For this week’s Deep Dive Series, the first one of 2022, we are interviewing a talented Clapper creator: @BourneCraftSmithing.

@BourneCraftSmithing is one of the most dedicated blacksmiths and creatores on Clapper. In this Deep Dive interview, he told us about his crafting process and his journey to become the creator he is today. On Clapper, his content revolves mostly on being a blacksmith, but recently we have seen him get into comedy skits as well. Bourne is also deeply involved in growing his community and helping other creators. His new radio show “Underdog Spotlight” happens every Wednesday at 10am Ct and it helps shine a light to the smaller creators of the platform.

Keep reading this Deep Dive Series to find out more about this creator’s amazing story. Make sure to tune in every Thursday at 5pm CT on our @Clappertalks account, to listen to the bonus questions that will only be available on our live radio show: Clapper Interviews.

Enjoy this deep dive on @BourneCraftSmithing

Tell us a little bit about yourself. What does a day look like in your life?

I get woken up by three rescue dogs in the morning. Then, if I my daughter is there with me at the time, I make sure get her ready and get her breakfast. After that I look if there is anything I need to clapback on Clapper. After that I start working with her school work, she’s homeschooled. I help her for the next three to four hours. Then, I get into blacksmithing, leather work, sewing or I work on my different comedy skits. Hopefully by then its dinner time and we usually sit down and watch a film until it’s time to go to bed.

How does one start as a Blacksmith? Did you have a mentor guiding you through it? Are you self-taught or did you go to a black Smith School? 

I guess that varies from person to person. I would say 70% of the blacksmiths I’ve met have learned from watching Youtube videos. About 18 years ago, I did apprentice under a master armor blacksmith who made armor for people who did jousting and for performance art at renaissance festivals. They taught me a lot. I met my master blacksmith there, but I only apprenticed with him for a year. After that, I actually dropped the smithing for 17 years. I’ve been homeless, I’ve been living in a car, streets, apartments, then all over the place. I just couldn’t craft at that time. We just bought a house and got property, so I build myself a blacksmithing forge and started up again. All the stuff that I post it’s been done since the spring of last year.

What has been your favorite item you’ve ever forged? 

Ah, yes. So, for all of you can’t see it right now. There is this sword that I made and you actually will see it if you see the holiday bazaar recap or search through my videos. We did this viking build-off and it was actually ran by @hammerdeppforge and there is a knife and a sword design. It’s a reverse tongue sword, you have the blade on the opposite side, its just a straight edge and I made a sword that has sword blade, then one coming off the back and the guard that wraps around your hand where there is an axe blade that comes out of it. The story is that there is a north god that gets his arm bitten off and he can only use one weapon after that. The sword is designed to have 3 weapons in one because he only has one arm.

We’ve heard you briefly talk about the blacksmith community on other platforms. What is the blacksmith community like? 

I already brought over a few blacksmiths to Clapper. I have several groups that I am a part of on Instagram and I am working on getting them here. This is such a positive platform. I am telling them this is the place to be.

We noticed that you are a co-host on a new Livestream show called “Underdog’s Spotlight”. Tell us more about what this show is about. 

During the big first event on Clapper, the Rocktoberfest, which I was a contestant in, I met several content creators who have become personal best friends outside of Clapper. One of them being @Handy.mandy. We had been talking for months about doing a collaboration and one day she said, what if we do a radio show?, and I said, let’s do it. Underdog Spotlight just came to my head because we wanted to showcase creators that are under 3K that are trying to get verified and all they want is to spread positivity. We want them to be seen and heard because we’ve been seen and heard. We want to give them a boost. Then, SFXRobert said he wanted to be a part of it and I knew he was the part that was missing. Wed 10amct

So, When did you join Clapper? How did your journey as a creator begin?

Another blacksmith got me to come to Clapper and originally I started reposting a lot of things I had put on my Instagram that I used on Facebook. I joined TikTok soon after because I was trying to maximize my exposure. I wasn’t really finding what I wanted to do here and I just recently found that. I was honestly then events. They were really big for me, they really allowed me to network with a lot of people. It has even inspired me to do my comedy skits now. I owe a lot to Rocktoberfest.

We see that you’ve evolved from just blacksmith content and also show support to other creators while also showcasing who you are. How has your content transformed as you grow on this platform?

I’d say it has completely transformed, and I am really proud of that. My content definitely shows what I do and what I am about. Basically, I saw, because clapper is so new, that there is an opportunity to write the way we want it to be. I want to provide content that creators will be watching years from now and trying to get new ideas. That’s kind of what I have in mind, make a positive environment that people will want to be a part of.

What do you enjoy most about Clapper? In what ways do you feel like Clapper needs improvement?

You opened up the door, didn’t you? I feel like everything that can be improved on Clapper will happen with time. The glitches will get fixed. I’d say the number one thing is for Clapper staying on top of their own networking, running this events and giving people a chance. I would say keep doing that.

What advice would you give new crafters that want to be successful on Clapper?

Don’t be shy. The sky is the limit. This app will bring you to end of the universe and back. I feel like I limited myself too much in the beginning, it was a process for me. But anyone who is new here, look at what other people are doing and try it out. Hop into people’s lives and just say hello. Don’t hold yourself back.

For our latest deep dive on @Cmackfromseattle, read here.