Believe it or not it all started with comics, when I was at an anime convention, I love Anime. Anime, in addition to manga (Japanese comics), is extremely popular in Japan and well known throughout the world. Anime itself is considered a form of limited animation. To give you some background info about anime, the weapons are really big and unusual.
So while at the convention, I was looking for weapons to enhance my costume. I first bought some bamboo bowkens to see what I could do. I took on a friend and man at the same time. Man, did we all hurt when it was all said and done. But it was fun! I then bought some Kendo sticks and we went for it again. The result was more bruises, but not so purple and not as sore the next day. And we all had fun!
Then I saw some other con goers at the park across the street from the convention with some foam swords and they laughing and just having a blast, so I went on a search for some boffers as they were called. I bought them and went over to the park it was amazing you could wail on some one and it really didn't hurt. No bruises and no pain.
Eureka! I found the weapon of my dreams. They were pretty bland and boring looking, but hey they were fun! Then much to my dismay on the final day of the convention they died.
Well since I had bought three pairs of swords (and it was the 3rd day of the convention) I had already spent all the money I had saved up for this con (yeah at 15 you can't buy it on credit).
The boffers I had bought really didn't last as long as I would have liked. So I went home with my dead boffers and tore them apart to see what made them tick.
My family is pretty creative when it comes to stuff, so we took a look at what went into making boffers. And I also got on the internet and started doing some research.
Double eureka! I could find all of this stuff locally and start making boffers my own!
Then came the experiments. Different foam weights, finding out what way was the easiest to wrap around the core and so on. All with the idea of building a better boffer! One that would last for more than just 3 days!
I always had friends that were willing to test them at a local park with me.
Well, one weekend we saw these guys dressed up in armor and using boffers and they told us about Live Action Role Playing (LARP) and the SCA. They came regularly to the park to practice (cool, new victims).
I checked out the weapons they were using and took a few tips and went home and made some improvements again.
One thing I notice was that all the boffers I saw were blue and very plain. Then I asked my mom to take me to the fabric store so I could get more material to cover these new boffers.
I looked up and saw some bright colored flames and some dragons and said I wish I could use something like that. Mom replied, "Why don't you?" So I did. Next thing I knew, my friends were asking me to make some for them, (You can never have too many people to boff with) And I did.
Then someone at school asked me, "How much do you charge?" So I started selling them at school. Then I found more material I liked and started selling at local swap meets. Other buyers kept telling me how I was missing the boat by not selling at the local artist market.
"I'm not painting these" I said. "Don't they jury all the products there?" They told me if I made them I could sell there if approved.
My understanding or thought was that it was not an easy task to get into that market (or any other market) But over time, they convinced me I should try. So I did. And yes, I got into that market and still sell there when I am not boffing or going to school functions on the weekend. (Note to self...don't put limitations on yourself!)
One of the first objects to conquer to get into the market was I needed a name besides my given name. Basically, I needed a name that told people what I did and what I was selling. I wanted a name that didn't limit me to just swords, so I went with "The Armory". On my sign it says "Soft Swords for children of all ages"
At this point in time, The Armory has gotten to be more than one person going to high school full time can handle by themselves. So the rest of the family helps out, so I can keep boffing and having fun with foam weapons from another time.
The business continues to grow and I am continually "testing out in the field" at SCA events, LARP get togethers and with boffing clubs wherever I go.
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