Here’s my perfect morning: jasmine tea with milk and honey, a quiet house, and a handful of blank envelopes. Mail art is the ideal bite-sized project, and one that presents a delightful challenge. I love having the opportunity to hand-letter and/or create calligraphy, come up with fun illustrations, and sift through my postage stamp collection.
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Painting with Watercolors for Beginners
Before I started writing this article, I decided to conduct some online research on painting with watercolors for beginners. That way, I reasoned, I wouldn’t gloss over any points, and I could craft an altogether better post. And … holy moly. I personally use watercolors all the time, and the information I found on Google overwhelmed me. After reading too many “information overload” articles, I threw up my hands and decided to go rogue. In this post, you’ll find the simple points that I think are important if you’re trying your hand at watercolors for the first time.
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How to Fix Dried-Up Calligraphy Ink
We’re all guilty of choosing ink favorites, which eventually results in our not-so-beloved bottles turning into dried-up calligraphy ink. When I set out to write this article, I had six dry or sludgy bottles of old ink that I thought were destined for the trash can. What I discovered it is this: almost any calligraphy ink will reconstitute back to a usable state with water.
The Nikko G Nib: The Best Beginner Calligraphy Nib

I always recommend the Nikko G nib (say: “neek-oh”) as the best beginner calligraphy nib. It’s in the supply list section of all TPK Learn Calligraphy worksheets as well as the Beginner’s Modern Calligraphy Online Course. Using the Nikko G nib can save you a lot of frustration, which will encourage you to keep practicing your calligraphy! In this post, we’ll discuss why this special nib is good for beginners, where you can find it, and how to use it to its full potential.
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10 Examples of Name Calligraphy on Envelopes
There are many occasions when you only need to write a person’s name on an envelope. Maybe you’re tucking a birthday card into a mailed package, or perhaps you’re hand-delivering a party or wedding invitation. In both of those situations, it would be strange to write the recipient’s full address on the envelope. Today, I’ll walk you through 10 inspirational examples of “name calligraphy” on envelopes, along with a couple of instructional tutorials and a video.
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How to Make a Fabulous Hand-Lettered Birthday Card
Look at the photo above this paragraph. ^This^ is what happens when I suddenly find myself in a quiet house, with both my children at nursery school for the morning. I could not resist making my friend a fabulous hand-lettered birthday card! In today’s tutorial, I’ll walk you through how to make a card just like it. Disclaimer: a quick birthday card concept this is not. It took me about 1.5 hours to make. If you’re looking for something that comes together more efficiently, see other TPK birthday card tutorials.
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