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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.

    Phyllis Macaluso’s “Spooktacular” Halloween Card Tutorials

    September 24, 2020

    by

    Lindsey Bugbee

    Free Printables, Greeting Card Tutorials, Guest Post, Halloween, Tutorials

    I am thrilled to welcome Phyllis Macaluso back to the TPK website with Halloween projects that celebrate the season in a big way! Today, Phyllis will teach us how to make two different Halloween card concepts, plus she’ll inspire us with an assortment of spooky envelopes. 🕷

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    Phyllis Macaluso's "Spooktacular" Halloween Card Tutorials

    Phyllis Macaluso is the reigning queen of creative cards and fabulous calligraphy. She combines the two to add festivity to every season! This autumn, she’s done it again with spooktacular card and envelope design concepts. In this tutorial, she’ll show us how to create a card and envelope that’s been taken over by (illustrated) spiders. She also has a playful mummy card and envelope motif to share!

    Before You Do Anything …

    Download Phyllis’s Printable Halloween Bundle. It includes fun design ideas and spooky lettering exemplars to help you make the cards in this tutorial. You can also use her ideas and exemplars to come up with your own motifs!

    You can find Phyllis’s Printable Halloween Bundle by clicking here.

    Spider Motif Tutorial

    Phyllis Macaluso's "Spooktacular" Halloween Card Tutorials

    1. Gather Your Supplies

    To create these simple spider-themed paper goods, you will need:

    • Sheet of dark cardstock
    • Dark cardstock cut and folded into a 5″x7″ (127 mm x 178 mm) card
    • Regular (white) printer paper
    • Bleed Proof White ink
    • White mechanical pencil
    • A7 envelope (Phyllis used a black envelope)
    • Basic tools (ruler, eraser, pencil, scissors)
    Phyllis Macaluso's "Spooktacular" Halloween Card Tutorials
    Optional additional supplies include metallic calligraphy paint, a Sakura Glaze pen (clear), a Sakura Stardust pen (clear), and wiggle eyes.

    2. Make a Web

    Once you’ve got your supplies, trace a circle that’s approximately 3.5″ (89 mm) wide onto a piece of dark cardstock. Then, cut the circle out. Fold the circle in half, then fold it in half again in the opposite direction. Continue to fold the circle in half until it has eight panels.

    Making a Cardstock Circle

    Next, use your scissors to cut a straight edge at the end of each of the eight panels. Then, use your white pencil to start drawing subtle semi-circles as pictured below.

    Continue to draft a web with your pencil until you have something that resembles one of the webs in Phyllis’s Printable Halloween Bundle. Then, trace over what you drew with metallic watercolor (Phyllis prefers The Creative Kinds watercolors, or you could use Finetec Pearl Colors). Put a dot of glue in the back center of your web, and glue the web to a card! You can decorate the card with additional webs and/or spiders and a fun Halloween greeting.

    Be sure to line up a top and bottom fold line with the fold in your card. Otherwise, the card won’t close properly.

    3. Decorate the Front of the Card

    For the front of the spider card, try drawing two halves of a web with fun Halloween calligraphy in between. Phyllis has some phrase suggestions in her Printable Halloween Bundle!

    Once you’ve drawn webs and written calligraphy on your card, try adding the same elements to your envelope!

    Mummy Motif Tutorial

    To make a mummy card, use your white pencil to draw a few jagged lines to signify torn cloth (step 1). Next, glue googly eyes to a patch of negative space (2). Finally, tear printer paper in a similar pattern to your jagged lines. Use a glue stick to secure the paper strips to the card (3).

    You can use the instructions from page 5 of Phyllis’s Printable Halloween Bundle to learn how to draw a mummy like the one on the envelope below!

    Bleed Proof White Ink is a fabulous choice for Halloween envelopes!

    If you’re feeling ambitious, draw a close-up mummy like the one shown on Phyllis’s envelope here. Doodle spiderwebs around your mummy to festively fill up space!

