic sensibilities. In 2025, I received a commission for a Main Gauche Parrying dagger from a client who wanted an exquisite custom piece with a number of symbolic elements to add to its personal significance.
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This Main gauche parrying dagger, such as one that might be carried by the three musketeers, required elements were as follows:
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• Feather Damascus (pattern-welded) blade
• Seashell on the guard
• Koftgari gold work with ivy and flowers
• Fluted ash-burl handle with silver wire inlay
• Bumblebee (in reference to Napoleon Bonaparte) incorporated somewhere on the piece.

To share a bit of historical background, a main gauche parrying dagger is a specific type of weapon from the European Renaissance. It was typically used in the left hand (“main gauche” is French for “left hand”) as an auxiliary weapon during rapier duels, to parry the opponent’s sword and allow for a counter attack. Whenever I make a blade in a historical style or incorporating historical inspiration, I like to start the design process by looking at original weapons from the period. I consulted the online collections of the Wallace Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Art Institute of Chicago for images of this type of dagger that I could use to inform the scale, proportion, and construction of the dagger. I then sketched out the piece into a full-scale drawing and constructed a wooden model before embarking on the piece itself.

I documented the whole process of making this parrying dagger on my YouTube channel, and you can watch it here:

​The process of making this dagger was incredibly involved—it is one of the most complex pieces I have made to-date. The biggest challenge was the shell-shaped hand guard, which I raised and chased out of a piece of sheet steel. I then welded it to what I call “the basket” of curving members that support it. All told, the guard with the shell incorporated 7 different steel pieces, all carefully welded together, and each of the welds was subsequently filed to hide the seams and refine the shape of the guard.

Making the dagger involved over 170 working hours, and the gold koftgari designs required over 25 feet of 24K wire.

As I write this, I just finished a matching scabbard for this dagger, which will be featured in an upcoming YouTube video as well. In the meantime, here is a closer look at the finished piece.​

If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jordan LaMothe is a Master Bladesmith, a Fulbright scholar, a member of the Art Knife Invitational Show, and a teacher of knife-making. His work has won numerous awards, has been published in magazines internationally, and has made him a Forged in Fire Champion. At the end of the day, he makes collector's pieces, family heirlooms, and fine tools including culinary and outdoor knives for the kitchen and field

With modern metallurgy continually advancing, and with the plethora of different steel options available today, it is easy for a prospective knife-buyer to get bogged down in the details of which steel to pick: should I buy a carbon steel blade or a stainless steel blade? What about a Damascus blade? What do the numbers and letters mean, like 1084 or 52100, or AEBL, or VG10? While there is much to say on this topic, and some folks will opt to dive more deeply into the metallurgical weeds, I am going to attempt to give a good foundation of the different categories of steel available for your knives.

Carbon: Carbon steel is the original knife steel, dating back to the early iron age, when smiths found out that iron treated in a certain way (to increase its carbon content) was harder and lasted longer than plain iron, and they started using that material to make blades. Up until the mid twentieth century, carbon steel was basically the only kind of steel used to make knives. It tends to be both hard and tough, can hold a fine edge for a long time, and it is typically easy to sharpen.
A carbon steel knife is like a cast iron skillet: it is a classic tool that has stood the test of time, and it takes a little bit of special care to keep it in good condition. Carbon steel will develop a patina, or a dark surface finish, over time, as it reacts slightly with acids in the food. In order to keep it from rusting, it is important to dry it after use and store it in a dry location. With a little practice, the ritual of caring for a carbon steel knife becomes second nature.

Carbon steels really shine when it comes to toughness. There are no other materials that are as well-suited for making impact tools such as cleavers, camp chopping knives, axes, or swords, and even when they are heat treated for high toughness, many carbon steels can still retain a substantial degree of hardness, leading to improved edge performance.

