I was approached by a long standing client and family friend in 2020 and asked if I would be able to make them an octopus candle holder for their dining room table.     I was already fully booked with commissions and made some suggestions for other artists and blacksmiths to approach but luckily for me, this client was happy to wait.       Just thinking about the project was enough to put my tool-making brain on overload and while I had a good idea of the style of piece I would make, the complexities of forging the suckers on the octopus arms and getting the texture into the work was at the forefront of my mind before I even put pen to paper.   With this commission, the brief was simple; an octopus that held 8 candles and would have a foot print and height suitable for a dining table.  Being somewhat land locked in Wiltshire and not very well travelled – I haven’t met many octopus in person and wouldn’t eat one, my first job was to watch My Octopus Teacher  and get a better understan