I don’t know about you, but my interest in calligraphy and hand-lettering actually stemmed from a love of writing letters. As a young child, it amazed me that something I created could end up anywhere I wanted it to! I still get a thrill when I send off a letter or open my mailbox and see that I’ve received something.
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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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My family first got a scanner around the year 1998, and I remember being fascinated with the concept. You could draw something, and all of a sudden, there it was on your computer screen! And then, you could take it a step further and make copies of what you’d drawn. Amazing.
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The Nikko G nib is a fantastic calligraphy nib — but did you know that it was originally developed to be a drawing nib? I’ve used it to illustrate several fun projects like a lace butterfly and a henna bluebird! The objective of today’s mail art tutorial is twofold: first, I want you to end up with an artistic envelope that you love. Second, I want you to get a basic introduction to drawing with the Nikko G because next month I plan to explore pen and ink drawing techniques a bit more with you!
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There’s hardly a better canvas to practice your art, calligraphy, and lettering skills on than an envelope! Envelopes’ practical, temporary nature makes them great for trying out new techniques and exercising old favorites. In this post, you’ll find 12 artistic envelope ideas to fire you up for making your own mail art!
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I recently received an email from a reader asking me about the practical uses for calligraphy. This reader works in the corporate world, and she was having trouble justifying taking the time to learn the art. I get it! We constantly have to make choices about how to manage our days, and oftentimes you can’t justify indulging in an enjoyable creative pursuit. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that calligraphy can be incorporated into your day-to-day with good reason! Here’s what I came up with:
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I think that a lot of people would like to try making mail art, but, due to time constraints, it never happens. Just like any artistic pursuit, though, you can choose how much effort you put into your envelopes! Today’s three short tutorials will give you options for making cool pieces of mail art even when you are pressed for time.
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Mail art is what first inspired me to learn calligraphy. I love the concept of surprising someone with a gorgeous and unique delivery! There are some truly beautiful (and — let’s be honest — intimidating) examples of mail art online, so the goal of this post is to build up your confidence to send mail art yourself. It doesn’t have to be perfect; the whole point is to tap into your creativity and give someone else a happy surprise! Below, you’ll find some tips to get you started.
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After years of renting an apartment, my husband and I purchased a house in Boulder, Colorado, last year. While I love being a homeowner and being able to decorate my office like I want to, I do miss one thing: paying the rent. Every month from mid-2015 to mid-2017, I made mail art envelopes to send to the rental company who managed our apartment. Each mail art envelope contained a check, but that was the only thing they had in common! Today, I’d like to share a collection of 2016’s rent check envelopes, which is the only complete year of photos that I have. They’re fun to look at for inspiration and ideas!
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It’s fun to make creative mail throughout the year, but in these last two months, you can bring out all of the bells and whistles! Metallic inks, themed motifs, and flourishy scripts are all at home on holiday envelope art; and, of course, a holiday-themed postage stamp collage doesn’t hurt. In today’s tutorial, I’ll show you how to make a Christmas tree-themed piece that is festive to the max! You can follow the steps below to make cool holiday envelope art of your own.
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