Stainless: Stainless steel is a relatively new development, compared to the time-honored carbon steel, as it only came about around the middle of the twentieth century, and stainless steel that is hard enough to use for knife blades was developed even later. Stainless steels have the obvious advantage of being far more corrosion resistant than carbon steels, which makes them easier to care for. They can be used constantly in wet environments and left to air dry, and they will still stay shiny.

The advantage of corrosion resistance comes with certain tradeoffs, however, first and foremost in the form of reduced toughness. The reduced toughness can manifest as micro-chipping on an edge that is ground too thin, or at its worst, it can manifest as a blade breaking when it is bent too far. Some kinds of stainless steel, such as Nitro-V, AEBL, and Magnacut, among others, are designed to be tougher than others, and lend themselves for knives with thin edge geometry, such as kitchen knives and fillet knives.

In recent decades there has been an explosion in the prevalence of so-called “high performance” stainless steel alloys, which have taken the knife world by storm. These alloys are typically quite wear-resistant, meaning they will hold a sharp edge for an extraordinarily long time compared to carbon steel, however their wear resistance also makes them much more challenging to re-sharpen once they get dull. If you or someone you know is good at sharpening (and has a good set of diamond stones,) or if you can send your knife back to the maker for sharpening occasionally, the extra edge life of a high-performance stainless steel would certainly be worth considering.

Damascus: The term “Damascus steel” can refer to two different types of steel (see last month’s blog) but the most common in today’s market is pattern-welded steel. The lion’s share of this type of steel is made with alternating layers of carbon steels, so Damascus blades will share the same working characteristics as carbon steels. In centuries past, these blades were considered to be superior to homogeneous steel blades, but the clean, well-made steel of the industrial age rendered that advantage obsolete. Today, the reason to buy a Damascus blade is for its dashing good looks.

There are several makers and manufacturers who are now starting to produce stainless Damascus, which, logically, will share the same working properties as the stainless steels welded together to produce the material. In my research, I have noticed that several of the companies producing this are using a combination of hardenable and non-hardenable steel, which may affect the edge performance of the finished knife, as the softer steel portions will likely dull faster than the harder steel portions. If you are looking for a stainless Damascus knife, I recommend looking for a high-performance version, made from two different hardenable steels, and prepare to pay double what you would expect to pay for a carbon steel Damascus blade of the same style.

Carbide: There are a few folks who advocate for the use of carbide knife blades for certain applications. “Carbide” typically refers to tungsten carbide, and it is an incredibly hard material often used for saw teeth and metal machining cutters. Tungsten carbide is too brittle to use for a knife on its own, but it can be electrically deposited on titanium or another tough material to use as a cutting edge. I am not an expert in this type of material combination, but my gut instinct is that such a knife would be great for warehouse work: opening boxes and cutting pallet strapping, and other high-wear operations. I do not think a carbidized titanium knife would be satisfactory in the kitchen.

Ceramic: Some larger manufacturers are producing ceramic knife blades, which can in fact be made sharper than steel. Ceramic blades avoid the risk of corrosion entirely, which is perhaps their primary advantage. Unfortunately, ceramic is simply not tough enough to withstand regular use as a knife blade, and ceramic blades are incredibly prone to breaks and large chips, which typically means they need to be replaced.
A recommendation is also to learn about key factors that make the best kitchen knife.
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I primarily work with Damascus. If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.

There is a considerable amount of confusion, misinformation, and general misunderstanding around the term “Damascus steel;” what it meant in the past, what it means today, and whether it was truly “lost” to history, as some people say. Much of this confusion stems from the fact that “Damascus steel” can be used to refer to two completely different types of materials: pattern-welded steel and crucible steel. Both types were highly sought-after for swords, daggers, and other weapons across cultures and throughout history.

