Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of four columns depicting experiences that arts and entertainment editors Kathryn Fiegen and P. Kim Bui had attending Workspace classes. Regular commentaries by both writers will continue in one month.

You’d think it would be boring to bind a book.

I attended a bookbinding class with Dot Prater on a Thursday night when I really needed some relaxation. I thought it might be boring to play with paper all night. I anticipated wishing the class would get done early and walking home with this hideous piece of folded paper that I’ll never use.

The Workspace is one of the hardest places to find. There are stairways and hallways to travel through, so it’s understandable why some people didn’t know it even existed for part of their college careers.

Once I got there, Dot walked us through all the steps to make this cool accordion book, complete with pages and a hard cover. I was imagining some sort of huge ordeal including leather stretching and sewing through large sets of paper. I used mats and four sheets of paper. It was much easier than I thought.

The best thing about this class was all the neat little tips we were taught. It’s one thing to read a book and try to figure out how to do it, but it’s another to have someone helping you along every single little step.

The class was full of people of all ages and crafting skills. I felt like we all bonded a little bit over folding paper and firming our creases.

This was better than meditation, man. Poking a needle through little sheets of paper and yanking it really hard made all my problems go away. Momentarily, while concentrating on tying a bead to part of my book, I forgot that I’m not sure if I’ll make it to graduation without hurting someone in a twisted and violent way. It was great.

I wanted to tell the instructor this when she told me that I was being awfully quiet. I was in heaven, concentrating on making something pretty. I understand now why moms spend so much time scrapbooking and doing other weird crafts. I think that’s why coloring is so soothing.

Sitting at a table cutting paper and making sure all my folds were even was nice compared to analyzing what Hemingway meant when he put the word “it” instead of “she” or whatever else my teachers have me doing.

And the crazy thing is, I learned something. I could go home and make another one and another one and give them away as gifts. I have a ready-made cheapman’s Christmas gift. The teacher made sure that she showed us how to make the book in a way we could replicate the process at home, so we don’t forget it. I always thought these classes would teach me something I could never do again or never be able to do without a studio space.

In the end, I have this nice book, which isn’t hideous and wasn’t difficult to make. The cover falls off from time to time because I didn’t fold tight enough, but I’ll remember that next time, when I’m making my mom one for Christmas.