Kindling: Bookbinding Workshop with Gitika & Krishna

Kindling is a hands-on making series at Shelterwood Collective, and the spark in our Community is our Medicine programming. 

Making is communal and tactile. It connects us to our bodies, slows us down, and can be its own kind of grounding practice. Each session brings a working artist or maker into our workshop space to teach a craft rooted in the earth: clay, fiber, dye, paper. No experience is needed, only a willingness to get your hands busy.

Each Kindling workshop is a small, two-hour gathering. You’ll learn from the facilitator, make something to take home, and spend time in the company of others who are making alongside you.

This month, Gitika and Krishna will guide you through a series of mindfulness-based bookbinding practices. At the end of the workshop, you will have hand-stitched a thoughtfully-made, customized notebook, great for personal use or gifting. At its heart, the workshop is a space for folks to engage in a mindfulness practice while learning a new skill. 

You will return home with at least one hand-bound notebook and materials to continue bookbinding on your own!

Flow

We’ll gather in The Apothecary at Shelterwood Collective.

Accessibility

The Apothecary is located on the ground level. The entrance requires one step up, but a ramp is available. The restroom is also accessible by one step and is not ADA accessible. Please let us know in your RSVP if you have any accessibility requirements so we can do our best to accommodate you.

Exchange

$175 per person

Includes all tools and materials to bind a book (and some to take with you to continue creating), instruction, space, and tea. 

Space is limited to 7 participants for in-depth, hands-on learning. Please reserve your spot so we can prepare materials for you.

Gitika Talwar

Gitika is an integrative mindfulness practitioner and a Licensed Psychologist. Her journey into mindfulness practices began with mindful dishwashing, which she learned from the teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. She supports people in bringing their mind and body to the same location by engaging in simple practices using their hands. This workshop is an offering that brings together her understanding of Neuroscience, Psychology and mindfulness. 

Gitika is the Founder of Pranh Healing & Wellness. www.pranhwellness.com

Krishna Viswanathan

Krishna started making simple notebooks as a way to channel the mind’s creative energy away from rumination. Writing on paper soon led him into the wondrous world of fountain pens and colorful inks. He writes diligently, enjoying the process of putting pen to paper everyday and finds joy in sharing the experience of slowing down, to express oneself deeply. Today, he makes high-quality artisan notebooks of various sizes. Along the way, he learned the craft of making oldschool book-cloth and decorative papers which are exclusively featured in his creations. During his travels, he roams the streets of cities looking for handmade fabrics for book-covers and stationery stores for inspiration. He is the founder of Grantham Book Arts. Some of his recent creations can be found at grantham.ink

In this workshop, he will share the design and craft of the very first notebook he made. He still makes these and uses them nearly everyday.