Armitage Leather Ltd reviews

19 Nov 18'

Martin Saint reviewed: Box or tub making

"This was my second course with Nigel and they just get better and better. Tub making is notoriously difficult to master but with the tuition, enthusiasm and overview of Nigel, I am well on my way to producing a quality, professional tub. I can’t recommend Nigel’s Leatherworking courses enough, just starting out or been working with leather for a while, do yourself a favour and spend a day with the best"

11 Nov 18'

Alison Harrington reviewed: Introduction to leatherwork with Armitage Leather

"What a fantastic course! I have been on many courses but by far, this is the best course I have ever been on. I am so new to leather working and from the off, Nigel was so patient and took me through what the day would entail, and the processes needed to produce a finished item, as well as giving a very interesting insight on the history of leather. I cannot believe how much I learnt. Designing, pattern drafting, pattern cutting, choosing leather, bevelling, slicking, saddle stitching and finishing and so much more all in one day! I am really chuffed and proud of what I was able to achieve with Nigel’s help and knowledge and cannot wait to move on to more challenging items. As I progress, I will most definitely be returning to do more courses. I left armed with knowledge, skills and confidence to work out a design on my own and to see it through to the finished product, but also know Nigel is just an email away for advice should I feel I need it. I have also subscribed to Nigel’s Vimeo channel and would absolutely encourage anyone who wants to get in to leather work and produce well-made beautiful products, to do the same. The videos are brilliant, Nigel not only explains clearly, he takes you right through each of the processes with very clear tutorials and lots of tips on tools and much more. Nigel, thank you for such a productive and memorable day, and for your generosity in sharing your knowledge willingly, to help others."

15 Oct 18'

Lucia Gerbino reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"I took a 3 day course with Nigel in Los Angeles and, although I was one of the less experienced with saddle stitching in the room I found him patient, clear and an excellent instructor. He allowed me to absorb the information without rushing me along and made sure I understood each aspect. By the end of the class I felt confident and it was a very fun experience. Nigel's explanations were thorough and clear and his manner left me feeling like I could ask him questions and I am looking forward to taking further instruction from him in the future."

12 Oct 18'

Jamie Huante reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"I took two courses taught by Nigel in Berkeley, California. He's thoughtful in his explanations and demonstrations, while providing insight and history into techniques. He's great at listening to his students needs and wants when it comes to developing a strong skills set. Nigel teaches in a manner that is genuinely interested in seeing you succeed."

12 Oct 18'

John Niero reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"I must say that I am so impressed with the teachings of Nigel. This the second time I have taken classes with him in Berkeley CA and am looking forward to more. Nigel has a natural ability to clearly explain the process and an innate ability to problem solve. I am new to hand stitching and I feel that Nigel has given me a very solid foundation to build upon."

6 Oct 18'

Mary Oswald reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"I traveled from Pennsylvania to attend the 3 day intensive with Nigel in Los Angeles. It was worth every penny. In addition to being a fantastic teacher and selflessly sharing his vast wealth of leather crafting knowledge, he created a relaxing and fun classroom atmosphere. I had such a wonderful experience and came away with new skills and techniques that I can apply to my leather business. I feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to study under him and hope to do it again in the future."

6 Oct 18'

Jordan Richards reviewed: Making a Handmade Leather Wallet with Nigel Armitage

"Excellent course takes you through the basics of pattern making to turning it into a finished wallet. Good teacher on how to use the tools so that you end with a good finished peice. I had a brilliant day learning the start of a new craft"

4 Oct 18'

janemt reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"I took a 3-day course with Nigel in Berkley. It was fantastic! He taught a thoughtful and systematic approach to leather projects from beginning to completion enabling me to level up my skills and results. I'm not sure how long (if ever) it would have taken me to get there on my own. The course was worth every penny."

3 Oct 18'

Linshao reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"I took a 3 day basics course taught by Nigel in Berkeley, CA. Nigel is an amazing teacher! His teaching style is clear and efficient. He cares about your learning and is generous with his time and takes care to answer all your questions. I had a great experience in his class and walked away with many new skills and feel inspired to be more creative with my leather working. If you have a chance to learn from Nigel, do it!"

