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2096 South Logan Street
Denver, CO, 80210
United States

Artist Books are a wonderfully diverse genre and my work is much the same. I'm fascinated by structures and boxes, both traditional and invented. Most of the books included here have some unique sculptural or spacial element to them.

Workshop Archive

Workshop Archive 

 

UNDER CONSTRUCTION Spring 2024 / PLEASE CHECK BACK SOON


SALON SERIES: PASTE PAPERS

Date/Time: January 21, 2023 from 10am - 3pm
Workshop Fee: $85
Instructors: Alicia Bailey and Rhiannon Alpers
Materials Fee Included
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S Elati Street, Englewood, CO USA 80110-3073

www.interoceanstudio.org

Workshop Description:
Paste papers have a long history in bookmaking as a surface painting technique with an almost overwhelming number of options. Pastes can be made from any plant based starch (e.g. wheat, corn, rice, potato) and just about any form of water-soluble pigment (ink, watercolor, acrylic, gouache, tempera, dry pigments) which can be used to color the paste. Various polymers and waxes can also be used to enhance the surface of pasted papers. The combing and stenciling techniques used for this process are also what give it a playful or patterned appearance and variance.

All materials provided. Students will receive a list of optional tools they can bring to class after registration.

Salon Series Workshops are a way for students to learn more about a process through an artist talk and hands-on demonstration of the process. Students will gain a more in-depth understanding of the craft and have a short block of hands-on time (1-2 hours total as a group) to try out the process. Please note that this is not a full course and students will make a few pieces to take home. Materials are included in the class fee for this demo and recommendations for an at home studio set-up will be discussed briefly.


PAPER VALENTINES EVENT

Date: February 12, 2023
Event Times: 10am to 12pm OR 12pm to 2pm
Event Fee: $15 - $20 ($5 additional for a child and adult team)
Location: 2905 S Elati Street, Englewood, CO USA 80110-3073

This Event is Open to Adults and Children

Event Description: In this four-hour event, participants will register for a 2 hour slot to be able to create handmade paper valentines for their loved ones and friends. Bring your creativity and let’s have some fun!

Two Creative Stations will be set up for Participants:

  • Collage Valentine station to make a variety of creative valentines - using papers, ephemera and pre-printed letterpress printer materials and textiles of all kinds.

  • Hand Papermaking with shaped deckles, various forms and colors in a preset size


PAPERMAKING

Instructor: Staff Instructor
Date/Time: May 13, 2023 from 10am - 4pm
Workshop fee: $85 (+ $15 materials fee to include shipping)
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

REGISTER HERE

Workshop Description: Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned papermaker, this one-day course is open to all. Students will use the prepared colored and recycled pulp in the processes of sheet forming, pressing, and drying to create handmade paper for all types of uses and mediums.

Students will leave with a basic knowledge of papermaking, a variety of papers (mailed to each student after the course), handouts about the process with resource lists, and resources on making paper at home.

A materials fee covers pre-beaten cotton/abaca pulp, as well as use of moulds, deckles, felts, drying system, handouts and postage for sheets to be mailed to them.


BOOKMAKING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS | APRIL 1, 2023

Date/Time: April 1, 2023 from 10am to 5pm
Workshop Fee: $160
Materials Fee: $21
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

CANCELED

Workshop Description: Printed photographs have been a part of bookmaking since Joseph Nicéphore Niépce snapped a view from his window nearly 200 years ago. Now it’s your turn to see firsthand some of the ways these worlds intersect. In this one-day course, we will explore methods to include photos into different book types. 

We’ll create two book structures that work well with photographs, providing numerous techniques to integrate photography (analog and/or digital) into your books. Students will bind two models during the class from prepared materials and a set of sample cards with methods for tipping, mounting and enclosing photos. 

Bookbinding experience is not required, but basic hand cutting (with xacto, scalpel or other knives) is very helpful. Students should be prepared to work at a single/fixed scale with the provided paper materials and adhesives, but there will be time at the end of class for discussion regarding specific student projects or materials. 


