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  • Welcome to TPK! This is your first of 2 free articles. For unlimited access to tutorials and articles, join TPK Premium for less than the cost of a latte.

    How to Make a Calligraphy Happy Birthday Envelope

    June 7, 2022

    by

    Lindsey Bugbee

    Birthday Cards, Dip Pen Calligraphy, Tutorials, Video

    Next time you need to make a happy birthday envelope for a card, look no further than this tutorial!

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    How to Make a Calligraphy Happy Birthday Envelope

    A calligraphy happy birthday envelope builds anticipation for the card inside! Today, I’ll walk you through how to write a simple and pretty greeting that features white calligraphy with gold accents.


    Written Tutorial

    1. Gather Your Supplies

    To get started, you’ll need a few key supplies. Feel free to make modifications or substitutions to the list below!

    The Perfect Calligraphy Envelope Generator
    TPK’s Perfect Calligraphy Envelope Generator is a free printable that will come in handy for a variety of projects.
    • The Perfect Calligraphy Envelope Generator (printed on any paper)
    • Dark Envelope (I used an A2 envelope in “Ebony Black”)
    • White pencil
    • Black eraser
    • White ink
    • Gold watercolor
    • Brause EF66 nib + oblique pen
    • Parallel glider or a regular ruler

    2. Make a Pencil Draft

    First, use a ruler, a white pencil, and The Perfect Calligraphy Envelope Generator to make a pair of guidelines. Be sure to draw slant lines, too! Then, write “Happy Birthday” on the top line and your recipient’s name on the bottom line.

    Calligraphy Happy Birthday Envelope
    If you want some practice writing  “Happy Birthday”, you can download the Free Greeting Card Calligraphy Cheat Sheet + Worksheet.

    3. Add Ink

    Next, use your favorite pen + nib combination and white ink to write over your pencil draft.

    Calligraphy Happy Birthday Envelope
    I like to use a Brause EF66 nib + an oblique pen to write in elegant, right-leaning calligraphy.

    4. Add Gold Accents

    Now, give the calligraphy just a bit of glittery personality by “hugging” some of the strokes with gold watercolor.

    Calligraphy Happy Birthday Envelope
    If you’re not sure how to write with gold watercolor, see this tutorial.

    5. Erase Pencil Guidelines and Enjoy!

    Finish up by using a black eraser to erase your pencil lines. Be gentle! Sometimes white ink will smear if you go over it too aggressively.

    How to Make a Calligraphy Happy Birthday Envelope
    I tucked this happy birthday envelope — with a gift certificate inside — into a calligraphy starter kit and sent it to Daisy at her mother’s request.

    I hope that this tutorial comes in handy next time you want to create a lovely birthday card presentation! Thanks very much for watching/reading, and enjoy the rest of your day.

    Warmly,

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Sketchbooking

About the author

Hi, I’m Lindsey Bugbee, the illustrator, calligrapher, and author behind The Postman’s Knock (TPK). Since 2012, the TPK Blog has been a vibrant creative space filled with tutorials and lessons on modern calligraphy, hand lettering, and illustration. After publishing The Calligraphy Book, I wanted to elevate the quality of content even further—so I launched TPK Premium. You can join here to receive access to some of the internet’s best creative inspiration and project tutorials.

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3 responses

  1. LadyBird Avatar
    LadyBird
    September 12, 2024

    Great Tips. Calligraphy can add such a personal touch to special occasions like birthdays!

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 28, 2024

      100%!

      Log in to Reply
  2. Jesika Parker Avatar
    Jesika Parker
    June 10, 2022

    I didn’t have any expectations concerning that title, but the more I was astonished. The author did a great job. I spent a few minutes reading and checking the facts. Everything is very clear and understandable. I like posts that fill in your knowledge gaps. This one is of the sort.

    Log in to Reply

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As much as cooking is an art, illustrating a recip As much as cooking is an art, illustrating a recipe takes it one step further. ✨ In TPK’s latest tutorial (link in bio), I’ll show you how to create an illustrated chocolate lava cake recipe using watercolor. You’ll find helpful PDFs and step-by-step instructions so you can follow along — or use the layout to bring one of your own favorite dishes to life.

Frame it as keepsake art, or give it as a thoughtful handmade gift this holiday season. 🎁

#illustratedrecipe #watercolorart #calligraphycommunity #foodillustration #arttutorial #watercolortutorial #creativeprojects #handmadegifts #keepsakeart #thepostmansknock
✨ One of the most beloved assignments from Lesso ✨ One of the most beloved assignments from Lesson 5 of Hand Lettering 101 was this playful project: design an artistic alphabet where no two letters look the same.

