March 18, 19 and 20, 2011
Friday, 6 – 8 PM, Saturday, 9 – 4 PM, Sunday 9 – 1 PM
$165 + $10 materials fee
Instructor, Gwen Diehn

We all reach a point in our lives when we finally realize that we know better than anyone else just what it is that we need and want. What would happen, then, if we designed our own journals, and designed them from the inside out? Designing-from-the-inside-out is design that is driven by a specific, personal purpose. The future content of the journal, the processes you want the journal to allow and facilitate—these are the drivers of the design. Only you know how you want to use your journal and what you want it to do for you.

In this workshop, therefore, you are going to learn how to:

• Imagine in detail the perfect journal, the one that will be best for you in your particular and possibly exotic or loopy project or activity or interests.
• Develop a design in reference to your preferences, one  that will yield the perfect journal for you at this time.
• Choose materials (many of them recycled) and book forms based on your unique design.
• Build a journal using your own design
• Learn and practice different ways of using your journal that will deepen, broaden, enhance, enrich, and transform your travels, including sketching in pen, pencil, and watercolor (that you will make from local clay), collaging, writing, and mapping.

The workshop is based on principles developed in Gwen Diehn’s new book, Real Life Journals, published by Sterling/Lark, and due for release in August.

Please bring the following items:

• Basic bookbinding kit (bone folder, awl, knife, needles (two each curved and straight), metal ruler, glue brush, small container of PVA such as Sobo or Talas Jade, glue stick, old telephone book, rags
• In addition, after the first class period, people should bring watercolors, pens, pencils, and other mediums that they would like to use in keeping the journal.  They should also bring any recycled materials they might want to use—cookie boxes, beer cartons, etc.  We will talk about these supplies at the first class period.
• $10 materials fee for materials such as binder’s tape, thread, Davey board, leather, paper  (since everybody will make a slightly different book, it’s hard to be exact about the materials and fee, but in general this list should suffice.)

Filed under: Book Binding, Calendar, Journaling, Mixed Media, Workshops