SIMPLE STRUCTURES BOOKMAKING SET | FEBRUARY 25, 2023

Simple Structures: The Essential Bookmaking Set
This course is a Collaboration with Art Students League of Denver and InterOcean Studio
Instructor: Rhiannon Alpers
Date/Time: February 25, 2023 from 10am - 5pm
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110
Workshop Fee: $170
Materials Fee Included

REGISTER HERE WITH ASLD
Workshop Description:
This introductory one-day workshop teaches students the essential structures and stitches that every book artist should know. Beginning with the basics of bookbinding vocabulary, tools, adhesives and resources we'll move on to all the basic techniques needed in order to create a multitude of books. You'll learn a variety of creative book structures — the hard cover accordion book, a single-section pamphlet stitch, Japanese stab binding, and a phase box or paper portfolio — all the structures you'll learn can be elaborated and expanded on into artists' books. There will be a multitude of samples, models and templates to make this course a jumping off point for all your future book ideas and projects.


SIMPLE STRUCTURES: THE ESSENTIAL BOOKMAKING SET

This workshop is a Collaboration with Arts Student League of Denver
Instructor: Rhiannon Alpers
Date/Time: October 1, 2022 from 9:30am - 5:30pm
Workshop Fee: $168 (Members price $147.00)
Materials Fee Included
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

Workshop Description:
This introductory one-day workshop teaches students the essential structures and stitches that every book artist should know. You'll learn a variety of creative book structures — the hard cover accordion book, a single-section pamphlet stitch, Japanese stab binding, and a phase box or paper portfolio — all the structures you'll learn can be elaborated and expanded on into artists' books.

REGISTER HERE


BOOKMAKING FUNDAMENTALS: INTEGRATING WEAVINGS & ECO-PRINTING MATERIALS

Instructor: Rhiannon Alpers
Date/Time: October 22 & 23, 2022 from 9am - 5pm
Workshop fee: $125
Materials Fee: $24
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

TO REGISTER PLEASE FILL OUT THIS FORM AND EMAIL THE ADDRESS WITH QUESTIONS.

Workshop Description: In this 2 day fundamentals workshop for weavers, we create a hand sewn hardcover book using a combination of provided materials and students’ creations from fiber arts materials (previously made eco-printed paper, handmade paper, woven fabrics, surface designed fabrics, etc) throughout the process.


INTRODUCTION TO PAPERMAKING

InterOcean Studio, Englewood, Colorado
Workshop Date: July 2, 2022 from 10am - 4pm
Workshop Fee: $135 (+ $22 materials fee)
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

Workshop Description: Learn the basics of creating your own handmade paper in this fun introductory workshop. Students will use colored and recycled pulp in the processes of sheet forming, pressing, and drying to create paper for all types of uses and mediums.

Students will leave with a basic knowledge of papermaking, a variety of papers (mailed to each student after the course), handouts about the process with resource lists, and resources on making paper at home.

A materials fee covers pre-beaten cotton/abaca pulp, as well as use of moulds, deckles, felts, drying system, handouts and postage for sheets to be mailed to them.
Register for the Workshop HERE


NATURAL FIBERS INTO PAPER | ROCK MOUNTAIN LAND LIBRARY COLLABORATION

Workshop Date: July 29 - 31, 2022 from 10am - 5pm
There is an optional day for students to collect fiber at the Rock Mountain Land Library on July 29th
Workshop Fee:
$325.00 (includes material fee)
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

Workshop Description: Join InterOcean’s Creative Director Rhiannon Alpers for this two-day, in-depth exploration of the papermaking process from harvesting plants to finished sheet using local and indigenous plants. This class is coordinated In partnership with the Rock Mountain Land Library and local gardeners, and there is an optional day of harvesting students can attend if they wish on July 29th. During this workshop, students will learn the processes of cooking fibers, processing, pulling sheets and drying techniques to create a set of truly unique handmade papers.
Register for the Workshop HERE


INTRODUCTION TO PAPERMAKING

Workshop Date: June 4, 2022 from 10am - 4pm
Workshop Fee: $135 (+ $22 materials fee)
Location: InterOcean Studio, 2905 S. Elati Street, Englewood, CO 80110

Workshop Description: Learn the basics of creating your own handmade paper in this fun introductory workshop. Students will use colored and recycled pulp in the processes of sheet forming, pressing, and drying to create paper for all types of uses and mediums.

