Theo Eichorn is an award winning knife maker, receiving the honor of being named Best of Show and Best New Maker in 2008 at the Oregon Knife Collectors Association show in Eugene, OR. Best Forged Knife in 2015 and Best Awards Knife for his paring knife in 2017.
He also received a Bronze Award for Large Hunting Knife at the Kauhava Knife Show in Finland in 2013.
In the Fall of 2010, he moved to Finland and to learn about the world of puukko knife-making and returned to the United States in the Summer of 2013. Originally from California, he is now living in Oregon.
WHY I MAKE KNIVES
When I began, I loved the challenge of making something that was difficult to produce. I always loved art and creation, and I liked the idea of learning to make something that could be qualified. You know if a knife is good because it works well. A good knife speaks for itself.
I liked that knives could take so many forms and have so many uses. I loved the history of toolmaking, of steel, and how that shaped history itself. I like that knives are a platform on which you can build endlessly. Wood. Steel. Leather. Jewelry. Carving. You can specialize endlessly, whether it’s damascus, engraving, or leatherwork. It could be casting. Your imagination is the only limit to what one can bring to knife-making.
My interest has been any kind of knife that is used to create; knives to improve one’s life. I tend to steer away from knives as weapons. I love the idea that my knives are used to enrich a person’s life. To me, that is actually the most important aspect. I feel there is a connection between the energy I put into the knife and, therefore, my connection to the end user.