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This unique calligraphy drills printable is perfect for calligraphers of all levels! It’s fun and relaxing to fill out, and will give you fantastic pressure exertion and stroke practice. Print out a few copies, and fill out this drills sheet more than once!
In November of last year, I released the Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills printable. That printable featured several small boxes to practice your calligraphy in, and has remained one of the most popular freebies on the TPK site! Today, I wanted to switch it up and release a calligraphy drills printable with longer exercises, which you can find for free by clicking here.
After I made today’s calligraphy drills printable, I filled it out myself to test it. As I worked, I was reminded of how calming calligraphy drills can be. There’s a rhythm to keeping both tines of the nib evenly on the paper, exerting the proper amount of pressure, and going through the dip/clean/repeat process. It’s also refreshing to use your dip pen to create something other than letters! Thus, the title of this calligraphy drills printable came about: “11 Calming Calligraphy Drills”.
This printable is free, and you can find it by clicking here. Download it, then print it off on 32# laserjet paper.
Once you have printed the sheet, you will notice that each drill starts with an exemplar featuring red arrows. The arrows are there to demonstrate how your nib should move as it creates each drill. That exemplar continues without arrows, and finally fades into gray.
You’ll get the most out of this calligraphy drills printable by tracing over the gray parts of the drills first. Feel free to use a straight pen or an oblique pen, and whichever nib that you prefer! Remember to apply pressure when the stroke thickens, and let up on pressure when the stroke is thin. Tracing over the gray characters will accustom you to the drill. Once you get to the end of the gray characters, keep writing the drill on your own!
As you write, don’t forget that this is supposed to be a relaxing activity. If the drills don’t turn out perfectly, that’s okay! No matter what the result, you should be proud of yourself for sticking with it and filling out the sheet. The more you practice with this drills sheet, the better you’ll get at doing the drills!
I love creating calligraphy, and I think that one of the secrets to learning is not to take it too seriously. Because of that, these drills are unique exercises that you probably won’t see anywhere else. Of course, I always have a lot of fun naming each drill … I think that names help to give drills more personality!
While the drills are meant to be engaging, they also have a purpose. Every drill focuses on pen pressure regulation with a combination of thick and thin strokes. Many of the drills have ample curves so you can practice making nice, rounded strokes. Each drill was made with slant lines in mind, so you’ll also get a chance to work on your right-leaning slant!
If you enjoy filling out this free calming calligraphy drills sheet, then you will love the all-new Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills: Under the Sea Edition and the Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills: Garden Edition. They both contain 16 pages of challenging but fun drills that will ignite your creativity and lead to confident calligraphy pen use!
No matter what calligraphy skill level you’re at right now, I hope that you enjoy the calligraphy drills printable! If you find it helpful, print off several copies and fill it out whenever you need to. Enjoy the rest of your day, and thanks so much for reading TPK!
Warmly,
*This post contains affiliate links to Amazon
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