Lettering for folk artists....

Hi everybody.

The sun is out on this beautiful Autumn day (after a very dismal, soggy, wet and miserable summer here in Oz) and the sky is perfectly blue and sparkly.

I promised myself that if I would get this post uploaded in time, then I could treat myself by taking the dog for a walk down to our little village (with maybe an outside table at a coffee shop and a little sketching into my notebook being the end destination ;) ....).

So, let's get on with it then!

If you have not attempted lettering in your folk painting work as yet, then I want to encourage you to 'give it a go'.

It is really not as difficult as it seems.

We don't need to study a 3 year course on the finer points of calligraphy, we just need enough basic information on how to apply lettering in a pleasing, non-splodgy manner to our work.

Now, the first thing I would suggest is - buy some basic calligraphy books.  The ones you see above is my collection, gathered over the years.

A basic calligraphy book, with clear instructions on how to get started, line up your work and load your pen, etc. will be enough to get you adding some nice lettering to your painting.



Once you have a good basic book, you might want to consider looking for a few more specialist books, if this is what interests you.

Here are a few pages from some of my books that I find inspiring. (bear in mind that I don't actually write like this, I just drool over it).

This is a page  from my book 'Medieval Calligraphy - It's history and techniqe' by Drogin.

As the name suggests, he includes a lot of interesting background on the lettering and the monks that practiced it.

A page like this is wonderful to put tracing paper over, and then you can practice the flow of the lines and strokes.



 

Then there are the Celtic styles.

They are beautifully pictorial.



 

And the illuminated styles.



 

Now that I've whetted your appetite, I'll show you some of the tools you might need to get started.

Bear in mind, I am not a calligrapher, just a folk artist doing some lettering.

For practice, you will need a board, paper, and something to prop the board on, like a rolled up towel.



 



 

Now, you can paint your lettering with a flat brush, but I most often choose to use a calligraphy pen.  The type that is a holder, with a nib inserted into it. Like below.

 



 

Now, before you tell me off for the state of my nibs and holders, I have been using them for MANY years.  They have seen a lot of use.

 



 

This type of nib is called a 'Speedball' nib, and it's the type I use most often.

Not sure why, it just is.



 

This is the 'other' type of nib.



 



 

The lettering on the rose blocks below, was done with a very small flat brush.  I will use a brush if the lettering is larger than my pen sizes.  The principles for both are the same.  I just prefer the pen because it doesn't lose it's 'chisel' edge.



 

This lettering was just done with the tip of the round brush I was painting with at the time as I wanted it a bit more rustic.



 

 

Using the flat brush.

 

When you go through your basic instructions in your calligraphy book, they will explain to you the importance of drawing lines, before applying your lettering (you can do this on tracing paper first, draw your lettering, then transfer it to your surface.  This way you get the placement right the first time.)

The lines are what keep the lettering the same height.



 



 

I have found the best thing for me to letter with, is my Jo Sonja paints thinned with water to a milky consistency.  And this way, you have a wide colour choice.  I've used inks, but this is just as good.

 



 

 

Filling the nib with thinned paint, using a brush.



 

I like to apply some to the tip of the nib as well.



 

 

Make sure that you make a few practice dabs first, to blot the pen.



 

 

Apart from working between the lines, the most important thing in achieving uniform lettering, is holding your pen at the same angle, the whole time you're writing.



 

 

And most calligraphy books will show the letters, with little arrows to indicate which direction and order to write them.

Can you see how the direction and the angle of the pen make the thick and thin bits of the letters?



 

It's a good idea to rule up pages with lines and practice.



 



 

I've drawn some lines on here, to show you how the body of the letters fit in between them.  Your ascenders and descenders (tall bits and long bits) will not fit between this basic set of lines.  You can draw extra lines for these, but for what I'm trying to achieve, I usually don't bother.



 

I hope you do decide to try some lettering, and if you do - let me know how it goes!

Till next time
Fiona