Calligraphy can be a creative way of brightening up a handmade card, adding a bit of spice to your bullet journal, or personalizing a gift. Although it takes a bit of practice, with the right tools and a bit of time, you’ll be a calligraphy expert in no time!
Things you’ll need to get started:
Crayola markers or brush pens
A piece of paper
Calligraphy is all about the pressure on the tip of the marker. From experience, I believe the best tool for beginners to learn calligraphy is Crayola markers because they’re easy to use and are available almost anywhere. I started by learning calligraphy with the Crayola Supertips because they’re sold in many different colours. I got to experiment with ombre designs, solid colours, and I was able to adjust the width of my strokes. Another option could be brush pens. Similar to Crayola markers, the tip is flexible and easy to work with. They also come in many different colours but can get a bit pricey. Depending on the things you have already, you could get started with calligraphy in no time!
Another thing I’ve seen some people do is print out calligraphy practice sheets. They’re similar to the ones we did when we were younger to practice our handwriting. They help you get a feel of your tool, play around with the width of your strokes, and experiment with different styles. One important thing to remember is that your tool has to have a cone-like tip (like Crayola markers and brush tip pens do). This is so that you can achieve a perfectly thin and thick line every time.
It’s hard to explain how to do calligraphy in words, so I’ll link some videos below that I found helpful when I was learning. Remember, practice makes perfect!
Brush pen tutorial:
This video gives a quick overview of the different pens/markers you can use as a beginner and also runs you through some practice exercises. She classifies all the letters of the alphabet into different categories (timestamp: 2:48) and emphasizes the importance of practicing every letter of the alphabet before moving on to create words.
Crayola markers tutorial:
This video does a good job of explaining the importance of angles, and also gives you some practice exercises to do. She also links her letter sheets in the description, which is a good place to start if you’re really stuck!
Calligraphy 101: the basics of calligraphy
RELATED ARTICLES