A Memento

On our recent holiday we both remembered that in days gone past we would often bring home souvenirs for friends and loved ones, wasting hours of precious holiday time looking for suitable bits of tat that I doubt that anyone really wanted. After all, why would Auntie Ethel want a reminder of your holiday in the Costa del Sol when she hadn’t even been there? I’m sure we have all been down that route of hunting out souvenir key rings and bottle openers, or if all else fails the ubiquitous stick of rock. Does anyone else have one of those little glass lighthouses filled with layers of coloured sand from the Isle of Wight? I thought so!

Maybe the increase in overseas travel with baggage allowances limiting what we carry has thankfully put an end to making sure everyone back home has a suitable (or possibly unsuitable) gift. But judging by the number of souvenir stalls lining the streets of Florence, trade in these items is still flourishing. So why do we buy souvenirs and mementos?

I’m guessing that the main reason is that we want to remember something about a place, to bring home memories of the sights and smells and how being there made us feel. But does a fridge magnet of the Duomo or a tote bag printed with ‘The Birth of Venus’ blowing a bubble of gum actually bring back the right sort of memories? I know, I’m a snob!

A visit to any museum or art gallery whether at home or abroad will always include an obligatory walk through the gift shop where although you might find a better class of knick knack than on the street stalls, most of it still qualifies as stuff you don’t need. Weighty art books that you’ll never read once you are back home, jigsaws printed with your favourite artwork which if you are lucky you complete once before the dog eats a vital piece, posters and reproductions that never get framed, stationery and sketchbooks… okay, hands up when it comes to sketchbooks, I’m guilty.

Sketchbooks… yet to be used!

Of course, travelling is a wonderful thing to be able to do and part of that amazing experience is in the memories we bring back home. But personally, I don’t have to don my comedy apron featuring the torso of Michelangelo’s David every time I cook, to remember the experience of actually seeing the statue. (I don’t have one by the way).

However, the desire to collect and garner mementos is strong. Who can resist picking up a shell, a shiny pebble or piece of driftwood from the beach, maybe pressing a flower between the leaves our latest holiday read, that will remind us of a place, the friends we were with, or a particular moment or conversation. But the crucial part of this type of memento is that it is meaningful and becomes part of our personal narrative of our travels.

Therefore, I think there is a place for buying souvenirs that are meaningful, maybe useful or that support local artisans and craftspeople.

Of course, just like anyone else I also bring back souvenirs and have been tempted by stuff I don’t need and would never dream of buying at home, so I’m not making judgements about anyone’s collection of fridge magnets or snow globes. Each to their own.

I did bring back an apron from our recent trip Florence, not with David or ‘I love Firenze” emblazoned across the front but it was the one I wore for a pasta class in the heart of the city. And although I possess many aprons, I will wear this when I make my homemade pasta and remember the fun and laughter we had in the class, Andrea our teacher who made it look so easy, the young American guy Ben, who kept our glasses topped up with Chianti, plus the fabulous meal we ate at the end. I also brought home a bar of Italian Torrone, a nougat bar filled with honey and roasted nuts because when we visited Venice on a previous trip, I picked up a little cookbook from a local restaurant that has a recipe for the most amazing Torrone Gelato, which will remind me of the Torrone gelato I ate outside Santa Maria Novella. This is the real stuff of memories

And finally, I brought home a bottle of good Italian olive oil because while it lasts the flavour will remind me of sunnier climes and Italian holidays.

Apart from food related items, which always feature highly, my other souvenir nemeses are items of stationery which I can’t resist, especially a new sketchbook or two. Best not to ask if I use them. But when in Italy the thing I always love to buy is marbled paper. We have spent many a happy hour watching a local craftsperson in their workshop producing sheet after sheet of gorgeous, marbled paper pulling them from their bath of inks glowing with patterned colour. The problem with sheets of paper are they don’t travel well, and it is too expensive to risk bringing it home torn or dog eared. But I have brought home packs of small offcuts in the past which usually manage to stay flat in the bottom of a suitcase. And these are perfect for making precious little homemade books and sketchbooks.

Which sort of brings me round to telling you about my latest online course. A few years back, pre-covid, I taught a series of six half day classes on creative book making. It was book art rather than book binding, although learning about binding techniques was part of the course and it proved to be one of my most popular classes. Over the past couple of years, I have often thought about turning it into an online class and finally I have got around to doing it. On enrolment, you immediately have full access to the introductory information and the first set of lessons. Each week for the next five weeks the next series of lessons are released building on skills learned, enabling you to make dozens of beautiful and unique homemade books. No previous experience is necessary, and all the equipment and materials used are easy to find, most of which you probably already have.

Each of the six modules is presented as a series of several pre-recorded videos accompanied by fully downloadable and printable worksheets, that you can play as often as you need. All six modules plus bonus information will be available until the end of August next year so there is plenty of time to go over everything as often as you like if you can’t access the course in real time or if you fall behind. If you would like to get an idea of my teaching style and how the videos are presented the following is a YouTube tutorial of just one of the books I feature in the course, although I go into more detail in the course itself.

The cost is £95, or you can choose to pay in two instalments of £50. But if you hurry and use my September offer by entering BACKTOSCHOOL at the checkout you will get 20% off the price. This offer is only available until the end of the month after which the course will be full price. Just click on the button for more information.

Thank you as always for reading, I very much appreciate you being here!