Last week was a bizarre and wonderful mix of calligraphy commissions – if anyone imagines the life of a calligrapher to be all wedding invitations, it couldn’t be further from the truth! It’s one of my favourite things about Etsy: the requests for bespoke calligraphy commissions which come from all over the world can be …
Read more “Something completely different! A memorial scholarship in calligraphy”
This poem almost had me in tears. If you’ve ever lost someone close to you, these words will resonate. Writing pieces like this in calligraphy is humbling. Every stroke of the pen has to be as perfect as I can possibly make it. To somehow do justice to this beautiful piece of poetry is a …
I lose myself in writing. Pen and paper is my happy place. Many of you will too – there is often a moment, halfway through a calligraphy workshop, where I’ll look around and see a calm has settled on the class. Calligraphy kind of needs concentration and the ability to drift off in equal measure. …
In my last blog post I explained about calligraphy pens, how they work and the different types. Today let’s have a look at the nib itself. Nibs are pointy little silver magic wands. A genius combination of design and gravity makes a pointed calligraphy nib one of my favourite inventions in the world. The curve …
Read more “How do calligraphy nibs work? A visual map to explain the magic… Part 2”
Way back in 2012 I first came across Cox & Cox‘s handmade place cards. They were beautiful, handmade paper with soft, torn edges. Cox & Cox advertised them as being ‘beautiful to write on’ – but the opposite was true! These were rough, fibrous and almost impossible to write on with a calligraphy nib and …
Read more “Are handmade papers suitable for modern calligraphy?”
Calligraphers are generally serious, quietly academic types. Or were, in the days of formal lettering required to be a ‘proper businessman’. However, I’m blessed with a childish sense of humour I should have grown out of twenty years ago. Still. I’m going to take you on a journey from shaft to flange, via tips and …
Read more “How do calligraphy nibs work? A visual map to explain the magic… Part 1”
Modern calligraphy lies somewhere between basic writing skills and art. We all learn to write from the age of 5 or so, and we’re also taught to handle a paintbrush and knock out a reasonable picture of a cat by the time we’re 7. Mastering either skill takes a little longer… Calligraphy is where writing …
Read more “How long does it take to learn modern calligraphy?”
Calligraphy workshops are fun. We have a chat, and the more the group is talking during the class, the better – because as you focus on something other than writing, you relax and suddenly your calligraphy becomes more instinctive and natural. So we talk about our jobs and lives and why we’re all there learning …