The Travelling Bookbinder invites participants to explore the Festival’s theme of Repair through mindful making and creative collage
Book artist Rachel Hazell, also known as The Travelling Bookbinder, will be taking part in the Edinburgh International Book Festival 2025 with an innovative junk journaling workshop.
The hands-on session will take place as part of the Festival’s programme, running from 9-24 August at the Edinburgh Futures Institute.
Perfectly aligned with this year’s overarching Book Festival theme of Repair, Rachel’s workshop invites participants to transform discarded ephemera into beautiful, meaningful books through the meditative art of junk journaling.
“I’m thrilled to be part of this year’s Festival and to explore how broken, forgotten, or discarded materials can be given new life and purpose,” says Rachel. “It perfectly embodies the Festival’s mission to examine ‘the many things around us which feel broken, and how we might seek to fix them.‘”
“This workshop represents the essence of what repair means in creative practice,” explains Rachel, whose acclaimed book Bound: 15 Beautiful Bookbinding Projects has inspired bookmakers worldwide.
“We’re taking fragments of the past – envelopes, festival flyers, travel tickets, magazines, brochures, old maps and maybe even an old book that has fallen apart and won’t be read again – and weaving them into new narratives.
“It’s about finding beauty in the discarded and creating something whole from the damaged or broken.”
About the Workshop
The immersive workshop offers participants the opportunity to engage in mindful making through collage, transforming everyday detritus into treasured keepsakes. While all necessary materials will be provided, attendees are encouraged to bring their own ‘found handwriting’ – personal ephemera that carries emotional resonance and hidden stories.
Drawing on her expertise in traditional bookbinding techniques combined with contemporary artistic sensibilities, Rachel will guide participants through the process of:
Selecting and preparing discarded materials for creative reuse
Understanding the emotional and narrative potential within forgotten fragments
Mastering fundamental junk journaling techniques
Creating personal books that serve as both artistic expression and meaningful record-keeping
About Rachel Hazell – The Travelling Bookbinder
Drawing her inspiration from remote landscapes, typography, shorelines, flea-markets and remarkable literary cities, book artist Rachel Hazell takes people on creative journeys, making books and unfolding stories. Home is the city of Edinburgh and the small Hebridean island of Iona. Through The Travelling Bookbinder, she conducts bookart workshops globally, from Venetian palazzos to Nantucket libraries.
As both teacher and author, Hazell has built an international reputation for her innovative approach to bookbinding that combines traditional craftsmanship with contemporary storytelling.
Her work emphasizes the transformative power of handmade books and the deep connection between physical making and emotional healing.
Her published works include the critically acclaimed Bound: 15 Beautiful Bookbinding Projects, and she offers both in-person workshops in inspiring locations worldwide and comprehensive online courses through her digital platform.
Edinburgh International Book Festival 2025
Taking place from 9-24 August, Edinburgh International Book Festival are delighted to announce our 2025 programme, with close to 700 events featuring 641 writers from 35 countries, across 6 continents. Repair is the Book Festival’s core theme for 2025, seeking to explore the many things around us which feel broken, and how we might seek to fix them.
The theme resonates across multiple dimensions – from environmental restoration to emotional healing, from social justice to personal recovery. Rachel’s workshop exemplifies this approach by demonstrating how creative practice can serve as both personal therapy and cultural commentary.
Further opportunities
Rachel also hosts workshops all over the world, from her homes in Edinburgh and Iona, to Paris, Bath and Venice.
You can find more information and booking details here:
https://www.thetravellingbookbinder.com/product-category/workshops/
To try your hand at Rachel’s craft from the comfort of your own home you can find her hugely popular e-courses here:
https://www.thetravellingbookbinder.com/product-category/e-courses/
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