Preparing for calligraphy workshops makes me so happy! I love writing out participant place cards, arranging little bouquets of flowers, and coming up with curriculum tweaks. On the day of, I arrive early at The Riverside and set up the room to make it comfortable and beautiful. If you are relaxed and in a pleasing environment, I believe that it’s easier to tap into your creativity!
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I want to start this post off by saying that if you experience a lot of calligraphy ink problems, there may be a simple culprit. The first may be that you have not prepared your nib for use; or you might be holding your pen too upright. If you have addressed those issues and continue to experience problems, then this post will be helpful! In it, we’ll go through four common calligraphy ink problems and how to fix them.
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Last weekend, two cool things happened here in Boulder, Colorado. The first was literally cool: Saturday was a chilly day — in the midst of a slew of warm days — filled to the brim with snow. The second cool thing involved an amazing group of people who braved the snow to come to downtown Boulder to learn calligraphy. I couldn’t have had a better time getting to teach learners at the two TPK beginner calligraphy workshops last Saturday, and I want to sincerely thank everyone who participated!
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In the second half of last year, I traveled extensively to teach modern calligraphy workshops. From September through December, I went to Portland, Berkeley, Brooklyn, and Tampa — and I enjoyed every second of it! It was amazing to help people in different parts of the US have “aha!” moments when it came to calligraphy. I also loved how men and women of all different ages participated, encouraging each other as class progressed.
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White calligraphy is enchanting, unique, and an attainable skill to add to your lettering repetoire. We’re used to seeing light papers with dark inks, but dark papers with light inks are a rarity! If you’ve never tried using white calligraphy ink, I encourage you to give it a shot. The capability to make white lettering is one of the major perks of being able to use a dip pen! In this post, I’ll provide seven tips to help you get started.
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2016 is coming to a close, which means it’s the perfect time to reflect on everything that’s happened this year. For me, that reflection has meant realizing how many creative, amazing people I have had the opportunity to interact with because of this website! I am consistently amazed by how self-motivated, positive, and artistic the people who follow TPK are; and this community motivates me to keep improving my own work!
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There is no “must have” list of intermediate calligraphy supplies, and I want to get that out of the way from the get-go! As long as you have basic calligraphy supplies, you’re all set to create calligraphy regardless of your skill level. For that reason, this intermediate calligraphy supply list offers suggestions for tools that should be fun to toy with. None of these supplies are things you absolutely must own, but they’re all nice to have!
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Over the past few years, I have taught several beginners’ modern calligraphy workshops and answered countless calligraphy questions via email. Those experiences have taught me that there is a need for a blog post like this one: a post that shows you where to start learning from scratch! In this blog post, I’ll walk you through how to learn modern calligraphy in a few simple steps.
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Modern calligraphy is a fun and useful hobby; there are few people out there who won’t appreciate a beautifully addressed envelope or a neatly written note! Many people would like to learn how to create swoon-worthy lettering, but the vast number of calligraphy supplies available may make the pastime intimidating for a calligraphy beginner. So, if you’re a beginner or if you know a beginner, this post is for you! In it, you’ll learn about supplies you can buy to make for a smooth and enjoyable introduction to this wonderful art.
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In Part I of the Black Calligraphy Inks Comparison series, you were introduced to Ziller, Sumi, and Higgins inks. Today, we’re going to examine three more inks to conclude the comparison: Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bombay India Ink, Speedball India Ink, and Winsor & Newton Black Calligraphy Ink. All of these inks are excellent choices if you wish to create black calligraphy; however, it’s a good idea to get to know them a little bit better before you make a buying decision.
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