Students will leave with a basic knowledge of papermaking, a variety of papers (mailed to each student after the course), handouts about the process with resource lists, and resources on making paper at home.

A materials fee covers pre-beaten cotton/abaca pulp, as well as use of moulds, deckles, felts, drying system, handouts and postage for sheets to be mailed to them.
Register for the Workshop HERE


BOXMAKING FUNDAMENTALS: CLAMSHELL BOX

Focus on Book Arts Conference, Forest Grove, Oregon
Workshop Date:
Friday-Saturday, July 15-16, 2022 // CANCELLED
Workshop Fee: $341 (includes material fee)
Workshop Description: Handmade boxes are both beautiful and unique, but the process of making them can be very intimidating. This class seeks to make book artists feel more comfortable and creative in the ways in which they build structures to house their books or sculptures. In this two-day intensive course, students will focus on the fundamental skills for building one of the most essential forms: the clamshell box. As a fundamental class, all the component pieces and materials will be prepared. This allows students to focus on the assembly and craft of the box. Students will build and cover the clamshell box with a combination of bookcloth and decorative papers. The essential formulas of how to create boxes at home, how to modify patterns of existing boxes, and what bookcloths, papers and adhesives work best will also be discussed. There will be a small amount of time in the class for additional models, and for us to discuss untraditional structures and creative modifications, so bring your sketches and questions.
Register for the Workshop HERE


MINIATURE SPECIMEN ENCLOSURE

Focus on Book Arts Conference, Forest Grove, Oregon
Workshop Date:
Sunday, July 17, 2022 // CANCELLED
Workshop Fee:
$174 (includes material fee)

Workshop Description: This 1-day beginner’s course focuses on showcasing an individual’s visual collection of natural curiosities. The miniature specimen structure will include a hardcover book with a decorative frame and inset panel measuring 3 x 4.5 x ½” in size. Using an assemblage of historic illustrations, found objects, altered book components, and natural artifacts, participants will explore possibilities for adding found or handmade materials and written content. Bookmaking, collage techniques, methods for including text and miniature books will be covered. As a component of this course, we play with using narrative themes in our work, as well as methods for including text and miniature books within the framework.
Register for the Workshop HERE


FIELDWORK SKETCHBOOK

Focus on Book Arts Conference, Forest Grove, Oregon
Workshop Date: Monday-Tuesday, July 18-19, 2022 // CANCELLED
Workshop Fee: $334 (includes material fee)

Workshop Description: The wonders discovered out in the field need a place to be gathered and sorted. This book is that home. Key structural elements make this elegantly bound journal your go-to place to record, imagine, collect, and muse through the findings of your explorations. As a sidekick to your adventures, it needs to be rugged and practical. This book’s design features a lay-flat sketchbook with pages that can handle drawing, notes, collage, and paper cutting with a pocket for findings. A window lets us peer into the title page, and a bookmark reminds us where we left off in our adventures. These features, a sewn board binding, and your personal details will make the Fieldwork Sketchbook your favorite companion – whether in your studio or out in the field.
Register for the Workshop HERE


INTRODUCTION TO PAPERMAKING

InterOcean Studio, Englewood, Colorado
Workshop Date: August 7, 2022 from 10am - 4pm
Workshop Fee: $135 (+ $22 materials fee)

Workshop Description: Learn the basics of creating your own handmade paper in this fun introductory workshop. Students will use colored and recycled pulp in the processes of sheet forming, pressing, and drying to create paper for all types of uses and mediums.

