Intermediate Book Arts: Photo Albums
When: Mondays; 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.; September 16 – November 11
Where: Watkins College of Art, 2298 Rosa Parks Blvd., Nashville, TN
Cost: $260
To Register: Registration opens on Aug. 1
Create a collection of handbound photo albums while expanding your bookbinding skills. Students will complete four photo albums, each with different decorative bindings and cover construction techniques. Class projects include both hardcovers and leather covers, as well as working with the Japanese stab binding, the multi-needle Coptic, longstitch variations, and other elaborate stitching patterns. We’ll discuss the qualities that a book must have in order to properly function as a photo album, in addition to methods for attaching photos, how to incorporate titles on the covers, and the importance of using acid-free materials. Students will have substantial time to personalize their books, which could be used to hold wedding photos, vacation keepsakes, or a photographer’s portfolio. All materials provided.
Prerequisite: Completion of Introduction to Book Arts, one of my bookbinding workshops, or comparable book arts experience.
Introduction to Book Arts
When: Wednesdays; 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.; September 18 – November 13
Where: Watkins College of Art, 2298 Rosa Parks Blvd., Nashville, TN
Cost: $260
To Register: Registration opens on Aug. 1
Learn the basics of bookmaking — and more than a dozen binding styles — in this introductory class. Over nine weeks, students will become familiar with the materials, tools, techniques, and vocabulary of handmade books. Students will create their own books each week, starting with simple folded structures and building toward intricate books that can be used as journals, sketchbooks, photo albums, and sculptural displays. We will explore the essentials of paper grain, folded signatures, hardcover and softcover books, and sewing by hand. The class will also include the opportunity to view and handle a collection of professionally made examples. You will leave this class with an assortment of your own handbound books, and the skills and resources to continue binding at home.
Handbound Leather Journals
When: Saturday, November 2; 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Where: Watkins College of Art, 2298 Rosa Parks Blvd., Nashville, TN
Cost: $150
To Register: Registration opens on Aug. 1
Learn to bind a softcover leather book that can be used as a journal, a sketchbook, or a photo album. Using the Italian Longstitch style — a historical binding that dates to 14th Century Europe — each student will create a book with a leather cover that features decorative stitching on its spine, and pages that lay completely flat when open. Students will use leather for the book cover and have the option to include colorful handmade papers inside. You’ll leave this class with a completed book, and the skills and resources to continue binding at home. No previous bookbinding experience is required. All materials provided.
Miniature Book Christmas Ornaments
When: Saturday, November 16; 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Where: Watkins College of Art, 2298 Rosa Parks Blvd., Nashville, TN
Cost: $150
To Register: Registration opens on Aug. 1
Create a collection of miniature handmade books that can be turned into eye-catching Christmas ornaments. We’ll make three types of books that can decorate your tree, all while learning the basics bookbinding. One ornament will be a leather-bound book with blank pages, perfect for writing holiday memories inside. The second book will be bound in a lotus style that can hang on your tree in two different shapes: either opened into a three-dimensional star, or folded into a neat diamond. The third ornament be an accordion book that looks like a festive star or snowflake. You will leave the class with three handbound ornament books, and the skills to create more books in the future. No previous bookbinding experience required. All tools and materials provided.