31 Aug 18'

Chris G reviewed: A General Leatherwork Skill Day

"Doing It Right The First Time. Over the past seven years I have been a making leather goods by myself. Through the direction of a few young teachers and YouTube videos I’ve learned how make a few leather items. I’ve always enjoyed making things by hand however, the quality of my workmanship has never been to my satisfaction. My work has always lacked the consistency that I’ve always found with professionals. Last week I had the opportunity to visit the U.K. and I thought that I would take the chance to visit Nigel Armitage`s workshop. Fortunately, Nigel had a window of time available and I dropped by for a lesson. This ended up being the highlight of my trip. :-) Nigel initially audited my skills and gave me clear explanations to resolve my problems. Calm instruction was evenly paced avoiding any feelings of confusion or being overwhelmed. He explained that the fundamentals of cutting, measuring and sewing are crucial to not only create an item to be proud of, but to do it with confidence and speed. Nigel demonstrated his methods and I copied them under his careful guidance. The day after the lesson, a follow up email was sent reviewing the points of what we had done. Nigel didn’t actually mention this phrase but I felt that it encapsulates a philosophy that I walked away from his lesson. “Doing it right the first time”. Arriving back from my trip I eagerly returned to my own little workshop with much enthusiasm and I can immediately see the positive results from my work. Mr Armitage is instructor who not only has the workshop skills to create beautiful goods but also the demeanour and interpersonal skills of a great teacher. I felt like I have walked away from the best leathercraft course in the world. I`ll definitely be making another visit. Chris G"

21 Aug 18'

Louise reviewed: A General Leatherwork Skill Day

"Learning from Nigel is a privilege. He passes on his extensive knowledge and skill with passion and patience and is very inspiring to spend time with. This is my second visit and I am already looking forward to my next one. Thank you."

24 Jul 18'

Sr. Zoe reviewed: Making a Handmade Belt with Nigel Armitage

"Yesterday I had my third lesson with Nigel and came away with new skills and growing enthusiasm for the craft. Nigel is an excellent teacher and a great communicator, taking time to explain the theoretical and mechanical underpinnings of the work so that the understanding needed to tackle a new project is in place... this is not rote learning, but laying foundations for creativity and adventure! We worked on 'upping' my stitching by exploring some different irons and weight and type of threads. We made a brief sally into stitching with and awl...(I think I'll stick to stitching irons where ever possible!) We then went on to make a belt from pattern to finish! A great day!"

16 Jul 18'

John Fletcher reviewed: Introduction to leatherwork with Armitage Leather

"Excellent training session. I sent Nigel a dozen points that I wanted help with and he covered them all in 4 hours. Thank you Nigel."

13 Jul 18'

Alex Sullivan reviewed: Custom Leather Working Course

"After deciding to increase my skill level and expand my knowledge base, I paid a visit to Nigel. He took me back to basics and helped me to solidify my leather working techniques. Nigel is a great teacher - as seen in his Vimeo channels - and explains even difficult procedures in simplified terms to help you understand. I will certainly be back for another lesson. 10/10 would recommend"

26 Jun 18'

John Mackay reviewed: Traditional Saddle Stitching with Armitage Leather

"Having just completed a three day course with Nigel I can not recommend him enough. Nigel is a Master of his craft but puts you at ease straight away. On starting my course I was a complete novice and now feel confident to build on this excellent instruction and go on to improve. Over the three days we explored saddle stitching, pattern making, tool selection, leather and material selection & using the tools correctly. As Nigel explains, these are all essential building blocks to producing your finished article. Using Nigel’s fantastic online videos I feel I now have the ability to progress well. The level of instruction is superb from a gifted instructor. “Not too Shabby” at all ."

12 May 18'

Martin Saint reviewed: Traditional Saddle Stitching with Armitage Leather

"Having completed a day under Nigel’s tutelage, what can I say but Nigel is a rare man. A master craftsmen who is passionate about his craft and has an incredible ability to pass on his years of experience in such a manner that you don’t feel like you are being taught, but the amount of information you absorb and the practical experience you gain is outstanding. An excellent course and I have no doubt I will be booking another."

3 May 18'

Barbara Brodsky reviewed: Traditional Saddle Stitching with Armitage Leather

"Took Nigel's exceptional course on Saddle Stitching. Made such great progress in speed and quality of my stitching. Have a stronger understanding of the process, the extent of the various tools and thread choices, and what results are possible with so many variables. Could not be more pleased. I left the class very motivated to do hand stitching. I'm certain the sewing machines in my studio are going to feel my absence."