Students will leave with a basic knowledge of papermaking, a variety of papers (mailed to each student after the course), handouts about the process with resource lists, and resources on making paper at home.

A materials fee covers pre-beaten cotton/abaca pulp, as well as use of moulds, deckles, felts, drying system, handouts and postage for sheets to be mailed to them.
Register for the Workshop HERE


Beginning Bookbinding Core

Date: Sunday, January 26th, 2019 from 9:30am-5:30pm
Held at San Francisco Center for the Book

375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco

Learn the vocabulary of bookbinding, the basic tools and their uses in the binding of books, as well as common materials used (paper, cloth, board, and adhesives) and foundational techniques (folding, sewing, and gluing) of the craft. Workshop participants will construct four hardcover, hand-bound, multisection books over the course of the series. Each binding in the series will add to the skills previously learned and integrate new techniques. Modifications for working at home without complex equipment will also be covered.

 


 

Build Your Own Photo Album

Workshop fee: $ 225.00
Date: Thursday, January 30th
7pm-9pm
Materials Fee: $20

Held at The Image Flow
401 Miller Avenue Suite A. Mill Valley, CA 94941

Topics and hands-on techniques covered over the multi-week course will be: the process of selecting and curating the narrative of the album, technical help if needed for printing your images through their digital department, preparing images for placement (sealants and archival placement methods), creating custom binding, hand sewing techniques and variations, and the vocabulary, tools and techniques for building albums on your own.

 

 


Papermaking: Local Plants & Exotic Fibers

alpers_exotic fibers3_web.jpg

January 18, 2014
Held at 1890 Bryant St. San Francisco
10am - 4pm 

Learn the basics of creating your own handmade paper with exotic fibers from your garden, grocery and local florist. From the harvesting and collecting stage to finished sheets, you will learn the process for making paper with unique fibers (such as grasses, vegetables, fresh herbs and flowers). Students will get a chance to learn the keys to cook, beat, and form sheets of paper in this one day intensive. Most sheets will be air-dried; some sheets will be left to dry under pressure for several days and mailed to students.

Materials to bring: None. There is a short tool list which will be emailed for the class once you are enrolled. Fibers for use in this class will be provided; local resources will be given for future reference.

Materials fee: $20

 

 

 


Basics of Bookmaking

alpers_simple_structures.jpg

Workshop fee: $ 125.00
Date: Saturday, January 25th, 2014
11am-5pm
Materials Fee: $20

Held at Sonoma Community Center, 
276 E Napa Street, Sonoma CA, 95476

Knowing how to make books is essential in the checklist of life. This one day course will teach you all the basics: vocabulary, tools, folding, gluing and stitching basics and students get to make five different basic books in the process. The materials and skills students gain from this course is the stepping stone to many other bookmaking adventures, and not to be missed. 

 


Exquisite Longstitch

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Workshop fee: $ 150.00
Date: Sunday, February 23rd
9:30am-5:30pm

Held at San Francisco Center for the Book
375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco

Are you longing to take your bookbinding to the next level? Take this one day, beginner’s level class on the exquisite longstitch! Not only will you learn the ins and outs of this traditional German, non-adhesive, stitch pattern binding, but you’ll also learn to laminate decorative papers to create sturdy and malleable book covers.


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Bookbinding CORE 1: Coptic Binding

Workshop fee: $ 130.00
Date: Sunday, March 2nd
9:30am-5:30pm

Held at San Francisco Center for the Book
375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco

The Coptic binding is an ancient non-adhesive binding that is sewn using multiple needles and has modern appeal. Its exposed sewing is complemented by the variety of materials that can be used to make book covers. In this daylong workshop, you will fold, punch, and sew a Coptic binding with covers made of decorated binders board. Some bookbinding experience is helpful, but not necessary.

 

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Beginning Boxmaking
Sunday, April 28, 2013 11am-4pm
Class Fee: $125 members: $112
Class ID: 467-13-1
Held at Sonoma Community Center
276 E Napa Street, Sonoma CA, 95476
Making boxes can be a complex and mind boggling experience. This class will teach building techniques, materials suggestions and tips and tricks for making basic boxes successfully at home.

