Michael Almqvist was born in Ethiopia in 1963, where his parents were missionaries. In 1976 the family returned to Sweden to a village called Mellansel - a railroad community just 35 km from "Foppaland", (where Peter Forsberg was born) Örnsköldsvik. He crafted his first knife at the age of 15 while still at school, butt it was after University that he became more serious about his craft. Today, he lives in Northern Sweden in a small village called Lövånger, where he makes knives and works as a social worker at a nearby school.

Almqvist's knives use traditional Swedish materials such as curly birch, reindeer horn, and mammoth ivory. His knives are very influenced by Sami culture, the native peoples of Scandinavia. He makes his own sheaths and embosses them with a lion. This symbolizes his childhood in Ethiopia. As he says, "The lion's courage is undisputed, and inspires me to 'dare to win' when crafting my knives."

Almqvist has been featured in Excalibur, France's primier knife publication.

Awards