Learn Calligraphy

Learn Calligraphy

Calligraphy is simply the art of beautiful writing. It is derived from the Greek words kallos (beautiful) and graphi (writing). Calligraphy is an art form that anyone can learn - no artistic or drawing abilities are required! All that you need is the willingness to put some time and effort into practicing. If you can write, you have the basic skills already! Calligraphy, unlike a lot of other hobbies requires very little equipment; all you need is pen, ink and paper. Don't be put off by the belief you need "artistic" talent to learn Calligraphy - all you need is practice and attention to detail.

Once you have the basic skills you will be able to write:-

• Invitations to parties and weddings
• Birthday cards
• Christmas cards
• Posters
• Certificates
• Diplomas
• Business cards
• Poems
• Love letters

Their are many different calligraphy alphabets to choose from, including Uncial, Gothic, Celtic and Copperplate. Most beginners start with the Uncial alphabet which has many different variations but is easy to learn. Like learning new languages, the second language is the hardest and takes the most time to learn - after that subsequent languages (alphabets) take less time and effort.

Once you have learned calligraphy, writing becomes fun again. I think we can all remember how it felt to receive a beautiful letter or invitation from someone and to admire it and wish that we too could write with such style and beauty. The script just looks so good that we read and re-read it and then keep it to treasure!.

Once you have mastered your calligraphy skills, imagine sitting down to write a letter to a loved one. You pick your pen up, clear your mind, and then create that beautiful flowing script that emphasizes and produces in written form what you are feeling.You have created something beautiful that you can be proud of and that anyone will be delighted to receive.

Think of being able to produce a handwritten letter to your boss asking for a raise, or to be able to annotate a document at work knowing people are going to be amazed that you have such a neat and precise hand. In this day of computers and word processors hardly anyone writes with a pen and paper any more - never mind writing things of real beauty - you will stand out from the crowd and have a skill that few can match. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Calligraphy is also a fantastic method of relaxing and clearing the mind. After all; you need to be focused to produce such high quality writing. The interesting thing is that it just happens - you sit comfortably, pick up your pen and you enter a state of relaxed concentration. Everything else is pushed to the side while you concentrate on your writing. In this age, where stress levels are high and few people know how to relax, wouldn't that be useful? You bet it would! Obviously you wouldn't be able to produce beautiful calligraphy straight away, but after some practice I promise you, you will.

Don't forget that your new calligraphy skills could also save you hundreds of dollars as you will never again have to buy pre-printed invitations and cards. You could also use your new-found skills producing such things for your friends and family as well. In fact, you could even start your own small business and earn money with your skills!

Once you have learned this valuable and sought-after skill, you will wonder how you ever managed without it! So don't delay - take the first step in learning this wonderful skill today. You won't regret it!

Paper

There are many types of paper you can use for calligraphy, from the cheapest and lightest photocopying paper right up to thick calligraphic parchments. It makes sense when practicing to use cheap paper and then for any final work to use a thicker parchment.

Pens

Here we have four main choices: quills, felt tips, fountain pens and steel nib pens. For the beginner, felt tip pens are the cheapest although the tips wear out fairly quickly. If you decide to take up calligraphy seriously, then a good fountain pen or steel nib pen would be a good investment. There are hundreds of suitable pens to choose from, costing anything from a couple of dollars to a couple of hundred!

Ink

If you are using a fountain pen or steel nibbed pen, you will also need to buy some ink. Again, this can be bought in many different colors and as cartridges or in a bottle.

You can also buy complete calligraphy sets which include all the materials you need to start.

Their are several ways to learn calligraphy. The cheapest would be to visit your local library and borrow a book on the subject - although the two weeks you are allowed to hold the book for may not be long enough to become proficient! Other methods are as follows:-

• See if your local college / community are running any calligraphy courses
• Buy a "Teach Yourself" book (my favourites are shown below).
• Do an online Google search on "learn calligraphy" and see what free resources are available.
• Buy an ebook online (no waiting and you could start straight away)

Which ever way you choose to learn calligraphy is a good way. You can start slowly by practicing for a few minutes a day one letter at a time. Before you know it you'll be writing like a professional.

For more great Caligraphy ideas please follow the link

Good luck in your writing.

All the best,

Laura