Pattern-Welded Steel

When the term “Damascus” is used to describe blades by contemporary makers, it is almost always referring to this type of steel. Pattern-welded steel, or “mechanical Damascus,” is made by fusing together two different alloys of steel in alternating layers. Once the blade is complete, the maker etches it in acid, which reacts differently with the two alloys, revealing a pattern in the steel. The patterns in this type are highly controllable through careful forging and re-stacking.
Pattern-welded steel is found widely throughout historical cultures. Some of the earliest known examples are from Indonesia, but distinct variations were used by the Romans, Celts, and Vikings, among others. Pattern-welded blades were also found throughout India and the Middle East.

Crucible Damascus

This form of Damascus steel is also known as wootz, polat, or faulad. It also exhibits patterns on the surface of a blade, but instead of resulting from a combination of layers of different alloys, the patterns in crucible Damascus result from differing crystal structures inside a single alloy of steel. As the name suggests, this type is made in a crucible, or a melting pot for metals. The steel is fully liquified in a furnace at high temperatures and left to cool slowly. The slow cooling combined with the specific carbon and alloy composition causes the steel to form bands of iron carbide, or cementite, which results in a pattern in the blade.

Crucible Damascus was the most highly-prized material for sword blades in India, the Middle East, and Turkey, from at least the 16th century through the 19th century, but possibly earlier as well. Perhaps because it was so highly prized, it has also been described as “true Damascus,” implying that pattern-welded steel is some sort of imitation. I find this term misleading, as pattern-welded steel predates crucible steel by several centuries, according to the archaeological record.

Was Damascus Steel Lost to History?

When people say that the technique for making Damascus steel was “lost,” they are referring to Crucible Damascus, which ceased to be produced around the mid-nineteenth century. There are a number of theories as to why people stopped making them, but the primary factor seems to have been British imperialism. Metallurgical developments in Europe allowed for the production of large amounts of inexpensive high-quality steel, which Britain and other European empires sold to their colonies, outcompeting the local steel industries that made crucible Damascus steel. As a result, the details of the process for making crucible steel were largely forgotten. In the past 50 years, there has been a resurgence of interest in Crucible Steel, and there are now a considerable number of smiths and scholars working to re-create this material.

What Are The Benefits of a Damascus Steel Blade?

Both types of Damascus steel were developed as ways to refine metal, remove impurities, and improve its working characteristics. The more highly-refined steels were tougher and more reliable than non-Damascus steels of the time. The high-quality of these Damascus blades, combined with their beautiful patterns gave this type of steel its sometimes mythical status as the finest blade material. As the process of smelting steel from iron ore became more advanced, particularly during the Industrial Revolution, the mechanical benefits of Damascus steels compared to mono steels began to dwindle. However, some smiths have continued to make pattern-welded steel for its aesthetic value through the present day.

Today, the functional differences between Damascus steel and steel straight from the mill are pretty much negligible. If you want to buy the most highly-functional knife possible, you should talk to a knowledgeable maker about which alloy of steel will suit your needs the best. If you want an eye-catching blade that hearkens back to centuries of steel refining and forging traditions, then Damascus steel, whether pattern-welded or crucible steel, may be for you.

If you would like to commission a culinary Damascus steel knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.

My previous blog post covered “How Do I Sharpen My Set Of Culinary Knives?”. The step after is now caring for them.

If you use a knife, whether it’s your favorite set of chef knives that you use to feed your family or the hunting knife you use to skin a deer, or the pocket knife you carry with you for everyday tasks, learning how to properly care for it will help it last as long as possible. Fortunately, caring for knives is quite simple and straightforward. I am going to lay out my basic guidelines for use, cleaning, storage, and sharpening, to help you get the most out of your edged tools.

Use: Every knife is designed to accomplish a specific set of tasks, and using a knife for a task that it is not intended for is a sure way to damage your blade. Using your pocket knife to cut wires, for instance, will likely dull the blade. A knife should never be used as a pry bar.
Culinary knives are particularly specialized, and that’s a good thing! A knife that is made to do everything will not perform well for anything, so you should be aware of what tasks your knife is made to do. If you use a thin knife that is designed to slice vegetables to quarter a chicken or hack through something frozen, the chances of chipping or warping the edge are quite high.

