On the program for your workshop visit:
- Welcome over coffee/tea.
- Introduction to the material (leather swatches, textures, finishes), how it is made, and its uses (the different trades linked to leather).
- Presentation of the machines and tools used.
- Demonstrations of know-how: presentation of the different stages of the leatherworker’s trade, based on an example leather item: pattern making, prototyping, lining, marking out, cutting, skiving, gluing, assembly, stitching/overstitching, fitting accessories, finishing.
- Discover the showroom and the items made in the workshop: school satchels, pencil cases, coin purses, card holders, wallets, keychains, backpacks, handbags, travel bags, cases, aprons…
- Discussion and answers to your questions throughout the visit.
Astrid, +10 years of experience
Artisanal Leatherworker
I am Astrid, an artisanal leatherworker, working in my workshop Petit Grain de Peau.
After studying fine arts and art history, I turned to social work for about ten years, in France and abroad (India, Peru, Cambodia).
I then returned to hands-on craft through a professional retraining in craftsmanship, earning a leatherworking CAP diploma: this is how I began to discover this material—leather—that I have always loved and whose possibilities I wanted to explore.
I continued training with leatherworkers and tanners from Gironde and the Basque Country, while also exploring the techniques of Andalusian and Moroccan artisans:
to gain a deeper understanding of the process of transforming hides into leather, all the way to turning them into everyday-use items, and thus have a more complete view of the entire process of working this material…
And to continue my ever-renewing discovery of leather goods, and keep blending different influences and techniques into my creations—ones that have marked and moved me through my travels, and through artisanal and human encounters…
Which continue to shape my path…
My artisanal leather goods workshop, Petit Grain de Peau, is located within the Tiers-Lieu La Manivelle Ô Vents,
dedicated to crafts and artistic trades.
This collective brings together several artisans: a jeweler, a piano restorer-tuner, a knitter, a stained-glass artist, a basket maker, and a screen printer.
In the workshop, you will discover all the equipment I use to make leather goods. And you’ll find the familiar smell of leather!
Cancellation policy:
Free cancellation if more than 48 hours before the experience starts. Between 48 and 24 hours before, 50% of the amount is due. Less than 24 hours before, cancellation is non-refundable.