    Don’t Forget …

    The back of your envelope can be Halloween-themed, too! Feel free to use one of the lettering styles that Phyllis provided in her printable bundle to make an envelope and/or an envelope liner.

    Phyllis has provided us with two different Halloween-themed lettering styles in her printable bundle.

    I hope you enjoyed this fabulous tutorial, which is Phyllis’s third here on the TPK website. (Read her Matchbook Valentine’s Day Card Tutorial here and her Teapot-Themed Mother’s Day Card Tutorial here.) You can enjoy more of Phyllis’s work on Instagram (@fpmmac)! Many thanks go to Phyllis for taking the time to show us how to make some amazing Halloween paper goods. 🎃 For additional spooky goodness, you can check out other Halloween tutorials here on the TPK site. Happy autumn, and have a wonderful weekend!

    Warmly,

    Lindsey's Signature | The Postman's Knock

     

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About The Postman’s Knock (TPK)

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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67 responses

  1. Jessica Collins Avatar
    Jessica Collins
    October 25, 2021

    Will the Halloween tutorials be available on the blog after Halloween?

    Log in to Reply
  2. null Avatar
    null
    November 9, 2020

    That card is so cool! I love the spider web that pops open! I love the whole thing. The lettering, too!! Phyllis is amazing and is such a wonderful person.

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      November 9, 2020

      She is so amazing all around! 😊

      Log in to Reply
  3. lanetgill Avatar
    lanetgill
    October 19, 2020

    This is so fun. And I just LOVE Halloween. The Mummy is just too cute ☺️

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 27, 2020

      Right? They’re so fun 😊

      Log in to Reply
  4. Sarah Avatar
    Sarah
    October 19, 2020

    So cool!

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 27, 2020

      😊😊

      Log in to Reply
  5. Ginger Avatar
    Ginger
    October 12, 2020

    I really love how you always make an extra effort for Halloween.. it is the best day of the year after all.
    Great post! … thanks to both of you!

    Log in to Reply
  6. Ka Avatar
    Ka
    October 12, 2020

    This is awesome! My nieces will love this. Thank you!

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    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 12, 2020

      Of course! 😊

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  7. null Avatar
    null
    October 12, 2020

    Thank you for sharing this! I’d forgotten how easy it is to draw a spider and a web until I read your post. I had to send a birthday card to my sister so I added the web and spider to a corner of the envelope and it really dressed up the card. She loved it, too! I enjoy your blog posts very much and look forward to getting your emails.

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 12, 2020

      Yay, that’s so awesome! So happy to hear that 😊

      Log in to Reply
  8. kayla Avatar
    kayla
    October 12, 2020

    these make me all the more excited to make halloween cards this year – one of my favourite holidays!

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 12, 2020

      Mine too 😊 Halloween cards are so much fun to make!

      Log in to Reply
  9. Madhura Avatar
    Madhura
    October 11, 2020

    I always love it when you write on dark papers with a light ink. Can’t wait to write some Halloween cards for this year!!

    Log in to Reply
    1. Lindsey Bugbee Avatar
      Lindsey Bugbee
      October 12, 2020

      Me neither! I love writing Halloween cards 😊

      Log in to Reply
  10. Amanda Ryan Avatar
    Amanda Ryan
    October 7, 2020

    I have also loved the various printables and Halloween themed cards! I am trying to make a new letter every other day! And send them all off before Halloween! It’s great practice for calligraphy, and fun doing a bit of art every day. Thanks for sharing!