You should also consider the cutting surface you use in your kitchen. Wooden cutting boards are the gentlest on your kitchen knife edges, and will keep them sharp for longer. Bamboo is quite a bit harsher than wood, and hard materials like glass, ceramic, and metal should be avoided entirely.

Cleaning: It is important to clean your knife after use. As a rule of thumb, you should use the gentlest cleaning method possible. Abrasives such as steel wool, scouring pads, and Scotch-Brite should be avoided, as they tend to scratch both blades and handles and can also dull the edge. A soft sponge with water and dish detergent is usually sufficient for cleaning knives.

Carbon steel blades will rust if they are left to air-dry after cleaning. If you have a carbon steel knife, be sure to clean it soon after using it, and dry it with a towel. If a blade becomes rusty, a good solution is to scrub it with the original Barkeepers Friend powdered cleaner on a sponge or cloth. As always, be sure to rinse and dry the blade afterward to keep it in good condition.

Wood handles should not be left to soak in water, otherwise they will swell, shortening their lifespan and potentially cracking. Like carbon steel blades, wood handles should be towel-dried after washing. If the wood starts to look dry, a cutting board oil or wax, such as Beekeeper’s Gold, should be applied to restore the protective oils in the wood.
Do not leave your knives to soak. Soaking knives can allow water to seep into handle materials and seams between components, particularly with natural handle materials that tend to shrink and swell with changes in moisture. Additionally, most people who soak knives put them in a tub or jar with other utensils, which is not only a safety hazard, but it will also cause the edges to become dull and chipped.

Do not put your knives in the dishwasher. There are plenty of knives that claim to be dishwasher safe, and those with plastic or silicone handles often are more resilient in the harsh conditions of a dishwasher. However, the high temperature can damage many handle materials, and the risk of the edge coming into contact with other metal utensils is high. Carbon steel, wood, and other natural handle materials should absolutely never be put in a dishwasher.

Storage: The most important consideration when storing your knives is to keep the edges from contacting other knives or hard surfaces. Knife blocks, magnetic strips, knife rolls, sayas, sheaths, or protective sleeves are all great ways to keep the edges sharp and prevent damage.
Carbon steels should be stored in a dry place. If the knife is going to be stored for a long period of time, oiling the blade will help prevent rust. If a sheath becomes wet, be sure to let it dry thoroughly before putting a knife back in it, otherwise it may rust the blade.
Sharpening: It is easier to keep a knife sharp than it is to sharpen it. Regular touchups with a strop or a ceramic honing rod will help to keep your edges cutting well. 

As a reminder for more detailed information on how to sharpen your knives, take a look at my blog post from last month.

If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.

A sharp knife is both more enjoyable and safer to use, enabling you to use minimum effort to achieve maximum control with your blade. Some of the best culinary knives will hold their edge for a long time, but every knife, no matter how hard the steel or how good the edge geometry, will eventually dull with use. Here are some tips to help you keep your knives cutting well.

Making Your Edge Last As Long As Possible
Before we talk about sharpening, it’s important to cover some basics for how to keep your knife’s edge from dulling as quickly.

Knife Storage - Knife blocks, magnetic racks, and sheaths are all great ways to store your knives and keep their edges safe from harm. Sheaths can be made from wood, leather, plastic, or even cardboard. Knives stored loose in a drawer will chip and dull quickly as they come in contact with one another, and once you sharpen them, the unprotected edges pose a serious risk of injury.

Cutting Board Choice - In the kitchen, the surface you cut on will also determine the longevity of your edges. End-grain wood boards, or butcher blocks are the very best, followed by wood, Richlite, and plastic cutting boards. Bamboo cutting boards are okay in a pinch, but the fibers can be abrasive and cause edge damage. Avoid cutting on glass, ceramic, stone, or metal surfaces (including pie plates and dinner plates).

