Yellowknife (Sep 01/06) - There is a strange beauty in practical things done well. And there are few things more practical than a good knife.

That's what Ed McRae has been selling for the last several weeks at the Yellowknife city market: sturdy, homemade knives with an artistic flourish.

Yellowknifer Ed McRae shows off one of his Damascus steel knives, which he has been selling for the last several weeks at the Yellowknife City Market, held each Saturday in the parking lot outside of City Hall. - Adam Johnson/NNSL photo

McRae's signature pieces are made with Damascus steel, sturdy blades made of hundred layers of folded metal - a process that dates back to antiquity.

"It's a layering of high and low-carbon steel, in excess of 200 layers," he said of the process.

The blades are then acid etched, stripping away layers of metal to reveal a pattern that looks like a metallic wood grain. "It's like a fingerprint," he said. "Every blade has a different pattern."

McRae said he doesn't stop there, as he handcrafts the handles and cases as well.

"It's hard to sell a knife without them," he said matter-of-factly.

"It's all from scratch," he said of his process, which can include palm, rosewood, maple and many other materials for the handles.

McRae said he has been making knives for about 14 years, ever since he came across an ad for a knife-making workshop in Edmonton.

"I thought, 'this is an interesting way to spend a weekend'," he said. "And I got hooked."

McRae recently returned to Yellowknife, where he is working full-time with the territorial department of Aboriginal Affairs.

He said he left the capital in 1981, so returning after 25 years was a bit of a shock.

"I couldn't believe it when I got here," he said.

"Just the size of it, all these high rises."

"Northland trailer court, there used to be nothing there, nothing but swamp and bush," he said with a laugh.

The Yellowknife City Market continues every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. outside of city hall until mid-September.