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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.

    Introducing Fantastic Fairytale Calligraphy Drills

    January 30, 2020

    by

    Lindsey Bugbee

    Calligraphy, Calligraphy Drills, Worksheets

    TPK’s new Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills packet features a fanciful fairytale theme. This collection of drills will challenge you, improve your dip pen skills, and teach you how to create a showstopper of a dragon!

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    Fabulous Fairytale Calligraphy Drills!
    You can click here to find TPK’s latest (and absolutely enchanting) calligraphy drills packet.

    I’ll be the first to admit: I’ve never liked traditional calligraphy drills. If I’m making a shape, I want to be making something — not just a circle, a loop, or a “U”. That’s why I came up with the Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills concept! With NYACD, you still end up making a lot of traditional drill strokes, but those strokes come together to create a graphic that you recognize. These artistic calligraphy drills fire up your creativity and keep your calligraphy creation fun and fresh!

    Fabulous Fairytale Calligraphy Drills
    The “Not in Kansas Anymore” drill in the new Fairytale Drills packet is really just a collection of calligraphy-improving loops that come together to look like a tornado!

    Meet TPK’s New Fairytale Drills Packet

    The latest addition to the Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills collection has a fairytale theme. Every drill relates back to a fairytale or a fun magical story! You’ll start out by writing simple drills like “Magic Wand” and “Spindle”. These drills help you to practice simple strokes, and they warm you up for the rest of the worksheet.

    Introducing Fantastic Fairytale Calligraphy Drills

    Next, you move on to drills that are a bit more challenging. Don’t worry: the drills worksheet will show you exactly how to create each one and provide you with tracing practice!

    Introducing Fantastic Fairytale Calligraphy Drills

    After the square drills, you’ll find circular drills. These drills are larger than the square drills, and they provide a new kind of practice: dashed lines. I like writing over dashed lines because they force you to focus on stroke contrast as you’re creating a drill!

    Fabulous Fairytale-Themed Drills
    Dashed lines are great because they make you think a little bit more about which strokes to make bold and which ones to make thin!

    The fairytale drills packet concludes with three larger drills: Fairy Wings, Lion, and Dragon. These larger calligraphy drills give you quality practice as they show you how to create a work of art!

    Lion Calligraphy Drill
    Have a Leo friend? Use this lion drill to make a card or mail art for him or her!

    Benefits of Doing Calligraphy Drills

    People have been writing out calligraphy drills for centuries, and for good reason! Calligraphy drills help you to practice pressure exertion, pen movements, and precision. These three P’s come really handy when you want to create fluid, impressive writing! In the case of these Fairytale Drills — and all of TPK’s Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills — you work toward an end. The main goal is to complete the entire drills packet. Then, you can always print out a fresh copy when you feel like you need a refresher *or* you want to warm up before an important calligraphy project!

    Fabulous Fairytale-Themed Drills!

    I have to admit that, while practice is the main focus of this drills pack, my favorite part is the dragon! The flourishes are so eye-catching, and I already used it to spruce up an envelope for a friend of mine who has a particular fondness for Game of Thrones.

    Where to find Not Your Average Calligraphy Drills: Fairytale Edition

    The Fairytale Edition drills packet is available in the TPK catalog, and you can find it by clicking here ($5.00)! There are two other NYACD packets available as well: Garden Edition and Under the Sea Edition.  Regardless of which drills packet(s) you choose to fill out, make sure you print them out on 32# laserjet paper (or another smooth, quality paper). Use your favorite pen and nib combination, or a new pen and nib combination that you wish to familiarize yourself with!

    Winter has arrived, but that’s okay: we’re pretty sure that these calligraphy drills would delight even the Night King!

    I hope that you enjoy filling out these new drills as much as I liked creating them! If you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments. Otherwise, you can …

    Get Your Fairytale Drills Here!

    Have a great weekend, and happy calligraphy practicing/flourishing!

    Warmly,

    Lindsey's Signature | The Postman's Knock

     

     

     

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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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14 responses

  1. Rosa Avatar
    Rosa
    September 20, 2021

    Can we use these drills for brush marker practice as well? They look like so much fun!

