Sharing this craft has always been something I wanted but also felt I had a responsibility of doing.
I’ve now been teaching for over a decade and have experience in offering courses from beginners to advanced practitioners, hobbyists but also professionals who’d like to expand their skill-set, in the form of private tutoring or small classes.
Want to learn how to bind books or simply looking to improve your technique?
Maybe you’d enjoy spending a few days with friends or like-minded people crafting?
Perhaps you’d like to combine a trip to Greece with some book-making?
If so, keep on reading and contact me by leaving a message at koutsipetsidis@gmail.com if you’d like to inquire about available slots in upcoming courses or plan one for you and your friends.
Coptic Bookbinding
This is a very accessible bookbinding structure, that can be done at home with just a few basic tools. As such Coptic bindings provide an amazing platform to build on and experiment with a huge variety of materials and techniques.
Stab (Japanese) Bookbinding
Based on the Japanese bookbinding structure, stab bindings are easy to make and stand out due to their elegance, unique appearance and function. As is the case with Coptic, Stab bindings are easy to make, requiring few tools, but offering the endless possibilities when it comes to creativity and experimentation.
Introduction to Western bookbinding (Beginner’s course)
In this course you will learn how to make a hand-sewn, cloth-bound binding from scratch. The skills acquired at this course will enable you to bind books and notebooks and re-bind old books falling apart (assuming the paper itself is still in a decent state).
Some of the skills learned at this course:
– Taking a book apart the correct way
– Basic paper repairs
– Hand-sewing a book
– Rounding the spine
– Handmade endbands
– Making a book cover
– Covering the… cover!
Leather case binding (Intermediate course)
In this course you will learn how to work with leather, make a leatherbound book and decorate it with hot stamping tools. The skills acquired will enable you to bind books and notebooks and re-bind old books falling apart (assuming the paper itself is still in a decent state), but can also be transferred to other crafts that involve leather.
Some of the skills learned at this course:
– Taking a book apart the correct way
– Basic paper repairs
– Hand-sewing a book
– Rounding and backing the spine
– Handsewn endbands
– Making a book cover
– Paring leather
– Covering the… cover with leather!
– Basic Tooling (blind/foil)
Examples of bindings that can be made using the skills learned in this course:
Jainabah L.P.
I urge all serious bookbinders to attend Dimitri’s leather bookbinding seminar.
In addition to reinforcing core concepts (like proper rounding and backing, etc.), this course will deepen your understanding of how leather functions as a part of the book mechanism, including how to identify which area of the leather is the best fit for your project.
I’ve attended over 14 bookbinding seminars/workshops in three different countries and Dimitri’s leather bookbinding seminar is the most impressive.
Rafael Toscano
Dimitri’s workshop on leather binding was an amazing opportunity for me to learn, in depth, many aspects or bookbinding. Dimitri’s attention to detail and willingness to explain each step of the process made the whole experience great. Everything I learned I will be able to apply in all my future projects. I left the workshop as a much stronger bookbinder.
Jasmin Blaas
Dimitris is a wonderful teacher, explaining and showing every detail as often as needed. No question seemed too dumb and even while making my inevitable mistakes, I was never made to feel like the true noob that I am!
I’ve learned so much and met truly wonderful people – meeting likeminded folks was an incredible experience.
This course brought me a lot further, learning at home worked in a way but in person it was a whole different level, even just seeing the little knicks and knacks from such a talented binder made a great difference.
Betty
Last week was one of many firsts. Leatherwork and tooling were two things I couldn’t see myself learning on my own. Discovering these techniques was a dream, and I couldn’t have wished for a better teacher!
Dimitris is extremely patient and, above all, full of tips and tricks. He’s not only a talented bookbinder, he’s also a genius inventor.
Marina
What I really loved is how thorough and committed Dimitris was in guiding us through all of the stages with attention to the utmost details to the very last millimeter and at the same time, passing down his valuable expertise to us so graciously.
If you are interested in advance leather techniques in binding, look no further. The cherry on the cake is that he is also a brilliant craftsman/toolmaker/magician!
Heather
I have had a great time and climbed a steep learning curve. If you are interested in learning how to bind in leather, I cannot recommend this course highly enough, Dimitris is diligent and patient and knows this work inside out. We couldn’t have had a better teacher and I’m so grateful for the time I have spent here.
Eftychia
This workshop was very interesting and intensive, packed with knowledge that helped me acquire new skills. Working with leather was a first for me and Dimitris was a great teacher, always there to answer all of our questions. Most importantly I learned to pay close attention to detail as one mistake at the start can follow you until the end!
French leather binding – Fine Binding (Advanced course)
In this course you will learn how to make a fine leather binding, that is functional, beautiful and long lasting. It covers a wide range of skills and puts emphasis on attention to detail. I will also offer guidance in coming up with a design on a conceptual but also practical level.
This course is a deep dive into bookbinding, involving a lot of complex techniques. As such some experience with bookbinding is required.
Jainabah L.P. proudly displaying her work:
Ταχύρρυθμη Μαθητεία βιβλιοδεσίας (2022)
Εφέτος το εργαστήριο θα προσφέρει την δυνατότητα βιβλιοδετικής μαθητείας. Επιθυμώ να δώσω την ευκαιρία σε κάποιον/α που ενδιαφέρεται για την τέχνη αυτή να την γνωρίσει σε βάθος μέσα από ιδιαίτερα μαθήματα και πρακτική εξάσκηση, όπως επίσης και την δυνατότητα να συμμετέχει στο μέλλον σε τρέχοντα projects του εργαστηρίου ως βοηθός.
– Περιορισμένο αριθμός ατόμων (έως 2).
– 200 ώρες διδασκαλίας και πρακτικής άσκησης (διάρκεια 8 μήνες)
– Δηλώσεις συμμετοχής έως 31/9/22
Για περισσότερες πληροφορίες διαβάστε εδώ.
Dimitri's Bookbinding corner 