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  • 6 Free Printables That Will Improve Your Calligraphy This Month

    by

    Lindsey Bugbee

    , , , , , ,

    Holiday card season is nearly upon us, which is a great excuse to use November to strengthen your calligraphy skills! If you commit to filling out two short (and free!) worksheets per week, you’ll be ready to calligraph envelopes, greeting cards, place cards, and more.

    Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills Sheet | The Postman's Knock

    There is hardly a better time to let your calligraphy shine than just before the holidays! From beautiful greeting cards to embellished envelopes and place cards, the best time of year to use your skills is approaching. Here’s what I propose: spend the month of November honing your dip pen technique, then start churning out gorgeous work at the beginning of December! These six free printables will help you to get thoroughly acquainted — or reaquainted — with your pen:

    1. Pencil Calligraphy Worksheet

    The pencil calligraphy worksheet will help you work on your pressure exertion and letter formations. As an added bonus, you can complete this worksheet on the go … there’s no ink involved.

    The Beginner's Guide to Pencil Calligraphy | The Postman's Knock
    You can download the Pencil Calligraphy Worksheet for free by clicking here.

    When to fill it out: I recommend filling this worksheet out sometime this week (ideal deadline: Sunday, November 12th).

    2. 11 Calming Calligraphy Drills

    The 11 Calming Calligraphy Drills printable helps you to become familiar with using a dip pen. The drills are all straightforward, with an emphasis on basic upstrokes and downstrokes.

    11 Calming Calligraphy Drills Printable | The Postman's Knock
    You can download the 11 Calming Calligraphy Drills Printable for free by clicking here.

    When to fill it out: I recommend filling this worksheet out sometime this week (ideal deadline: Sunday, November 12th).

    3. Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills

    Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills is where the challenge starts to pick up! The drills in this worksheet are more involved, and half of the drills sheet involves working without guidelines.

    Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills Sheet | The Postman's Knock
    You can download the Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills sheet for free by clicking here.

    When to fill it out: I recommend filling this worksheet out sometime next week (ideal deadline: Sunday, November 19th).

    4. Calligraphy Spacing Cross Drills Worksheet

    Virtually every calligrapher struggles with consistent letter spacing in words. It’s human nature to “scrunch up” some letter pairs, while other pairs are spaced far apart. Filling out this Cross Drills Worksheet will help with that! The worksheet challenges you to maintain consistent spacing.

    Free Calligraphy Spacing Cross Drills Worksheet | The Postman's Knock
    You can find the Calligraphy Spacing Cross Drills Worksheet for free by clicking here.

    When to fill it out: I recommend filling this worksheet out sometime next week (ideal deadline: Sunday, November 19th).

    5. Free Calligraphy Worksheet of Your Choice

    Every Learn Calligraphy worksheet on the TPK website has a free exemplar counterpart. Choose the calligraphy style that most appeals to you, and fill out that free worksheet! Here are all the links:

    Free Janet Style Calligraphy Exemplar | The Postman's Knock
    This is the Janet Style free exemplar/worksheet. You can find it for free by clicking here.

    When to fill it out: I recommend filling one of these worksheets out sometime at the end of this month (ideal deadline: Sunday, November 26th).

    6. Creative Calligraphy Challenge Worksheet

    The Creative Calligraphy Challenge printable encourages you to be creative with your calligraphy! It serves as a reminder that calligraphy doesn’t have to be stuffy or serious. As an added bonus, completing the worksheet may help you to develop a personal, unique calligraphy style that you love!

    A Creative Calligraphy Challenge | The Postman's Knock
    You can find the Creative Calligraphy Challenge worksheet for free by clicking here.

    When to fill it out: I recommend filling out this worksheet sometime at the end of this month (ideal deadline: Sunday, November 26th).

    I know that this time of year starts to get hectic, but focusing on your calligraphy now will ensure that you’re “warmed up” by the end of November/beginning of December! Some of the worksheets in this blog post will take longer to fill out than others, but none will exceed an hour’s worth of work.

    Beautiful Holiday Envelope | The Postman's Knock
    You can find instructions on how to create this flourished tree in the 2016 Holiday Calligraphy Worksheet. I will release a 2017 edition shortly after Thanksgiving!

    So, if you have 1-2 hours to spare per week, give this little November challenge a shot! You will be glad that you did it when you start writing out addresses on holiday envelopes or making DIY holiday cards. After all, calligraphy is something that looks better and gets easier with practice!

    Thanks very much for reading this short and sweet post — happy writing, and enjoy the rest of your week!

    Warmly,

    Lindsey's Signature | The Postman's Knock

    PS – There are only six spots left in the TPK Tampa beginner calligraphy workshops. All six spots are in the Sunday morning workshop (December 17th from 9:30-12:30)! Several participants have told me that the workshop is their holiday gift to themselves; the feeling is mutual because it’s a true treat for me to get to meet with and teach you! If you can’t make it to the Sunday morning workshop, you can always email me ([email protected]) to get your name on the waiting list for one of the other two workshops that weekend (Saturday morning or Sunday afternoon). I’m glad to accommodate if I can!