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  2. Denise Holt-Baisley Avatar
    Denise Holt-Baisley
    November 9, 2020

    These drills, and all of your drills, help my in my efforts to regain control of my hands. MS has taken most of my abilities away.
    Thank you!

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    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      November 9, 2020

      I’m so sorry to hear that, but I’m so glad you’re able to use my drills to help you regain your control. You are very inspiring. 🙂

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  3. Kathy Andrews Avatar
    Kathy Andrews
    May 1, 2020

    These remind me of learning cursive in grade school. I loved it!

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  4. Kori Avatar
    Kori
    May 1, 2020

    Makes practice fun.

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  5. Kayla Leinbach Avatar
    Kayla Leinbach
    May 1, 2020

    This worksheet is so much fun!!! Thanks, Lindsey for creating it for us!!! ☺️

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  6. Carol Evans Avatar
    Carol Evans
    February 13, 2020

    Lindsey, I signed up for your beginning calligraphy class, but honestly, I have a long way to go. I am more interested in just doing these drills and ditching the writing part.

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    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      February 19, 2020

      No worries! Start wherever you feel comfortable!! 🙂

      Log in to Reply
  7. Andrea M Goo Avatar
    Andrea M Goo
    January 31, 2020

    Was this dragon for me Lindsey? Surely it was! 🥰 I have a real ‘thing’ for dragons. I’m going to have fun with this one. It may even get featured on a birthday card some day. Muchas gracias!!!!!

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    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      February 21, 2020

      Aw glad you like it!! 🙂

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  8. Katrina Avatar
    Katrina
    January 31, 2020

    Lindsey, these are amazing!! I look forward to getting and trying them soon. That dragon! (swoon)

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    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      January 31, 2020

      The dragon is my favorite part, too! The perfect majestic beast to flourish. 🙂

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  9. Sowkar Avatar
    Sowkar
    January 30, 2020

    I love to improve my dip pen and flourishing skills.This is a perfect class for my creative calligraphy journey!!Thank you so much!! 🤩🤗

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      January 31, 2020

      It’s my pleasure! It was so much fun to make. <3

      Log in to Reply

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The other day, I was thinking about sending out ho The other day, I was thinking about sending out holiday cards, and I immediately dismissed the thought with, “I have zero time to calligraph envelopes for those.” ✍️

... But is that true? I put it to the test for the latest article on the TPK Blog. Using some time-saving tricks I’ve learned over the years (like using a watery ink, a bouncy calligraphy style, and minimal pencil guidelines), I timed myself making three envelope concepts. Two of them took 5 minutes or less. The most time-intensive took 5 minutes, 30 seconds. The envelopes still turned out looking elegant, especially with the help of some artistic postage stamp collages. 💌

For clear step-by-step tutorials detailing how to make these envelopes and sourcing pretty postage, visit the TPK Blog (link in bio, then navigate to “Blog”)!

#snailmail #mail #calligraphy #pointedpencalligraphy #happymail #snailmailrevolution #mailbox #postage #vintagepostage
After I chose this music to accompany this reel, i After I chose this music to accompany this reel, it dawned on me: drawing a calligraphy medallion is like, well, Belle’s arc with the Beast. 

At first, it’s a bit of a weird situation. Strange shapes, questionable structure, possibly some growling (à la “YOU WILL JOIN ME FOR DINNER. That’s not a request!”) when the inevitable ink smudge happens. You keep thinking, “I’m not sure why I’m doing this ... should I hop on Felipe and gallop away?” 🐎

But something shifts as the medallion starts to come to life. And when you finish that last detail and pull back, the music swells. Light bursts from your paper like it did from Beast’s digits as he transformed into a stunningly beautiful prince. ✨ You’re practically in a ballroom celebrating, and, wait, did your furniture just turn into an adoring crowd that’s celebrating your fortitude and skill?

(And now you know how my mind works 🧠 ... I love a good metaphor, no matter how weak it may be!) 

To learn how to make a calligraphy medallion, just search for “calligraphy medallion” on the TPK site (link in bio). You’ll find both free Blog tutorials and detailed premium worksheets.