Signs That Your Knife Needs To Be Sharpened
As soon as you notice that a knife requires more effort to cut than it used to, then it is time to touch up the edge. You can also hold the knife under a bright light source with the edge facing you, and if you see light reflecting off the edge of the knife, the knife is dull in that spot. A sharp edge appears as a thin, dark line.

Touch-up Sharpening (Honing)
Most of the time, a dulled edge only requires a brief honing to restore it to peak performance. I recommend using either a leather strop or a ceramic rod for this step.

The Strop - A leather strop is often associated with honing shaving razors, and it consists of a strap of leather coated in a fine abrasive (I use white buffing compound,) and the strap can be either hung from a hook or mounted on a board. To use the strop, simply hold your knife blade at approximately 15 degrees to the surface and drag it lightly backward across the leather. Repeat this process until the knife is sharp, alternating from side to side with each stroke and checking for sharpness every 10 strokes or so.

The Ceramic Rod - The ceramic rod is an updated version of the traditional butcher’s or honing  steel, with which most of us are familiar. The ceramic serves as a gentle abrasive to lightly sharpen and re-align the edge of the knife. There are a variety of ways to use a ceramic rod, but the safest is to hold the rod vertically, point-down on a cutting board, and gently slice downward with the knife with the edge at approximately 15 degrees to the rod. As with the strop, repeat this process on the other side of the blade, and alternate from side to side until the knife is sharp again.

Edge Restoration
If your knives have been severely chipped or dulled, it may require more aggressive sharpening methods to restore it to full sharpness. A sharpening stone, also known as a whetstone, is the tool of choice for this step. Sharpening stones come in many grits and types, but I recommend a 1000 to 1200 grit stone for general sharpening of culinary and utility knives. 

Using a Whetstone - There are hundreds of different kinds of stones available, and they typically require either oil or water to work properly. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions as to which lubricant to use for sharpening. I prefer Japanese water stones and diamond stones for most of my sharpening purposes. To use a whetstone, hold the knife at a 10-15 degree angle to the surface of the stone and drag the knife from one end of the stone to the other, and from heel to tip of the knife. Use the same number of strokes on each side in order to keep the edge of the knife centered. Once the knife is sharp, hone the edge with either a strop or ceramic rod,  as described above.

The Final Test
Once your knife looks sharp, with no bright spots on the edge, it’s time to test it. My favorite test for edge consistency is to hold up a piece of newspaper and slice through it. A sharp knife will cut cleanly through, while any dull spots or chips will tear the paper, indicating the places on the edge that require further sharpening.

Sharpening Systems
As a knife maker, I confess I am a bit of a purist when it comes to sharpening, preferring free-hand sharpening with whetstones to any of the myriad different sharpening systems or knife sharpeners available on the market. Having tried very few of them, I can’t recommend any particular product, but if sharpening with whetstones seems too challenging (I promise it’s really not,) you may choose to do your own research and try them out. If you choose to go this route, here are two features to avoid:

Carbide Blades - Carbide looks just like steel, but it is much harder, and many knife sharpeners, especially the pull-through variety, use carbide blades to quickly remove metal from the edge of the knife. The carbide blades tend to tear the steel, leaving a jagged edge, and will often chip harder, higher-quality blades. The resulting edge feels very sharp, but will dull quickly, as the jagged points on the edge break off and bend over, requiring more frequent sharpening and shortening the lifespan of the knife.

Motorized Sanders & Grinders - Grinders and sanders are important tools in the knife-making process, but they tend to be too aggressive for sharpening purposes. These motorized tools make it easy to remove too much material from the edge and shorten the lifespan of your knife.

