What's great about other (international) design-cities is the abundance of studio workshops, design seminars and short courses about anything and everything you can possibly think of. Whenever I travel, I make it a point to search the area for classes that I can sign up for. Throughout my trips, I've taken so many random courses: print production, silver clay jewelry, polyester crimping, cooking, vegan nutrition -- all the way from Asia to America.

Lucky for us, CraftMNL has opened its doors in The Collective (Malugay St, Makati) for those who want to learn a new skill or two, or for those who want to commune with other crafty souls. It's Manila's very own workshop wonderland, headed by owners Marielle and Lex.

I headed there last Monday to join the Behind The Screens class, which was instructed by the duo of Hocus (the bike shop next door), Andrei and Sheina. (That's them on the left, both in red.) Upon arriving in the studio, we were instructed to draw our designs on tracing paper.

 This was my design: I used a crayon-pen to draw it.

 Andrei showed us how to make our own screens, and then how to add the solution.

 When all designs were done, it was time to transfer them to the screens. We exposed each design for about a minute and a half, and then rinsed off the residue.Once dry, it was squeegee time!

My test print on canvas.

I'm happy with the gradient effect created by my crayon shading.

I brought some blank canvas totes with me and printed them to make grocery bags.

To learn more about CraftMNL's upcoming workshops, visit their Facebook Page!