DEER SKIN TANNING & BONE WORKING

Before the advent of modern tanning agents, humans were turning raw skin into usable leather products using very basic techniques and materials. Learn to produce incredibly soft, strong, and durable leather from raw animal skin using one of humankind’s earliest tanning technologies! Utilizing materials readily available in the surrounding environment, we will walk through the steps of this transformation. Come learn the progression of this process from raw skin to beautiful, usable, finished leather! 

This class will focus on tanning Deer Skin with a variation of Fat Tanning using lecithin as the dressing agent. Whilst not for the squeamish, the end product is worth the work! The class will cover desalinating preserved skins, de-fleshing, de-hairing, de-graining, and softening the skins, as well as smoking them so they can be easily washed.

In addition to enthusiastic instruction, I provide comfortable, easy-to-use tools and detailed handouts covering the tanning process, as well as ethnographic anecdotes and a list of helpful literature for those who wish to further their knowledge of tanning! 

The second portion of the course will focus on bone working. We will cover how to separate joints, various ways to clean bones, and how to make tools from bones, such as skin, wood, or fibre processing tools, awls and needles, fishhooks, harpoon and arrow points, and jewellery.

Multiple levels of technologies from stone to steel will be covered!

So, please join me for a course sure to contain plenty of memorable moments, lots of practical information, and, if you put in the work**, one that will see you heading home with a beautiful, traditionally tanned skin and a selection of bone tools!

* Using brains or egg yolks as an alternative to traditional dressing agents will be covered.

** Please be aware that a reasonable amount of fitness is required for this course. I will provide instruction on good technique and timing with the skins, but you will need to be able to be on your feet and active for 6 to 8 hours per day. 

Any serious injuries must be discussed with me before booking the course.

Additional Information:

Payment: Pay in full or use PayPal's Pay Later function to split the cost into three or four interest-free payments.

Duration: 5 days (Friday 10:00 am - Tuesday 4:00 pm)

Prerequisites: None

Venue: Cider Waters Regenerative Living Hub is a 52-acre site managed by Grounded Permaculture Action Party Inc. Grounded is a not-for-profit community org on the mission to regenerate our sacred connection to country, community, and culture. The pristine waters of Cave Creek flow through the site after falling through the infamous Natural Bridge.

The creek flat is set up to host guests for camping and has: 

- 2WD accessibility, cars, vans, tents all ok.  

- ⁠RVs and camper suitable (no power, water, or disposal systems) 

- ⁠all campsites flat and well-grassed.  

- ⁠communal camp kitchen with pizza oven, water, and gas cookers available  

- ⁠compost toilets (no showers).

Location:

Grounded Permaculture at Cedar Waters Regenerative Living Hub in the Numinbah Valley.

Catering: This course is self-catered. I am many things, but a good cook is not one of them! Please come prepared to cook for yourselves. 

Accommodation:

Camping will be the most straightforward and fun option! However, you can also find BnB’s in Numinbah Valley if you would like a bit more comfort. Just be sure to be on time for the start of the course each day, which is 9 am except for the first day, which is 10 am to allow for everyone’s arrival.

Included: All course materials, coffee, and tea.

Not included: Off-site Accommodation and food.

A bit about me:

I'm an avid practitioner of traditional living skills and primitive technology of all kinds. My interest came in part from growing up in the Rocky Mountains in the USA, where backpacking, hunting, and fishing are deeply rooted in the culture. This passion led me to the academic field of Experimental Archaeology, where I earned a PhD from the University of Exeter in the UK.

My work has been featured in both documentaries and popular TV shows, including Alone Season 8 and Surviving the Stone Age. I've been tanning skins using traditional methods for over 30 years. Learning to tan was a natural offshoot of my desire to use as much of an animal as possible, and it had the added bonus of producing a beautiful end product.

In my instruction, I share a wide range of information—from the intricate details of skin morphology to helpful tips for dealing with the numerous and frustrating problems that are often encountered when you're first learning to tan.