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Event Guestbook
May 2, 2013 6:30-9:30 pm
Class fee: $75
Materials Fee: $18
Held at San Francisco Center for the Book
375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco
Having a guestbook for special events is a wonderful way to capture memories, and this workshop will teach you how to make several styles of guestbooks. This simple and yet elegant hardcover single section sewn book dresses up and customizes any range of events; weddings, baby showers, art exhibitions, funerals, work functions, anniversarie parties, major birthdays or engagement parties.

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Hard Cover Japanese Stab Binding
Class fee: $ 130.00
May 9th, 2013 6:30 - 9:30 pm
May 12th, 2013 9:30 - 5:30 pm
Sessions: 2, Materials fee: $25
Held at San Francisco Center for the Book
375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco
In the Japanese Stab Binding workshop participants will build a hinged hardcover Japanese-bound book and then build an enclosure to house it. The first portion of the workshop will cover creating a Japanese-style text block and binding of the hinged hardcover book in Japanese silk book cloths and papers. The second portion of the class will be devoted to learning how to create a Japanese-style box with bone enclo- sures. Instruction will be given on how to apply this technique to students’ own objects and books for future box-making endeavors.

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Beginning Bookbinding: Core Curriculum Evenings
Class Fee: $475
Monday Evenings, May 6 - June 10, 2013
6:30-10pm
Held at San Francisco Center for the Book
375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco
Class Fee: $ 470.00
Learn bookbinding’s basic vocabulary, its fundamental tools and their uses, as well as the materials (paper, cloth, board, and adhesives) and techniques (folding, sewing, and gluing) of the craft. Students will construct four hardcover, hand- bound, multi-section books over the course of the series. Each binding in the series will add to the skills previously learned and integrate new techniques. Materials Fee: $50
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Traveler’s Journal
Sunday May 19, 2013
Held at MarinMOCA
500 Palm Drive, Novato, Ca 94949
There is nothing quite like the satisfaction of journaling & sketching in a book you have made. This class is designed for the beginner, and welcomes artists of all kinds to create a book for a thousand uses. Made of a soft leather with a beautiful stitched pattern on the spine called the longstitch, this rugged book is meant to be trekked & traveled with.

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Papermaking Basics: Local Plants + Exotic Fibers
Class fee: $ 130.00
Register Now
June 9th, 2013 10 - 4pm
Materials Fee: $20
This workshop will take place at 1890 Bryant Street Studios. Learn the basics of creating your own handmade paper with exotic fibers from your garden, grocery and local florist. From the harvesting and collecting stage to finished sheets, you will learn the process for making paper with unique fibers (such as grasses, vegetables, fresh herbs and flowers). Students will get a chance to learn the keys to cook, beat, and form sheets of paper in this one day intensive.

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Bookbinding II

Workshop ID: T3-103109-BND

Sat Oct 31 9:30am-5:30pm; Sun Nov 01 9:30am-5:30pm

$230 plus $25 materials fee

Using the skills covered in Bookbinding I, you'll learn a modified form of a lapped-component case binding, also known as a Bradel binding. You'll have more control over the design of your book than you did in Bookbinding I, with greater use of bindery equipment such as the board shear and guillotine. You'll sew, round, and back two books. You'll also learn to make quarter- and half-case bindings with a cloth spine piece and/or corners with paper sides.

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Advanced Typesetting Letterpress

CLASS FEE:$280

MATERIALS FEE:

CLASS DATE: June 22 & 29 2013

CLASS LOCATION: Kala Printmaking Institute

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Introduction to Letterpress Printing

CLASS FEE: $ 50.00

MATERIALS FEE: $10

CLASS DATE:June 26th, 2013

CLASS TIME 6:30 PM - 9:30PM

CLASS LOCATION: San Francisco Center for the Book

375 Rhode Island St, SF CA          

This beginning-level workshop is designed to familiarize the uninitiated with the world of letterpress by offering hands-on experience with the Vandercook cylinder press and the tabletop platen press. Participants will learn the difference between the types of presses as well as the basics of setting type using SFCB’s vast collection of lead type and decorative ornaments.

