FISH LEATHER & HOOKS
During this one day course students will gain a solid foundation of knowledge and experience regarding fish skin tanning, the processes of bark tanning, basic theory of tanning in general as well as close guidance on how to make various crafts and components that would go into a primitive fishing kit including hooks, line and weights.
The day begins looking at examples of fish leather and crafts to give students an idea of the incredible potential this material has. The process and stages of bark and tea tanning will be discussed before getting hands on descaling skins and preparing them for tanning.
Students will be given a tanned salmon skin with which they will stretch and soften until dry and ready to be used for their desired crafts. We work with tanned and raw skins as the bark tan process is slow, however students will work at each stage of the process to gain a solid understanding of basic tanning techniques.
During this course students should expect to cover the following:
Descaling and fleshing skins
Gaining understanding in the process of bark tanning and other variations of tanning
Softening tanned fish leather to be taken away and used for crafts
Creating a potential variety of primitive fishing hooks and natural fibre line
Courses run with a maximum of 8 people to ensure sufficient attention and guidance is given to individuals when needed.
Additional course information:
Children 16+ must be accompanied by a paying Adult
Location -Wirksworth, Derbyshire (Full address provided post booking)
Duration - One Day (09:00am-17:00pm)
Catering - Tea/Coffee/Hot Chocolate provided (Bring own packed lunch)
TESTIMONIALS
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“Thank you Billy for an amazing weekend in the forest. I learnt so many new skills and loved working with the different traditional materials and techniques. The weekend exceeded all my expectations. It was a real pleasure to meet you, learn from your experience and in-depth knowledge and also see examples of your beautiful craftsmanship. An inspiration”
Craig, Fish Leather and Primitive Fishing Kit Course
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“Billy really looked after us well and was so willing to share his knowledge and skill of all things primitive. His teaching style was a really nice mix of attentive and relaxed. I felt he was always there to ask for advice or to further explain and demonstrate things but he was also more than willing to allow us space to get immersed in our projects. In terms of course content and the amount Billy packed in, I would say it’s definitely the best craft workshop I’ve done before and it was so satisfying to be fully immersed for a weekend and come away with items to be proud of. It was definitely given me a burst of enthusiasm and I really want to explore more skills now.”
Ross, Fish Leather and Primitive Fishing Kit Course
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The course is hands on, there was a large handling collection of primitive fishing tackle to examine. A full range of primitive tools were also provided to make items to catch fish. Billy had brought along some excellent teaching aids as well, to help master complex techniques, such as the bindings needed to make the hooks. Everybody in the group produced fishing tackle at the end of the day.
Ralph, Primitive Fishing Kit Course