Sharpening Video Tutorial
If you would like to see all of the processes described above in video format, be sure to check out the tutorial I posted on my YouTube Channel: How to Sharpen a Knife

A knife positioned on the stone at an appropriate sharpening angle (wooden wedge for reference)

Here are ten of the best custom chef and culinary knives that I have made in my career to-date. Each of these knives is one-of-a-kind and exemplifies a combination of artistic form and functional design. All of these knives are already sold, but if you are interested in purchasing a unique piece of edged-art for your kitchen, please sign up for my newsletter for early access to any new work. 
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​“Rift” — I made this dramatic, K-tip gyuto for the Art of Cutlery exhibition, curated by EatingTools in October 2024. The blade was forged from 300-layer, carbon steel Damascus with an integral bolster. The handle was sculpted from camatillo rosewood and curly acacia with silver spacers and a Damascus rear bolster. The blade is convex-ground, for excellent all-round cutting performance, and at nearly 11 inches from heel to tip, it is ideal for an experienced chef with heavy cutting requirements.​​ ​

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​“Deep Roots” — This culinary knife features one of the most complex Damascus patterns I have ever made. The bold, high-contrast pattern adorns a supremely functional blade with an integral bolster and a symmetrical S-grind, for superior food release and ease of cutting. The handle and the saya (wooden sheath) of “Deep Roots” are both curly acacia wood with hand-sculpted flowing curves and contours. The butt-end of the handle also includes an inlay of African blackwood and stainless steel.

Chinese Cleaver — The Chinese vegetable cleaver, or Cai Dao, is an excellent all-purpose knife, and can be used for nearly every kitchen task, from breaking down a chicken to mincing ginger and garlic, to transferring cut veggies from the cutting board to the wok. This unique Cai Dao elevates its form to the highest level, incorporating a reeded desert ironwood handle and an ornate chrysanthemum pattern in gold and silver koftgari. The blade of this Chinese cleaver is pattern-welded steel with an S-grind for improved cutting performance.​

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​​“Mojave” — This chef knife, with its bold “windmill” Damascus pattern and its spiral-fluted handle, won the award for ‘Best Chef Knife’ at the Atlanta Blade Show in 2024. “Mojave” has an S-ground blade and an integral bolster, and the desert ironwood burl handle terminates in a stainless steel cap with an African blackwood inlay.

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​Katana Sujihiki — This unique chef knife is made in the style of a sujihiki, or a Japanese slicing knife, but it is styled to resemble a katana. The blade for this knife was made from special hearth-melted steel, or ‘oroshigane,’ made by Emiliano Carrillo. Oroshigane is quite similar in both chemistry and appearance to the traditional Japanese steel used for their legendary swords. The handle is a complex composite construction of maple burl and synthetic ivory, and it includes metal fittings made from shibuichi (a copper/silver alloy) at the front and rear.

Indian Rosewood Chef Knife — This chef knife is one of two knives that I made in India, while I was studying there on a Fulbright grant in 2022. The blade was forged from a mill ball, used in the concrete industry to crush stone. I forged this blade in a makeshift blacksmith shop, ground it on a stone wheel, and polished it by hand. The handle is reclaimed Rosewood from an old spice pounder, and the steel fittings are covered in thick, gold koftgari by my teacher, Sandeep Singh Chauhan.​

​“Io” — Named for Jupiter’s volcanically active moon, this chef knife features a W2 carbon steel blade with a dramatic hardening line, or ‘hamon.’ The handle is made from fiery maple burl flanked with black walnut and silver spacers. Sterling silver tacks evoke distant orbiting bodies.​

​Master Smith Gyuto — This elegant chef knife was one of the five knives that I submitted for judging to earn my Master Smith certification in the American Bladesmith Society in 2021. The blade features an active mosaic pattern in the Damascus steel, as well as an S-grind for food release and cutting performance. The handle is sculpted Turkish walnut with stainless steel and G10 spacers.​

​Master Smith Sujihiki — This long slicing knife was also one of the five knives that I submitted for judging to earn my Master Smith certification in the American Bladesmith Society in 2021. The slender blade is forged from my “Mountain Riffle” pattern Damascus steel. The straight-octagonal handle is inspired by traditional Japanese chef knife handles, and it is made from curly Australian red gum, flanked by stainless steel and nickel silver spacers.​