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Introduction to Bookbinding

CLASS FEE: $ 50.00

MATERIALS FEE: $10

CLASS DATE:June 27th, 2013

CLASS TIME: 6:30 PM - 9:30PM

CLASS LOCATION: San Francisco Center for the Book

375 Rhode Island St, SF CA

This introductory workshop teaches basic structures and stitches that every book artist should know in order to create a multitude of books. Learn a variety of structures—single-sheet book, accordion book, single-section pamphlet stitch, combined concertina, and Japanese stab—and make fun.

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Learn to Make Book Cloth

CLASS FEE: $ 75.00

MATERIALS FEE: $25

CLASS DATE: July 30th

CLASS TIME: 6:30 - 9:30pm

Being able to make book cloth immensely expands the range of possibilities for bookbinding, opening up a whole new set of choices for cloth color, texture, and weight. Just about any ordinary natural fiber cloth can be made into excellent book cloth. In this workshop, students will learn how to make book cloth in two different ways from start to finish, and leave with many finished samples. The Learn to Make Book Cloth workshop will give students greater creative freedom over the look and feel of covers for books, boxes, and portfolios.

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Caterpillar Stitches

San Francisco Center for the Book

Workshop ID: T3-110309-BND

Tue Nov 03 6:30-9:30pm - Tue Nov 10 6:30-9:30pm

$115 plus $25 materials fee

Create two different softcover wraparound books with two lines of caterpillar stitches running around the cover to hold in the text block. This binding focuses attention on the beauty of the caterpillar wrap stitch and caterpillar braid stitch. Unlike most caterpillar bindings the signatures in this structure are bound with the stitch through the cover on the spine. Using handmade paper for this binding gives a natural look to the book and draws attention to the uniqueness of the paper. Students will also see samples of artists” books created using this binding style. Prerequisite: some bookbinding experience.

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Markmaking into Bookmaking

San Francisco Center for the Book

Workshop ID: T3-110909-ART

Mon Nov 09 10am-5pm

$95 plus $25 materials fee 

This class will be an exploration in ways to brainstorm and "play" your way into artist books. By freeing up your working process, new ideas and methods can come alive. We will briefly investigate the meaning of symbols and markmaking throughout history and work from free form gestures to hardbound books. Students will create two finished artist books during the class.

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Simple Structures

San Francisco Center for the Book

Workshop ID: T3-111709-BND

Tue Nov 17 6:30-9:30pm

$55 plus $25 materials fee   

There are five basic structures and stitches every book artist should know: Accordian book, single section pamphlet stitch, vertical link pamphlet, flag book, and Japanese stab. We will learn fun and simple ways to make these structures and creative uses for turning them into artist”s books.

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Bookbinding III

San Francisco Center for the Book

Workshop ID: T3-112109-BND

Sat Nov 21 9:30am-5:30pm - Sat Nov 21 9:30am-5:30pm

$230 plus $25 materials fee 

Make one complex book in two days. We'll make a true Bradel binding (lapped-component case binding) with split boards. We'll round and hammer back using wheat starch paste, and we'll sew silk endbands, a class favorite. We'll include double-folio colored endsheets and a half-cloth binding with decorated paper sides.

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Plexi Portfolio

San Francisco Center for the Book

Workshop ID: T3-112809-BND2

Sat Nov 28 9:30am-5:30pm

$115 plus $25 materials fee 

Learn to make a modern artist portfolio with unique colored plexi-glass covers and luxurious papers. This book is bound using a coptic link stitch which allows the book to lay flat for viewing and has a very professional and modern look with custom made plexi colored covers. Design ideas and layouts will be discussed as well as tips for digitally printing your portfolio before binding.