ABOUT
Delivering artisan craft workshops; promoting the continuation of craft skills and supporting learning in the community.
The Scottish Craft School, located in the picturesque town of Dunblane, is a well-regarded centre for creative learning, offering a diverse range of artisan workshops in various disciplines, including woodworking, textiles, bookbinding, printmaking, and more. The school has built a strong reputation for delivering high-quality instruction in an inclusive and welcoming environment, catering to both beginners and experienced makers.
Our mission is centered around fostering a strong sense of community, sustainability, and appreciation for traditional and contemporary crafts. We aim to bring people together to share skills, learn new techniques, and develop their creative confidence in a relaxed and inspiring setting. Our bright and spacious studio on Dunblane High Street provides the perfect environment for hands-on learning, collaboration, and artistic exploration.
WHATS ON OFFER?
- Stitching – a variety of topics from visible mending, upcycled fabric baskets, embroidery and much more
- Bookbinding – covering a wide range of book structures and stitches so that you can build your bookbinding repertoire. As well as covering different binding techniques, we hold collaborative workshops where you can combine other skills such as paper marbling or cyanotype printmaking with your bookbinding skills
- Embroidery – covering everything from traditional had stitched monograms to contemporary 3D sequin embroidery and embellishments
- Weaving – in a variety of different styles. Explore different techniques in traditional Gobelin tapestry weaving workshops, or alternative methods such as passementerie lace, peg loom weaving, or rya knotting
- Printmaking – covering a range of disciplines including cyanotype photography, screen printing, gelli plate printing, block and Lino printing, repeat pattern textiles, and more!
- Dollmaking – exclusively at The Scottish Craft School! Johanna Flannigan, The Pale Rook, runs a variety of hand stitching and needle felting classes where you can sew a simple portrait doll, or explore deeper narratives in art doll making
- Willow Basketry – everything from a single day beginners introduction to a week long summer school
The list goes on and on … visit the WORKSHOPS section of the website to see the full current programme and book your space today!
OBJECTIVE 1
- to address the issue of rural inequality when it comes to creative learning. We aim to bring craft education in line with what is available in the urban centres, where there is no shortage of crafters offering small workshops for all ability levels from their own workshops. In bringing a new, multi-faceted business to the historic town of Dunblane, we have improved access to creative activities in the community and diversified the rural economy.
OBJECTIVE 2
- to nurture craft learning as a positive activity contributing to better mental health. Participating in craft activities boosts mental and emotional wellbeing, and we want to offer a broad range of classes to support creative learning for everyone from complete beginners to established makers. A broad and diverse range of workshops allows more people to grow their creative skills in a welcoming and supportive space.
OBJECTIVE 3
- to create employment opportunities for freelance creative practitioners. By providing flexible freelance teaching opportunities we play a crucial role in supporting Scotland’s creative economy. We empower makers to supplement their income while sharing their passion and keeping craft traditions alive for future generations. The school provides a welcoming venue and expert administrative support, and has a strong reputation and growing student base, allowing tutors to focus on what they do best—teaching and inspiring others.
THE DREAM TEAM
Rebecca Wilson is the founder and manager of the Scottish Craft School. As well as being a successful creative practitioner, she brings a portfolio of skills to the task, with more than two decades of experience in crafts, events, and arts administration. All of our guest tutors are selected for their high level of expertise in their respective fields, and for their highly respected teaching reputation.
Rebecca was administrator for Visual Arts Scotland for 15+ years, and has administered bespoke bespoke projects on a freelance basis such as the Cordis Prize for Tapestry and the Inches Carr Mentoring Awards. She is a contemporary ceramicist and jeweller who has exhibited extensively in the UK and abroad, most notably at COLLECT in the Saatchi Gallery, London, SOFA in Chicago, JOYA in Barcelona and Sieraad in Amsterdam in recent years.
Rebecca works with a strong team of dedicated freelance crafters to bring you the very best in creative tuition. See workshop listings for details on who teaches each class. Here are a selection of our regular tutors – bear with us while we add more of the gang to this lineup!
Eilidh Weir – Sustainable Stitcher
Eilidh is a multidisciplinary artist and mending enthusiast. Her work in textiles brings together waste and pre-used fabrics with her love of composting and the creatures and plants encountered whilst growing food and building biodiverse gardens. She has a strong DIY...
Anna Liebmann – Weaver of Willow!
Anna’s willow weaving workshops have been a Scottish Craft School staple for over four years, with loyal returners joined by an ever-growing gang of beginner basketeers. Her open, intuitive teaching style encourages people to explore both material and form,...
Meet Johanna Flanagan, aka The Pale Rook
Meet Johanna Flanagan, who you might know better as The Pale Rook. When I first had the idea to open a craft school, I knew that if it was going to feel genuinely special and different from what was already out there, the people I worked with would matter enormously....