Grafa Creators Of Artisan Gardening Tools
Grafa was born out of a passion for organic gardening and permaculture as well as the Austrian naturalist movement. From rough homemade tools made of old copper pipe that was lying around to a collection of sophisticated objects was a process of experimentation and persistence.
Blandford tells The Garden Edit ‘the reason why the tools look the way they do is because I had to find a way to design without the use of expensive machinery’. In fact, a lot of the bending and folding of the copper is done by hand.
Using copper was a consider decision and originally chosen for its ability to improve growth and promote nutrient uptake in the garden. However, the longer Blandford worked with the material, the more properties he feel in love with. Its rich beautiful aesthetic, durability and the ability to resist rust made it an ideal material to work with.
“I love working with copper,” he says. “It’s an extraordinary metal. Malleable enough to shape into interesting and organic curves but strong enough to last you a lifetime in the garden.”
Created in a cinder block workshop at the back of Blandford’s house in Seddon, Melbourne, Grafa is a collection of elegant artisan digging tools gaining worldwide attention.
Images by Marnie Hawson borrowed from Grafa.