25 Apr 18'

Amy reviewed: Traditional Saddle Stitching with Armitage Leather

"So very thrilled with my stitching improvement after completing the 3 day Stitching course!"

13 Apr 18'

Paul Newton reviewed: A General Leatherwork Skill Day

"I took my first course with Nigel about 3 months ago and it immediately improved the quality of the items I was making. The aim of this one-day course was to learn some new skills and to cover some general leatherworking topics as well. Nigel tailored the course to suit my needs and concentrated on a few topics that would result in the biggest improvement for someone with my level of experience. These areas included: showing me how to make more precise patterns that reduce the scope for problems later in the build, how to get the most out of my new KS Bladepunch stitching irons, and how to improve my edge finishing. I also had a lot of general questions about things that have cropped up over the past few months. These include things like which leather and furniture to use to make specific items, and where best to source these from. Nigel gave me his undivided attention and answered every question I had, including some crucial information that I could not find anywhere else despite spending hours watching online tutorials. I would highly recommend this course whatever level of experience you have at the moment. I plan to book another two-day course in a couple of months time as it represents such a good investment for anyone serious about improving their skills and knowledge."

3 Apr 18'

Nikki Connett reviewed: A General Leatherwork Skill Day

"Just finished my day course and it was amazing!! Such good value for money as it’s a personalised 1 to 1 session and Nigel focused it around my project for making a dog collar! I left today with so many new skills, and considering I am a complete beginner, I have the confidence to know I am off to a good start! I left with a completed (pretty good first attempt) dog collar which I am very proud of!! Thank you so very much, you are a great teacher!! I will get practicing and book another course soon :)"

24 Mar 18'

Rob reviewed: A General Leatherwork Skill Day

"Just got back from an excellent day with Nigel. It was my first time working with leather but after today, I’m hooked! I’m now going to go away, practise the new skills I’ve learnt and apply them to my own projects. Nigel’s teaching style is brilliant - very patient, he explains everything really well so it’s easy to understand and his approach is very methodical. Lunch and endless cups of (real) coffee were nice too! Highly recommended."

19 Mar 18'

Graham Reader reviewed: Introduction to leatherwork with Armitage Leather

"Having just started leatherwork, I found and viewed most if not all of Nigel Armitage's YouTube videos, I then subscribed to his Vimeo channel. You would think that this would be enough to start your own projects, well it is to an extent, but I decided to contact Nigel and book a 1-day course with him. Nigel is a good tutor on video and even better when when one-to-one day with him. His style is to tell you what he needs you to do and possibly demonstrate a technique but lets you gets on with it while observing and, sometimes commenting, but he is always asking you when the task is finished what YOU think. A great day of learning which enhances the video learning. Now though I must put into practice the small tweaks to my leather stitching and design work before asking for another one-to-one. A great day, a great tutor, well worth doing."

18 Mar 18'

Matt Perkins reviewed: Traditional Saddle Stitching with Armitage Leather

"I had a great day with an enthusiastic, knowledgeable and entertaining instructor. Nigel showed me a number of techniques to improve my saddle stitching, using both the traditional method and the double pricking approach. He built my confidence and made sure I understood the why as well as the how. His explanations of how to cut leather, how to create a right angle and how to design a tool roll were clear and easy to understand. He refined my tools and they are so much easier to use now. Ultimately, he had me feeling confident whilst a long way out of my comfort zone. If you want to learn something about leather working, he is a fantastic teacher. I cannot recommend him highly enough. I will be going back for more instruction."

8 Mar 18'

Nikki Frankum reviewed: A General Leatherwork Skill Day

"Spent the day honing skills and learning lots of things from stitching to pricing up leather goods. Nigel is a patient and inspiring master of his craft and I plan on spending many more days under his tuition as and when needed. Nigel is passionate about traditional leather work and keen to pass on his knowledge to enable others to honour the leathersmith craft. Fabulous day and worth every penny."

6 Mar 18'

Sarah Cooke reviewed: Making a Handmade Belt with Nigel Armitage

"Just finished a weeks course with Nigel. I thoroughly enjoyed it . Nigel is a great teacher and he has conveyed an amazing amount of knowledge to myself over that week , this included practical demonstrations and step by step guidance through the processes. He particularly impressed upon me the importance of getting the techniques, right and precise and his patience was immeasurable. I really admired the way Nigel is so passionate about his craft and making quality handmade leather items. I would recommend this course to anyone interested in working with leather."