Archives for July 2018

8 Creativity-Infused Ways to Celebrate Happiness Happens Month

July 31, 2018 by Lindsey Bugbee 12 Comments
Inspiration

Why + How to Share Your Calligraphy on Social Media | The Postman's Knock — Part of my strategy for celebrating this month? Working on the TPK website! Creating content for this blog never fails to make me happy.

Did you know that August is “Happiness Happens Month”? I have to admit that I had no idea it existed until I checked out the Days of the Year (a website that keeps track of obscure holidays) for August, but it’s a thing! This year’s theme is “Be the Reason Someone Smiles”, and the Secret Society of Happy People has a calendar to guide you through the month with daily suggestions to achieve that. The whole reason that I gravitate toward art and calligraphy is the fact that it makes me happy, so I’m on board with celebrating Happiness Happens Month, even if I don’t quite stick to the theme! Here are eight ways you can celebrate the eighth month of the year, too:
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Hot Air Balloon Birthday Card + Matching Envelope Tutorial

July 27, 2018 by Lindsey Bugbee 31 Comments
Birthday Cards· Greeting Card Tutorials· Hand-Lettering· Mail Art· Tutorials· Watercolor Tutorials

It seems that commercial birthday cards tend to fall into one of three categories: too feminine, too goofy, or too somber. Sure, buying pre-made birthday cards saves time. However, if you make one yourself, you can control the “feel” of the card and work on your art and lettering skills! In today’s tutorial, I’ll show you how to make a festive hot air balloon-themed birthday card and a corresponding envelope.
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Why, When, and How to Dilute Ink

July 24, 2018 by Lindsey Bugbee 70 Comments
Beginner’s Calligraphy· Calligraphy· Dip Pen Calligraphy· Inks

If you’re new to calligraphy, it’s easy to feel terrified at the prospect of modifying your supplies. Ideally, they should arrive ready to use — no need to change anything! In practice, that sometimes isn’t the case. In today’s blog post, you’ll learn why, when, and how to dilute ink to make it more user-friendly!
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Simple Calligraphy Flourishing Tutorial

July 20, 2018 by Lindsey Bugbee 43 Comments
Beginner’s Calligraphy· Calligraphy· Dip Pen Calligraphy· Free Printables· Printable Goodies· Tutorials

Calligraphy flourishing is something that mystifies most people. It’s tough to figure out how not to overdo it (or underdo it!), and even harder to make flourishes that are tasteful and natural-looking. In today’s short tutorial, I’ll show you my technique for making flourishes that look polished every time.
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6 Tricks I Used to Learn Calligraphy Quickly

July 17, 2018 by Lindsey Bugbee 111 Comments
Beginner’s Calligraphy· Calligraphy

The other day, I received an email asking me about what I — personally — did to learn calligraphy. Did I practice with workbooks? Set myself rigid hours devoted to writing? Actually, no. My practice was always pleasant and fairly non-structured, and I learned pretty quickly! In this post, I’ll go over six tricks that I used to keep my learning on the right track. Hopefully you can apply them to your own calligraphy journey!
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