Fish parchment making and bookbinding on Iona
Posted by Toben Lewis
A unique bookbinding workshop in a unique place. The course begins with making our own fish parchment using fish caught locally and ethically in the waters around the island by our local fisherman, Neil of Iona Seafood. We’ll clean and scrape the parchment a few times before stretching it out to dry. While the parchment dries we’ll begin our books in preparation for using the dried skins on the covers. You’ll leave the workshop with new skills and hopefully a couple extra bits of parchment to play with.
This workshop is aimed at intermediate level binders. You should be comfortable with sewing and completing books on your own. If you’re unsure if your skill / experience level is appropriate please get in touch with me prior to registering so we can discuss.
The workshop runs over four days, from 13 to 16 September. We will run from 10am to roughly 5pm each day with a break for lunch. There will be one afternoon off to allow our fish skin parchments to dry, and for an opportunity to explore Iona. You could take a boat trip out to nearby Staffa, go for a sail on an old wooden fishing boat, go around the Heritage Centre or Abbey, enjoy the island’s beaches and natural beauty, get a massage with Sandra, or go shopping.