[Bryn-gwlad] Leatherworking

[Holly Bjorum]

Greetings All,

I am interested in Leatherworking, and understand that the Guild is
(more or less) inactive.

I was wondering if anyone else in the Barony was interested in any
aspects of the craft - from tanning to design.  If so, who is
interested in being participatory?

Does anyone have areas of expertise they'd be willing to share on a
regular and/or occasional basis? I'd like to start learning some
period techniques for working with leather to construct objects - garb
pieces, armor, utilitarian items like bags/scabbards/skeins, artistic
items like masks/crypto-taxidermy preps, etc.

I have experience in taxidermy through my mundane education and prior
work, but am unfamiliar with period methods (Written accounts of
preserved specimens date back to Aristotle and the Musaion - now
referred to as the Library at Alexandria, and "Cabinets of Curiosity"
were popular beginning in the 1500's, some included natural history
specimens and crypto-taxidermy preps - perhaps the most famous was the
Kunstkamer of Peter the Great of the early 1700's, but others were
known before then, like Ole Worm's personal collection c.1620 and the
Tradescant collection of the Ashmolean Museum - c.1600).  I am
interested in learning, and would be willing to research and possibly
teach a class in period taxidermy techniques at a later date (at the
very earliest we'd have to wait for hunting season to start up again
so we have materials to work with).

Please let me know, I have the interest, but alas, not the workspace.

Holly