The idea? JUST PLAY. 🎨 I used watercolor and a paintbrush, but many students grabbed markers, pens, or anything colorful on hand. The results were incredible — @adriennelovesletters gave it her own flair, Isabel C. made it three times, and Laura M. created a stunning version too. (You can peek at more inside the TPK Premium Discord!)

If you’re ready to try this project yourself, you’ll find the Hand Lettering 101 eCourse waiting in the TPK Catalog. Just head to the link in my bio to be taken to the TPK website. 💌

#handlettering #watercolorlettering #moderncalligraphy #letteringpractice #creativeplay #calligraphycommunity #artinspiration #calligraphyart #watercolorart #letterlove #tpkpremium #handlettering101
Had the best time writing the latest tutorial on t Had the best time writing the latest tutorial on the TPK Blog — “Drawing Lesson: Elegant Swallows” (🔗 link in bio). If you’ve never drawn birds before, swallows are an excellent place to start. Their shapes are simple once you break them down! ✍️ 

In the tutorial, you’ll find:

🪶 Step-by-step visual instructions for drawing swallows in four different movements
🪶 The “Hand-Drawn Swallows Cheat Sheet” PDF
🪶 A detailed tutorial for making the mail art shown here

On another note, I want to extend a huge THANK YOU to TPK Premium and Premium Plus members ... your support allows me to write cool detailed tutorials like this one. 🙏 You all are amazing, and I’m so proud of our community.

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In June, I kicked off the Hand Lettering 101 eCour In June, I kicked off the Hand Lettering 101 eCourse with TPK Premium members, and wow — it’s been such a joy to watch the transformation.

Over six lessons, students went from that “where do I even start?” feeling to confidently creating their own alphabets, playing with flourishes, and putting together gorgeous compositions. I loved seeing those little lightbulb moments along the way.

Here’s the great news — you can still take the course.
When you sign up, you’ll get instant access to:
📚 All six lessons (9+ hours of video demonstrations + printable PDFs)
🖌 Fun, approachable projects that build your skills without feeling overwhelming
🎯 A “before and after” assignment that’s always such a satisfying reveal

If you’ve been wanting a gentle, step-by-step way to get started with hand lettering, this is it. You can DM me for the link, or search Hand Lettering 101 on the TPK site (link in profile).

#handlettering101 #handlettering #moderncalligraphy #letteringlove #calligraphycommunity #learntoletter #creativelettering #letteringcourse #onlineartclass #artpractice
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The latest article on the TPK Blog shows you exactly how to draw and shade a realistic pencil sphere, and it’s packed with tips about different types of pencils! Premium members have been trying it out and sharing their spheres in our private Discord (they’re 🔥). If you’re not a member, you can still read the post — non-members get two free blog articles a month before the paywall kicks in.

Full tutorial → link in bio.

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A pencil can:
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✏️ Help you sketch delicate drafts that work with any medium
✏️ Create jaw-dropping monochrome drawings

The guide also includes one of my favorite tutorials ever: how to shade a pencil sphere so it looks perfectly round. I can’t recommend it enough — it’s strangely relaxing, and honestly a much better time-filler than scrolling social media. 😉

You can find “The Pencil Guide: Everything You Need to Know About Graphite” by clicking the link in my profile.

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🍷 Certain wines are better for writing than others … basically, the more terrified you’d be to spill it on white fabric, the better it works for calligraphy!

✒️ You can write with wine as-is (as shown in the first photo) — no need to add any binders. But if you reduce it on the stovetop and add a binder, the wine transforms into a formidable ink (see the second and third photos).

🫙 Reduced wine with binder keeps for several months as a usable ink.

💌 Red wine would make for an incredible wedding envelope ink. Is it waterproof? Absolutely not. But could you treat it with a fixative spray to make it waterproof? Absolutely.

While I try to post goodies here on Instagram, long-form content is my jam — and everything I’ve learned about wine ink (and much more) lives on the TPK Blog. Head to the blog (link in profile) and go to page five! There, you’ll find an article that walks you through everything from the best wine to use to a foolproof recipe for the romantic color you see on the “Madame Eloise Chou” envelope.

#winecraft #winecalligraphy #sipandscript #moderncalligraphy #mailbox #snailmailrevolution #wedding #weddingpaper #weddingaesthetic #pointedpencalligraphy
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