... I’ll show myself out now. 🙈

#pointedpencalligraphy #calligraphy #handwritten #pointedpen #dippen #calligraphymedallion #calligraphydrill #calligraphypractice
My favorite autumn projects are the ones that remi My favorite autumn projects are the ones that remind you how cozy this season can be. 🍂 This project definitely fits the bill ... create it with a hot, comforting drink nearby and an excellent audiobook, and you’re in for a treat! ☕️ ✍️ The tutorial on the TPK Blog (link in bio, then navigate to Blog) is super detailed, with mini tutorial videos to guide you every step of the way.

#autumnart #watercolortutorial #arttutorial #handpainted #paintingtutorial #pointedpen #dippen #flourishing
Happy Halloween! 👻 This year, I’m pretending Happy Halloween! 👻 This year, I’m pretending to be ... someone who writes calligraphy quickly! (No, just kidding — not about the video being sped up, but the choice of costume. I actually picked up a skeleton PJ set at Goodwill. 💀)

Even if you won’t be indulging in candy, remember to treat yourself this season, starting this weekend! The holiday season can be hectic, and it’s important to claim some relaxing time for yourself. Cheers to the “holidaze”! 🥂

#halloweencalligraphy #calligraphy #pointedpen #dippen #handwritten #writingvideo #calligraphyvideo
🎃 This is the last week that Halloween calligra 🎃 This is the last week that Halloween calligraphy drills will be available at TPK! Find what you like in the shop, download, then print it out on a pointed pen-friendly paper. Then, let the (happily!) spooky vibes take over while you practice your strokes. ✍️👻

➡ Link in bio to visit the TPK site.

#calligraphydrills #halloween #calligraphypractice #learncalligraphy #pointedpencalligraphy #dippen #pointedpen
✍️ Learn with us! Right now, TPK Premium membe ✍️ Learn with us! Right now, TPK Premium members are working their way through a new version of The Beginner’s Modern Calligraphy Online Course. It’s an *awesome* course that’s even more thorough than the original version (which is saying a lot because the original course has 281 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐ reviews)! We just had the Lesson 3 class discussion this morning, ️and I’m so impressed with how much progress students are making — and I love their observations! One person compared using the Brause EF66 nib to driving a Lexus, which I got a kick out of. 🚘 

Premium membership ($5/month) grants you complimentary access to the course through January 6th; take it live with us! Once this course wraps up, we’ll be moving on to the new Intermediate Modern Calligraphy Online Course in February. 

Find details by visiting the link in my bio. I’d love to help you build those foundational skills that will allow you to create gorgeous envelopes, place cards, invitations, quotes, correspondence, and much more! The Lesson 4 class discussion is three weeks from now, so you’ve got plenty of time to catch up. 😊

#learncalligraphy #pointedpencalligraphy #writingcalligraphy #calligraphycourse #learningcalligraphy #writingcalligraphy #realtimecalligraphy
🍂 The newest tutorial on the TPK Blog walks you 🍂 The newest tutorial on the TPK Blog walks you through how to make this gorgeous illustration, step-by-step, with helpful instructional videos. To find the tutorial, visit the link in my profile, then navigate to the blog. ENJOY! 🤗

(PS - Loving the colors in the @greenleafblue Anthesis set ... I used French Orange Ochre, American Violet Hematite, Pyrrole Scarlet, and Italian Green Earth to make this pumpkin. All *fabulous* autumn tones!)
Loved chatting with @sdionbakerdesign and @greenle Loved chatting with @sdionbakerdesign and @greenleafblue last Friday! Samantha is exactly as thoughtful and creative as you’d imagine from her Draw Your… books — and this answer to Jennifer’s question says it all. ✨ Just have fun and make art!

☕ Want to watch/listen to the whole conversation? Head over to the TPK Blog to hit play on the recording! (Link in bio, then navigate to “Blog”.)

#artistchat #artist #samanthadionbaker #greenleafandblueberry #thepostmansknock #arttalk #creativity #sketchbooking #sketchbook #artadvice
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