Go Mai Gyuto — This chef knife exemplifies a simpler form of elegance, achieved through careful design and premium materials. The blade is ‘go mai,’ or 5-layer steel with ApexUltra high-carbon steel in the core, 410 stainless steel in the jacket, and pure nickel in between. Apart from its attractive appearance, go mai steel offers improved corrosion resistance while retaining the benefits of a high-carbon steel edge. The handle for this knife is my classic “Farmstead” handle in maple burl, paired with a black Richlite bolster.​

If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
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If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.

In any kitchen—whether it’s a home cook’s counter or a Michelin-starred restaurant—no tool is more essential than a quality chef knife. A top-rated chef knife is more than just sharp; it’s a combination of expert craftsmanship, premium materials, and functional design, with a little aesthetic flair to top it all off.  But what truly sets the best chef knives apart from the rest? Let’s break down the key factors.

1. Expert Craftsmanship
A top-tier chef knife should be cleanly and intentionally made. The finishes should be clean with no errant machine marks or dips and dents, and the blade and handle components should fit tightly together with no gaps between them. A knife should be sharp on the cutting edge, and nowhere else! Any sharp transitions or edges on the handle or the back of the blade can cause discomfort to your hands when you are using the knife, and an expert craftsman will always attend to those details that make the knife comfortable to hold.

2. Premium Materials
Top-rated chef knives are made from good high-carbon steel or high-carbon stainless steel. The edge should take a keen edge and hold it for a long time, and the edge should be thin enough to slice a ripe tomato or chiffonade herbs without crushing them. The handle should be a durable and water-resistant material, such as stabilized wood, tropical hardwood, or phenolic composite (such as Micarta or G10.) Plastic and silicone handles hold up well enough, but they lack the aesthetic appeal of more premium materials.

3. Functional Design
Balance: A chef knife should feel like an extension of your hand. Well-balanced knives distribute weight evenly between the handle and the blade, allowing for smooth, controlled motions. Some chefs prefer a heavier knife for cutting through tougher foods, while others favor lighter, more agile blades. The key is that it should feel comfortable and stable in your grip.

Handle design: Comfort is crucial, especially for long prep sessions. Choose a handle that fits in your hand — a handle that is too thick can be tiring to use, whereas a handle that is too slim will be more difficult to control. Try out several options and see what you like best.

Blade Grind: The blade of a top-rated chef knife should be thin at the edge and rigid on the spine. A chef knife that bends too much will make it difficult to use the tip of the blade to its full advantage. Many top-rated knives also incorporate compound grinds, such as an S-grind, to improve food release and cutting efficiency.

The blade shape should also be suited to your style of cooking. A “German” profile with more curve in the edge will be better for rocking on a cutting board, whereas a straighter French or Japanese edge will be better for push cutting.

4. Aesthetic Flair
Cooking is an inherently social activity. We cook to feed our patrons or our families or our friends, but the best food is almost never consumed (or prepared) alone. A top-rated chef knife should have an aesthetic appeal that sets it apart, to catch the eye of anyone watching and to demonstrate its quality visually. Eye-catching handle profiles, striking Damascus patterns on the blade and dazzling combinations of exotic materials can set a top-tier knife apart and increase its value considerably.
Investing in a quality chef knife transforms cooking from a chore into a satisfying craft. If you’re serious about your kitchen tools, choosing the right chef knife is a cut above the rest.

Want a guide to choosing your first premium kitchen knife or are looking to commission your own custom kitchen knife? Here is my contact form to start the process.

If you are looking for a limited edition kitchen knife that is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.

​About The Author
Jordan LaMothe is a Master Bladesmith, a Fulbright scholar, a member of the Art Knife Invitational Show, and a teacher of knife-making. His work has won numerous awards and has been published in magazines internationally.