YOU’LL CRUSH THIS intro to modern calligraphy & hand lettering with oh hey face ABOUT ME Letter lover, wiener dog wrangler, party-going introvert, minimalist with too much stuff . I left the world of offi ces and desks just over two years ago and started Oh hey face to create lovely things of all types — keepsakes for your special moments and commemorations of all things big and small. When I’ve done it right, my work keeps a lightness of imperfection with a healthy dose of sentiment. I’m primarily self (and YouTube) taught, and I’m excited to share what I know with you in the hopes that you fi nd a little something special too. LETTER ANATOMY Let’s talk a little bit about the basics of letters and typography as the building blocks for where we’ll go next. When you watch a skilled calligrapher, it looks effortless and fluid, as if the flourishes just float out of the pen. All of that is an evolution on the bare bones of every letter. Here are the basics of those bare bones: 1 BASELINE This is foundation of your letters, it’s the floor that they sit on. When you type on the computer the baseline is straight, but in calligraphy it can be straight or irregular. More on this later. 2 X-HEIGHT All lowercase letters should keep a relatively consistent height, meaning a consistent distance from the baseline to the top of a lowercase letter. Traditionally this is measured by the height of the letter x in the alphabet of that typeface, hence the name x-height 3 ASCENDER Letters with pieces that extend above the x-height, like tallest column on an h, k, d, etc. should all reach a similar height. This part of the letter is referred to as the ascender 4 DESCENDER Similarly to ascenders, there are letters with pieces that dip below the x-height like y, g, j, etc. This part of the letter is referred to as the descender 5 AXIS This is important in calligraphy. It is the angle of your letters, commonly known as oblique or italic. This angle should remain relatively consistent 6 SWASH A very general term for the flourishes added to calligraphy letters. This is where you can really start to go nuts 3 ASCENDER 2 X-HEIGHT 1 BASELINE 4 DESCENDER 5 AXIS 6 SWASH CALLIGRAPHY BASICS: HOW TO BUILD IT Now you know the basics of letters. Now let’s look at how that translates to calligraphy, and how you build a calligraphy letterform. THE SAME RULES APPLY Just because it’s creative and fr ee-fl owing doesn’t mean it’s no-parents-party-time. Even as you get more adventurous, the same basic anatomy rules continue to show up. DOWN STROKES & UP STROKES In calligraphy, down strokes are heavy, up strokes are light. Th is is what creates the contrast in your letters making it look like calligraphy Th e biggest mistake I made getting started was believing that every stroke had to be connected in one smooth motion — just one long swooping pen stroke. You and I may get there one day, but it’s not probably happening anytime soon :) When you’re learning and getting the hang of it, down & up strokes can be separated, you can pick up the pen and fi nish the letter. Here’s an example of how I build letters: 1 4 5 Continue to down stroke to fi nish the ascender & 3 then pick up pen 2 Light up stroke to start Continue to the ascender down stroke to of the h up stroke New down stroke Finish with one sweeping down stroke into the fl ourish swash of the descender One continuous New up stroke for the e stroke CALLIGRAPHY BASICS: LINE WEIGHTS Th e same way typeable fonts come in bold and regular, calligraphy comes in diff erent variations of thick and thin. We refer to this as the line weight, with wider lines referred to as heavy, and thinner lines referred to as light. MONOLINE A modern style with no contrast. It looks simple and classic, and can also be one of the most diffi cult to produce LOW CONTRAST Minimal variation between the heavier and lighter line weights. A very natural look. HIGH CONTRAST Th ere is a signifi cant distinction between the light and heavy line weights. Th is creates a lot of drama in the letters FAUX CALLIGRAPHY Some projects require tools that might force you to manually add the line contrast — whether the piece is too large for any brush you can fi nd or handle, or a custom color pen, etc. You can create variation by thinking about how you would have created the letters using a brush, and then manually add the contrast. CALLIGRAPHY BASICS: TECHNIQUE By now you should have a good grasp of all of the whats of calligraphy. Now we get to talk about the fun part. Thehow . HOLDING THE PEN Always hold the pen at an angle. The sharp pointed shape is what allows you to create the variation in line weight, which is what creates the drama in your letters. Try and keep a loose grip so if you’re at it all day you can minimize hand cramps. MOVE FROM THE ARM I am notoriously bad at this. But... do as I say, not as I do. You should try and move from your shoulder and elbow. Try not to isolate the movement to only your fingers, hands, and wrist. This creates more tension in your hand, which can lead to a number of issues — tension can create a wobbly line, tires your hand muscles more quickly, creates more cramping, and it’s just good to be chill. PEN PRESSURE When we talk about line weights, we know what it looks like, but how do we make it happen? By adjusting the pressure of the pen to paper. If you’re holding your pen correctly at a slight angle, heavier pressure creates more contact between the brush and the paper, creating a heavier line. When you move to your up strokes, you lighten the pressure so less of the brush is making contact, and your line will taper to a lighter stroke. This is the part that takes finesse and practice. You have to get used to every new pen, every new paper or surface, and every new ink. PRACTICE I practice anywhere from one to six hours a day, excluding actual client work. I’m not recommending that for you, but practice is the only thing that will create forward progress. You have to train the finer muscles to move the pen where you want it to go. Typically I tell myself if I’m practicing, I can watch as much Netflix as I want. The more consistently you practice, the easier it gets and the faster you’ll improve. TRACING Tracing paper and vellum can be your very best friend. Tracing a piece you like is one of the quickest ways to start developing the skills you need. EMBRACE IMPERFECTION Variety in your work is what makes it yours. CALLIGRAPHY BASICS: TOOLS IN YOUR KIT Like anything, tools are a critical part of calligraphy. I’ve given you my four favorite brush pens, the ones I use most. TOMBOW FUDENOSUKE HARD TIP This is my primary go-to. It’s very forgiving, and the hard tip allows you to create fine detail. Cons: can be harder to find, only comes in black, and isn’t great for large scale projects TOMBOW FUDENOSUKE SOFT TIP My second favorite, The softer tip can be harder to control, but gives an effortless look. Cons: exact same as above TOMBOW ABT DUAL-TIP Calligraphers the world over use these as their number one tool. They come with a brush tip and a mono-line tip on the same barrel, the ink is smooth and the tip will keep it’s point for years. Infinite colors and blending capability, it’s almost like a watercolor pen. Cons: these pens are expensive. Buy them in the color kits to save a little bit of cash. They also aren’t create for smaller projects. PAPERMATE FLAIR This is my go-to for monoline work. They’re inexpensive and very easy to use. PRACTICE! Enough talk! Let’s do! Here are some common warm up drills that you can do before you start working on a project and when you’re getting used to a new tool LINE DENSITY Remember when we talked about pressure creating line weight? Test that out here, going fr om the heaviest to the lightest weight you can get out of your pen VALLEYS Now start varying line weight in a single stroke. In this U shape make sure the down stroke is heavy and the up stroke is light. You can pick up the pen but work toward one continuous stroke PEAKS Reverse the previous drill and start with a light up stroke, connected to a heavy down stroke SINGLE LOOPS Now we’ll start bringing it together. Make a narrow loop trying to work up to one continuous stroke. Pick up the pen between each loop CONTINUOUS LOOPS Keep creating the same loop fr om above, but now make a series of them connected. Pick up the pen as needed but try and string together as many loops as possible VALLEYS TO PEAKS Th is is the fi nal practice drill to get you ready for letters.