Butterfly Roses 
by
Audra Draper, MS

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Where were we?

Oh, yes.  My friend Audra Draper.


It was in June of 2001.  I had just boarded a Delta Airlines flight
from Portland, Oregon to Atlanta, Georgia to attend the 2001
Bladeshow.  

I had heard, months earlier, that a woman had passed
the ABS Master Smith's test... the first to do so.
But I'd not heard of her.

I was assigned an aisle seat in the very last row.
There was already a man and a lady in the other two seats.
As we settled it, I noticed that they were looking at pictures of
knives and talking about making them.  This, I assumed, must 
be a knifemaker and his wife going to Bladeshow.  So,
I introduced myself.  I was surprised to learn that this
couple was not a knifemaker and his wife on their way
to Bladeshow.  No.  It was, in fact, a knifemaker and
her husband on their way to Bladeshow.

And that is how I met Audra Draper, the first woman 
ABS Mastersmith.  

It's a long flight from Portland to Atlanta, basically all
the way across the country.  And, in the back row of
that aircraft, we forged not a knife but a friendship
that endures to this day.

I've come to know both her and her husband Mike -- who
is now an up-and-coming knifemaker by his own rights --
as friendly, outgoing, and adventuresome.  

I've also come to know their three children.  I've even 
taught a couple of them balisong manipulation.

I'll let you in on a bit of a secret:  A lot of ABS Master
Smiths actually annoy me.  They're talented people; you 
have to be to pass the ABS's demanding tests.  But, once
they've passed the test and earned the title, a lot of them
seem to relax, to fall into making the same sorts of 
knives over and over again knowing that, because they're
an ABS Master Smith, their knives will sell and they'll
have a tidy income.  I've talked to some about doing
something different -- maybe even making a balisong-
style knife -- and been told, "Why would I do that when, in 
the same amount of time, I can make two or three of 
these  knives that I know I can sell for a good price?"   

It's hard to argue with that on economic terms.  But 
maybe you'd do it for the challenge, to try something new.

Others say, "I'm not sure I can do that and make a knife
that'd be up to my usual quality standards.  I know I can
make my regular knives to my standards because I've
done it a thousand times before."  True.  Maybe the
first one wouldn't be perfect.  Maybe you would have
to try a few iterations to learn how to do it.  But you
would learn.  

Nobody is born knowing how to forge a wonderful 
knife.  No.  That has to be learned.  And the first and
necessary step toward learning is wanting to learn,
wanting to try something new, accepting a challenge.
And yet, once awarded Master Smith status, many 
seem to loose that thirst.

As I got to know Audra, I learned that she's not like a
lot of ABS Master Smiths.  She is not defined by the 
MS letters that she'd earned to adorn the end of her
name.  No.  She is defined by the Audra that adorns 
the first part of her name.  She is Audra.

When I asked her to make a balisong-style knife for
me, I expected her to politely decline.... all the usual
excuses.  She, like most ABS Mastersmiths, was not know 
for folding knives.  But, I was, at the same time, not 
surprised when Audra eagerly agreed to take 
this challenge on.

She has since made several balisong-style knives
for me and a growing number for other collectors too.

Her latest is in this box.  Would you like to see it?