Use a Sketchbook to Explore Letterforms

The biggest challenge you might face after you get accustomed to creating lettering layouts may be what lettering styles to use where… Victorian, faux calligraphy, serif, sans serif, etc.

I believe that between creating lettering layouts, the process of letterform exploration should be ongoing. I recommend designating a sketchbook JUST for this task.

This is my sketchbook that is restricted ONLY to explore letters… No layouts, no drawings, just letters and letter decoration…

This sketchbook will give you an opportunity to do three things:

1. Help your hand/eye coordination as it pertains to letter construction.

2. Take lettering inspiration that you find and create alphabet exemplars from them. The more you do it, the better you’ll become.

3. Have a library of lettering styles to refer to where you can go for inspiration as you pull together lettering layouts/compositions.

I’ll see you guys next time, happy lettering!

—ct

Hand Lettering Basics Workshop

I can’t wait to teach it again. We went over how to approach lettering, the passion that you need to have about WHAT you are lettering… Short quotes, longer quotes, design solutions, etc.

I’m supposed to be teaching it again on May 2nd at a local library but with the social distancing that’s going on right now, I’m not sure if that will actually happen. Fingers crossed! I’ll also be releasing some freebies from this resource soon its so jam packed with info!

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Ahhh, a labor of LOVE! I taught my first (well really second) hand lettering class! I taught a holiday hand lettering class right before Christmas last year but it wasn’t laser focused on just lettering it was actually more about the “decor” and design elements that scream “holiday!”

THIS class I really wanted to simply say things that I hadn’t really heard in the classes that I previously audited but thought they should really KNOW! That’s it. That was my goal in putting together the guide and teaching the course.

21st Night - Morgan's on Fulton Window Lettering

Ahhh! My BIGGEST “lettering only” request that I got this Fall was from Kelly and Blue to do the lettering on the window on Morgan’s on Fulton. Three HUGE panels for September 21st… Based on the Earth Wind and Fire classic “…Do you remember? The 21st night of September?”

I only got one picture of it and it was by one of the guests who asked me to pose with it before the reception started.

I had just recently audited a tutorial by The Happy Ever Crafter on lettering on windows and it was a real eye opener. After lettering countless mirrors I just assumed I would follow a layout and letter what I saw.

The method she provides takes a lot of the guesswork out of it and it led me to actually CONSTRUCT THE DESIGN ON LARGE SHEETS OF TRACING PAPER WITH A GRID PATTERN and affix them to the window the day of the wedding. Genius. This removed the need to add dozens of guidelines and also any erasing that would need to go on if you discover that the design is off in any way.

It was a SUPER windy day in Chicago and thank GOODNESS I brought duct tape. I put the sheets up to the window and came on the inside and lettered the window writing backwards.

I only had 2.5 hours to do this, if I’d had more time I would have DEFINITELY added more detail to the floral motif which was there to compliment a “tiki” theme that the couple had employed. Overall, I thought it was great and it looked much nicer in person. Congrats Kelly and Blue and thanks for the work!