FLORA — It’s mainly a post-retirement hobby, but Don Mallory really enjoys the craft of silversmithing.

“I really like making bits and spurs, but jewelry sells better,” the longtime Flora resident said. “I’ve got a better market for it than the bits and spurs.”

You won’t find Mallory with a brick-and-mortar shop or even an online presence.

“We don’t have a computer out here,” he said, adding that internet connections in his area are a bit sketchy.

Mallory and his wife, Sandy, live just outside of Flora. He has two sons, five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

His version of marketing is mainly word of mouth, “and I do a few shows.”

Silver enthusiasts can find Mallory’s work at various shows and bazaars, such as one held around Valentine’s Day at the Hurricane Creek Grange, during Hells Canyon Mule Days in September — for about 20 years — or, more recently, at bazaars held during the Christmas season.

He’s also shown his stuff outside of Oregon.

“I got invited to Sheridan, Wyoming, to the Great Western Silver Exposition in 2011 by silversmith out of California, Jeremiah Watt,” Mallory said. “Somehow, he got my address and invited me. He invited several silversmiths from Australia, Germany, Canada and all over the United States. About 20 people were at that deal. It was to show off your engraving and what you can do.”

Largely self-taught

As Mallory neared retirement from about 20 years working for the Oregon Department of Transportation, he realized he’d need something to fill the time.

“I figured I’d need something to occupy my time,” he said. “It turned into a job after I got started at it.”

In 1993, a cousin, Larry Bacon, who lives near Lost Prairie in the northern part of Wallowa County, went to a silversmithing school in Nampa, Idaho. Bacon invited Mallory to accompany him, but he didn’t think he should leave because of his job with the ODOT.

“I didn’t go because I thought sure it would snow — it was January,” he said. “He came back with bit and spurs. He’s the one who helped get me started in it.”

From there, he taught himself.

“It was all hit and miss. I basically taught myself,” Mallory said. “When I needed help, Larry would help. … The rest of it I would learn on my own.”

Working with silver

Mallory said he buys the sheets of silver in 16-24 gauge sheets that are about 6 inches wide and 18 inches long.

“That’ll last you quite a while,” he said.

He starts by determining and cutting the pattern of whatever he’s making with an air-powered pneumatic engraver. He said it has a blade that’s about 1/8-inch wide.

“It’s like a jackhammer only it’s a lot smaller,” he said.

Most of the polishing, he said, happens before it’s engraved.

He does that “on a back porch on our house. I have a shop where I do the buffing,” he said. “It’s really dirty and causes a mess.”

Mallory also has leather items made that he spruces up with silver.

He has headstalls and spur straps made at Ray Wilson Saddlery in Joseph.

“He does most of my leatherwork and I just doctor it up,” Mallory said.

It’s not cheap

Mallory takes pride in his work, and acknowledges that his finished pieces can cost a lot. He said a set of spurs go for about $800 for ones with an overlay and $1,100 for ones with an inlay, since they require about twice the work. Bits are around the same price.

Earrings, he said, go for $20-$50 a set. Bracelets start at about $65, topping out at about $150 for one made of 16-gauge sterling silver.

Still, he said, it’s not a big moneymaker.

“I don’t make enough off this silver stuff to justify a living,” he said. “It’s just a hobby.”

What: Silver works

Where: 82945 Weatherman Road, Flora. Take Flora Lane to Weatherman Road, turn left and it’s the first house on the left.

Phone: 541-828-7765

No online presence