Pergamena

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Pergamena Vegetable tanned leather and handmade parchment in Montgomery, NY

https://www.pergamena.net/5th-business-farm-traceable-program

Producing North America’s premier parchments and leathers takes skill and experience, both of which Pergamena has in abundance. Our family has been working with animal skins for 15 generations. At Pergamena, we blend ancient methods with modern innovations to produce the best quality products on the market. Situated in the beautiful Hudson Valley, our tannery sources all of its hides from the northeastern US as byproducts of other industries. From goat, calf, and deer, to cow, alpaca, and even ostrich, we specialize in producing parchment and leather that combines the natural character and grain of the hides with quality processing, vibrant colors, and the individual attention that each skin deserves.

09/28/2026

Pergamena’s Parchment for Lighting and Furniture.
DM us to start on your Parchment design journey.

Parchment Panel made by Liv Virta-Meyer

09/28/2026

Parchment for Lighting and Furniture
When you don’t just want to lighten a space, you want to illuminate it.
Whether translucent, semi transparent or even opaque, Parchment has been used across centuries and continents in lighting and design. From early simple window panes to the opulent Art Deco fixtures of the 1930’s and even on through to multiple modern styles like bespoke “Cottage Core” and “Industrial,” parchment brings not only light to a room but the warmth of a design story centuries in the telling.
Check back on Tuesday to see more videos and photos from this “Parchment in the Dark Shoot” including what happens when you use DYED parchment for lighting. Head over to our stories to see a sneak peak.

09/28/2026

Parchment for Lighting and Furniture
When you don’t just want to lighten a space, but you want to illuminate it.
Whether translucent, semi transparent or even opaque, Parchment has been used across centuries and continents in lighting and design. From early simple window panes to the opulent Art Deco fixtures of the 1930’s and even on through to multiple modern styles like bespoke “Cottage Core” and “Industrial,” parchment brings not only light to a room but the warmth of a design story centuries in the telling.
Check back on Tuesday to see more videos and photos from this “Parchment in the Dark Shoot” including what happens when you use DYED parchment for lighting. Head over to our stories to see a sneak peak.

09/14/2026

Pergamena’s Transparent Goat Parchment
Lighting & Furniture material, perfect for your next bright idea.

09/10/2026

Blank Prepared Deer Parchment Bookmark Kits 
For the first time ever we are offering packs of precut blank parchment bookmarks. Each of these bookmarks is crafted from sustainably made Deer parchment. This parchment is sourced from Hunters in the Hudson Valley and Catskill regions of  New York. Making each bookmark truly unique and perfect for live events and memorable one of a kind gifts. These Deer Bookmarks have been prepared in our standard way; once the hide has finished drying, but while still under tension, we sand/ abrade its surface. They are ready for writing and painting. 
Each kit contains 10 Traceable Hudson Valley, NY  Deer “Calligraphy” prepared
2” x 6” bookmarks. We have included a test piece for sampling your design. “Keep Going” by Jessie Nucifora “…Cute Bookmark…” by Đào Huy Hoàng

09/07/2026

Introduction to Vellum and Parchment Workshop
NYS Sheep & Wool Festival Rhinebeck, NY October 17th 2026 NYsheepwool
https://sheepandwool.com/item/introduction-to-vellum-and-parchment/

The history and the use of Parchment and Vellum spans centuries and continents; yet most of today’s artists and creators simply haven’t had access to explore and connect with the medium. It’s time to change that.
This class will give artists the time to explore, investigate and fabricate with this historic, beautiful and artisanal material without fear. While the only real limit for creating with parchment is the limit on your inspiration; this medium takes a lifetime and then some to master. This workshop is meant to be a guide on your artistic journey with the medium. We will go over everything from the characteristics of different types of parchment, to best practices for its storage and use. Students will get glimpses into stages of the processes as well as have the chance to participate in some of these actions themself. There will be a “Dog and Pony show” of different vellum and parchment types and then students can try out some of their own ideas with provided material and our collection of art supplies and tools provided by Paper and Ink Arts . If you have a certain paint brush, ink… please bring it to test out as well. We are certain that once you start exploring parchment, you will quickly discover the reasons why it has been in use for millennia.

Taught by Liv Virta-Meyer Liv Virta-Meyer

Thanks to rachæl nagy for this BTS photo of Liv from the photo shoot at IAMPETH | Calligraphy

09/03/2026

“Prepared” Parchment: We “prepare” a skin by sanding it down with fine grain sandpaper so that it is easier to write, paint or draw on. Sanding allows inks and paints to adhere better to the suffice. Historically parchment would have been rubbed with a pumice stone dust to prepare it. While this method works well, a Power sander is much easier on our arms. Preparation can also involve “gessoing” a skin to make it even smoother and lighter in color. There are also different levels of preparation:
Calligraphy- is prepared for writing, drawing, or painting on the grain side of the parchment.
Manuscript- is prepared for writing, drawing, or painting on both the grain and flesh side of the parchment.
Botanical- is prepared for fine detailed painting with an ultra smooth prepared grain side.
Gessoed: A white plaster-like substance made from hide glue and calcium carbonate applied to a hide to prepare the surface for painting. We use this traditional preparation in creating our Roycroft parchment.

Parchment Prep kit from Paper and Ink Arts
Parchment Panel Liv Virta-Meyer

09/01/2026
NEW PRODUCTS:Pergamena is proud to present The Aubriet Kit, A special collaboration with artist Dina Brodsky. This kit i...
09/01/2026

NEW PRODUCTS:

Pergamena is proud to present The Aubriet Kit, A special collaboration with artist Dina Brodsky. This kit is filled with one of her favorite types of parchment to work on, our sustainable Deer parchment. This is the perfect way to test out different types of preparation across one kind of material so you can see and feel what surface you prefer. There are no wrong answers, only personal preferences and project goals.

For the first time ever, we are offering packs of precut blank parchment bookmarks!
Each of these bookmarks is crafted from sustainably made Deer parchment sourced from hunters in the Hudson Valley and Catskill regions of New York. Each bookmark is unique and perfect for live events and memorable one-of-a-kind gifts.
“Keep Going” done by Jessie Nucifora

Check out the links in our bio or a website for more info.

08/26/2026

Get ready to get your hands dirty as the USA’s leading parchment master -Jesse Meyer- takes you through creating your very own parchment. You will spend two days blending ancient techniques with modern innovations and in the end you will walk away with two parchment skins of your own making and an unforgettable experience. Check out the link in our bio for more details.

Address

11 Factory Street
Montgomery, NY
12549

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

(845) 457-3834

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