Handmade jewelry for modern rebels.
SCHMAAL stands for first-class, handmade goods.
Made to live and age with you.
Welcome to my studio, where silver is cast and forged and knives are made.
This is where jewelry that makes your heart beat faster is created.
And because I have so much love for beautiful and often useful things, a shop for the finest things a man can think of is gradually taking shape here. Knives, clothing, beard care, and much more.
Holger Altgeld
This is me. Trained chemical technician, certified master chemist, and self-taught advertising photographer specializing in portraits. Now an independent goldsmith, knifesmith, and maker of beautiful everyday items. My career path has evolved over the years. Progress and change are important to me, and I like to follow my heart.
What always remains is creativity and working with my hands.
How did it all start?
For many years, I searched every market and shop myself for cool jewelry. It was extremely rare to find anything. You can be practically plastered with women's jewelry, but finding something for men is a gamble with rarely good odds.
The only solution was to make the jewelry myself. I had no choice :)
During the Corona period, a buddy approached me who had made an outdoor knife himself, and the idea fascinated me immediately, as I already had a few knives in my collection. Said and done - organized my tools and got started. The first outdoor knife I made myself was hardened in the charcoal grill in the garden.
My sister is a trained saddler and thus showed me how beautiful working with leather can be.
So everything comes together and is connected by the desire to work with raw materials that are alive in a certain way. Metal, wood, and leather accompany you through life and live with you. They age with you and get better with you.
Why SCHMAAL?
In Cologne, people like to call "slim" guys like me the opposite. When people saw me, I'd often hear: "Luur ens, do is de Schmaal" – "Look, there's Skinny." People in Cologne have their very own sense of humour, as you'll notice if you've ever been there. Big guys get called skinny. Lovable, isn't it?
Handwork, not hurry
I couldn't spend my day any other way, because what I do is far more than work – it is my philosophy of life. In a world that is often too fast-paced, I pause and dedicate myself to the art of slow, deliberate creation. Every movement, every cut, and every stitch is an expression of this passion.
Why do I do it all? Because I love how time plays with my creations. Silver develops a patina, knives bear the stories of their adventures, leather goods remind us of the journeys they have accompanied. Every piece passes through my hands before it leaves the workshop – with love for detail and a touch of adventure.
Buying from me is a process
A piece from SCHMAAL is not something you just buy casually. It is a piece you dither over. That you think twice about. That you burn for. That you absolutely want to have. Only after this process do you reach out and treat yourself. You experience it. You enjoy it forever.
Longevity & Respect
Every person, every animal and every piece of food deserves respect. Adopting this attitude leads to a conscious and economical use of the resources our Earth provides. You buy things that last, and therefore need to replace them less often.
SCHMAAL and its partners create products that offer the highest quality. Products that people want to use every day and that last a very long time with the right care. Solid silver instead of plated metal, pieces that can be altered, repaired and refurbished. Better to buy once and wear for years than to buy new every year.