Oh it' a learning process alright.
I have made a couple, each one comes out better than the lasts for the most part, but I have been using cold saw blades (A1 tool steel) for the blade which is a PITA to work with as it air hardens... the only advantages it has are that it can be hardened to glass like hardness and you can't hardly soften it...Over heat it grinding...no worries it just got harder. You have to temper it at 500*F for an hour then LEAVE it in the oven and let it slowly cool to have a shot at a useable blade that will flex some and not just snap off. I put them in a vice and make sure I can flex the blade some without it breaking before I even start thinking much about the handle. And it's still really hard, like RC of 58.
I really like that for your first one, very good job.