We will print a saying of your choice over the wonderful textures and colors of old maps using the Vandercook letterpress. “Get Your Kicks on Route 66!”, “Life’s a Journey”, “Those who wander are not lost” - or any short quote you might think of. Make a special gift for travel-partners or mark a special place with “x-marks-the-spot”. 

Bring your own maps - which we will trim to size - or take from our vast supply. Everyone will take home five 9”x14” broadsides. 

The Book Arts League is a Colorado-based community of individuals who share an interest in letterpress printing, calligraphy, and bookbinding.

(kids 12+ must be accompanied by an adult)

All supplies and materials will be provided. 

Will be available to register on Monday, February 2 at 8:00 am.

 Do you have a super cool tie from the back of your Grandpa's closet with a cool funky design? You can make that silk tie into a beautiful handmade book! Join Brenda Gallagher to transform the fabric from your old tie into a paper backed book cloth that can be used to cover boards of your own hand sewn blank journal. You can bring your own tie or choose one of the dozens of ties from Brenda's collection to cover your book. We'll begin making ties into bookcloth, then we'll proceed to cover our book boards with the tie bookcloth to make a case. The blank book for the inside of our book will be hand sewn and include colorful endpapers and matching endbands. Come spend the day learning beginning case bound book binding skills that show off your Grandpa tie flair.

Ages: 16+

This class takes place at Groundworks East (3063 E. Sterling Cir)

Class will be available for registration Monday, February 2 at 8:00am. 

Create a small, leather-bound notebook that is refillable (3.5" x 5.5"). We'll build two signatures of fine writing paper of about 30 pages each. We'll sew them with linen thread and include a pocket cut and folded from cardstock. Then we'll enclose the signatures in the leather cover with an elastic cord or a leather cord, depending on preference. Participants can emboss their initials or name on the cover.

Ages: 16+

This class takes place at Groundworks East (3063 E. Sterling Cir)

Class will be available for registration Monday, February 2 at 8:00am. 

The Book Arts League is excited to announce that we will now offer open studio hours! Our shop will be available monthly for you to print your work. Below are the upcoming open studio dates. BAL board members will be your hosts and will assist you with your printing projects. Please bring your own paper and get ready to print! Book Arts League Members please RSVP to bal.workshops@gmail.com. If you are not a Book Arts League Member, register here!

THURSDAY Mar. 12th — 4:30-6:30PM

THURSDAY April 9th — 4:30-6:30PM

 Zines (pronounced ZEENS) are miniature magazines or booklets dating back to 1517 that grew in popularity in the 1970s when copy shops became widely available. You’ll join local artist Steph George to learn a brief history and make your own self-published zine(s) with anything from scraps of old paper to abstract doodles. No previous experience is necessary to make this 8-page zine out of a single sheet of paper. Although required materials are provided, bringing additional items is encouraged. Optional supplies include: scrapbook paper, magazine clippings, ticket stubs, old letters, photographs, pressed flowers, stencils, stamps, stickers, tape, glue, scissors, et cetera.

Ages: 16+

This class takes place at Groundworks East (3063 E. Sterling Cir)

Will be available to register on Monday, March 30 at 8:00am.

Participants will learn how to utilize tools for flame sculpting borosilicate. Students will begin with glass rods and form them into leaves and hearts. This process will introduce beginners how to evenly rotate glass and guide it into shapes utilizing heat from a bench torch. Well run through the steps for turning on your equipment, achieving the right flame chemistry for what you’re doing, and how to use gravity, heat, and timing all to your advantage when creating an object.This class has no prerequisites and is specifically set up for absolute beginners to this art form. Our Glass Studio does have some safety basics that must be met before anyone is allowed to join in the fun (failure to meet these requirements will result in not being granted access to the equipment):

• Please come dressed in closed-toe and closed-heel shoes, and natural material clothing, i.e. cotton or linen; long pants are recommended
• No loose or dangling jewelry, long earrings, or scarves.
• If you have long hair, please have it securely tied back from your face.
• We will provide safety goggles, but if you have your own and would like to bring them, please do!

Ages: 16+

All supplies and materials will be provided.

Will be available to register on Monday, March 30 at 8:00am.

The Book Arts League is excited to announce that we will now offer open studio hours! Our shop will be available monthly for you to print your work. Below are the upcoming open studio dates. BAL board members will be your hosts and will assist you with your printing projects. Please bring your own paper and get ready to print! Book Arts League Members please RSVP to bal.workshops@gmail.com. If you are not a Book Arts League Member, register here!

WEDNESDAY May. 20thth — 4:30-6:30PM

WEDNESDAY June 17th — 4:30-6:30PM

 This book combines the soft opening of a leather spine with the sturdy firmness of board covers. The completed book opens nearly perfectly flat making it an ideal book for your journal writing or drawing. Creating your book involves sewing folded signatures through a leather spine with the long stitch. We will begin by getting acquainted with paper grain and its importance for the finished book. We will cover the boards of the book with decorative paper and once dry we'll drill holes in the covers to prepare for sewing. The leather spine will also need holes for sewing which we will pierce with an awl or drill. Paper signatures will be folded and pierced and then we'll take a short break for lunch. After lunch we will learn to sew the long stitch to bind the book. Covers will then be sewn onto the leather spine piece. By the end of the workshop, you will have completed your book, and have the skill to make more on your own. Class fee includes all materials we use to make a book: leather for the spine, a sheet of decorative paper to cover boards, paper for your signatures, a pair of pre-cut cover boards, glue, and waxed-linen thread. Students can borrow tools from the BAL or you can bring your own bookbinder's toolkit. Students will need: bonefolder, medium-weight awl, Xacto knife, scissors, ruler, and a bookbinder's needle. Optional: Students may elect to bring their own sheet of decorative paper for covering the boards..

Ages: 16+

This class takes place at Groundworks East (3063 E. Sterling Cir)

Will be available to register on Monday, March 30 at 8:00am.