Workshops
Kate has a wealth of experience teaching bookbinding to all ages and abilities. She teaches either from her fully equipped bindery, on the outskirts of the bustling market town of Frome, or on location, be it university campus, festival field or village hall. As well as delivering City and Guilds at Shepherds Bookbinders, she also regularly teaches at: West Dean College, Soho House, London Craft Week, Bath Spa University and Port Eliot Festival.
All workshops are listed below with prices per person. There are sessions running throughout the year, if you are interested in availability:
Check out space in classes here
Or you can also organise a custom session by emailing Kate with your name, preferred session, number of people and availability.
Some past students’ comments: Kate very good at taking the mystique out of the process. Totally inspired. Excellent instruction at a good pace. Complicated processes very clearly explained and demonstrated so not scary to implement. Lovely, patient, knowledgeable tutor - approachable too. Not all ego!
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Japanese stab sewn binding - £95
In this workshop we will explore four traditional Japanese sewing techniques - Kikko Toji (Tortoiseshell binding), Asa-No-Ha Toji (Hemp leaf binding), Koki Toji (Noble binding), and Yotsume Toji (Four Eye binding). These provide a useful way of binding single sheets of paper as well as being highly decorative - suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 2.5 hours
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Single section pamphlet binding - £95
This structure covers many techniques that form the bedrock of Western bookbinding - folding a section, sewing pages together, adding endpapers, making a case and casing in. From a few simple materials we will make a hand sewn, hard back book that is sure to impress - suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 2.5 hours
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Long stitch leather journal - £95
A simple yet highly elegant binding that dates back to the thirteenth century. The cover is a piece of finest Italian calfskin with a matching wraparound thong closure. The pages are stitched directly to the cover and the structure allows the pages to open out flat making it ideal for an artist’s sketchbook or journalling - suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 2.5 hours
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My First Leather Binding (Intermediate) - £300
Everything you need to know about the basics of binding a book in leather. Participants are expected to have experience of sewing, trimming and rounding and backing a multi-section book as this will be supplied. From there we will explore adding leather endbands, attaching boards, making a hollow, paring leather, covering with leather, putting down endpapers - 3 days - some bookbinding experience required - min 3, max 5 participants
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All the Basics (Beginners ) - £500
This course covers all the basic techniques of traditional craft bookbinding, exploring several structures of hard back cloth bound books - quarter, half and full bindings, single and multi-section, including rounding and backing, ploughing edges, suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 5 days
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Private One on One Tuition - £350/day
Does what it says on the tin - we can explore whatever bookbinding structure or technique you desire
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Aspects of Fine Binding (Advanced) - £500
We create a book from scratch, rounded and backed and covered in leather, but paying particular attention to those elements that are considered essential in a fine binding - leather jointed endpapers, leather doublures, sewn endbands. Suitable for those who have a good working knowledge of basic bookbinding techniques and some experience of working with leather - min 3, max 5 participants - 5 days.
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Japanese stab sewn binding - £95
In this workshop we will explore four traditional Japanese sewing techniques - Kikko Toji (Tortoiseshell binding), Asa-No-Ha Toji (Hemp leaf binding), Koki Toji (Noble binding), and Yotsume Toji (Four Eye binding). These provide a useful way of binding single sheets of paper as well as being highly decorative - suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 2.5 hours
-
![]()
Single section pamphlet binding - £95
This structure covers many techniques that form the bedrock of Western bookbinding - folding a section, sewing pages together, adding endpapers, making a case and casing in. From a few simple materials we will make a hand sewn, hard back book that is sure to impress - suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 2.5 hours
-
![]()
Long stitch leather journal - £95
A simple yet highly elegant binding that dates back to the thirteenth century. The cover is a piece of finest Italian calfskin with a matching wraparound thong closure. The pages are stitched directly to the cover and the structure allows the pages to open out flat making it ideal for an artist’s sketchbook or journalling - suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 2.5 hours
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My First Leather Binding (Intermediate) - £300
Everything you need to know about the basics of binding a book in leather. Participants are expected to have experience of sewing, trimming and rounding and backing a multi-section book as this will be supplied. From there we will explore adding leather endbands, attaching boards, making a hollow, paring leather, covering with leather, putting down endpapers - 3 days - some bookbinding experience required - min 3, max 5 participants
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![]()
All the Basics (Beginners ) - £500
This course covers all the basic techniques of traditional craft bookbinding, exploring several structures of hard back cloth bound books - quarter, half and full bindings, single and multi-section, including rounding and backing, ploughing edges, suitable for beginners - min 3, max 5 participants - 5 days
-
![]()
Private One on One Tuition - £350/day
Does what it says on the tin - we can explore whatever bookbinding structure or technique you desire
-
![]()
Aspects of Fine Binding (Advanced) - £500
We create a book from scratch, rounded and backed and covered in leather, but paying particular attention to those elements that are considered essential in a fine binding - leather jointed endpapers, leather doublures, sewn endbands. Suitable for those who have a good working knowledge of basic bookbinding techniques and some experience of working with leather - min 3, max 5 participants - 5 days.