Mikko Inkeroinen

Mikko Inkeroinen is a puukkoseppä and black smith from Mikkeli, Finland. Mikko’s puukkos caught my eye early on when I first became interested in Finnish knives. His work is based on traditional forms using the age old materials and methods.  Mikko has said ” I think my mission is to show people that tools can be also beautiful.” I think he captures the essence of what the Finnish knife can be and does exactly that. Mikko also does all kinds of black smithing and his work can be seen at his website  http://seppainkeroinen.net/ Thank you Mikko!

Mikko Inkeroinen:

“I first got interested in knives when I saw my father’s collection of puukkos. When I was young boy I used puukkos often for wood carving and I made my first one in 1997.

I´m the first bladesmith in my family and in the beginning I was self-taught. Soon after, though, I got advice about puukkos, the most important ones of which I got from Olavi Kemppainen, the master of Tommi-puukko from Kuhmo, Finland. Then I studied and graduated as metal-artisan. Additionally my damascus master is Jean-Jose Tritz from Hamburg, Germany. I am also a bladesmith journeyman.

In my area black smithing tradition is really primitive: typically agricultural tools; on the other hand Finnish puukko culture is powerful and very old. The most important things in my works are beauty and usability. Typically my products have clean lines and simple design. My inspiration comes from the old and powerful culture and only a little from the new fashion.

I think my mission is to show people that tools can be also beautiful. That is the reason why I make knives. My motto is “form is more important than level of finishing”. My favourite knife model is Tommi-puukko.”