    Log in to Reply
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There is nothing like a clean, well-organized wate There is nothing like a clean, well-organized watercolor chart. I used to make watercolor chart layouts using math and grids (which, trust me, was painful for someone like me, who doesn’t *love* numbers/measuring/calculations) ... then it occurred to me that I could use Photoshop to give myself a little boost. Much less math and fretting, which for me equals much more joy! Palette is from @greenleafblue — she made it so I could have a gorgeous palette for “The Calligraphy Book”, and this color chart definitely helped to boost the aesthetic of an already stunning supply. 🎨😍

If you’re curious about this technique for making a watercolor chart, you can search the TPK website for “watercolor chart” ... there’s a detailed blog post over how to use the template method that I’m showing you here!

#watercolorpalette #watercolorchart #colorchart #watercolorpaints #artchart
An X-Acto knife (aka a hobby knife) is one of thos An X-Acto knife (aka a hobby knife) is one of those tools that is indispensable for a lot of applications. It was designed to make precise cuts, which, of course, it does well! But, you can also use it to scrape off unwanted ink smears (pro tip: after the fact, you can smooth disturbed paper fibers with a pebble), create interesting interior cuts, trim tiny details that scissors can’t reach, make stencils and templates, refine collage elements, and gently correct small drawing or calligraphy mistakes.

I have used X-Acto knives for many TPK Blog tutorials, but up until last week, I’d never written a guide that puts the X-Acto knife front and center. That guide now exists, and you can find it by visiting the link 🔗 in my profile. Be sure to watch the tutorial video!

#xactoknife #hobbyknife #papercutting #papercutart #xactoknifeart
Just back in the TPK Supplies Shop: Finetec Arabic Just back in the TPK Supplies Shop: Finetec Arabic Gold watercolor pans (and the fabulous Finetec Golds palette). ✨ Gold makes *anything* gorgeous, but use it to make a calligraphy medallion, and it’s just next-level. 🤩 (Tutorial for this particular medallion can be found in the Dancing Pen Calligraphy Medallions Worksheet Set). 

To find the golds + the worksheet, visit the link in my bio, then navigate to “Shop”. Happy weekend! 

#goldcalligraphy #goldwatercolor #pointedpencalligraphy #fineteccoliro #goldcalligraphy
Hard to fit everything in, but this was 2025 in a Hard to fit everything in, but this was 2025 in a nutshell at TPK! 🥜

This year, I loved teaching at @thehappyevercrafter’s Workshop Week and participating in @calmingcalligraphy’s World Calligraphy as Meditation Day. And seeing the TPK calligraphy kit featured in @newyorkermag’s 2025 holiday gift guide was an unexpected (and delightful) cherry on top! 🍒

So much of what happened over the past year, though, was shaped by the TPK Premium community. Their questions and feedback helped guide Hand Lettering 101, while their encouragement fueled tutorials on topics ranging from turning red wine into calligraphy ink to illustrating recipes, painting with a wedge brush, and creating greeting cards and envelope art. 💌 That same support made it possible to create new worksheets and resources that others were able to enjoy as well, which I’m very grateful for. 

For a fuller recap (with helpful links and details) I shared a 2025 reflection on the TPK blog (link in bio).

#handlettering #gracefulenvelopecontest #pointedpencalligraphy #discordcommunity #calligraphyteacher
Which is your favorite koi-themed envelope? The fi Which is your favorite koi-themed envelope? The first one (A. Moreira), which was created as a prop for “The Calligraphy Book” ... *or* the second (Nigel Wright), which was created for the photographer who took pictures of the Moreira envelope for “The Calligraphy Book”? (When I heard how much Nigel had loved the first koi envelope, I made him his own variation!) 🎏

#mailart #snailmail #mailbox #snailmailrevolution #koiart
✨ A little comparison today … because not all ✨ A little comparison today ... because not all golds behave the same.

✦ Finetec gold → bright, cheerful, and versatile
✦ Greenleaf & Blueberry faux brass → softer, muted, and stunning
✦ Yasutomo pale gold → velvety, subtle shimmer with a sensible amount of sparkle

I love having all three on hand and choosing based on the feel I want for a project. It’s tough to go wrong! ✨

#moderncalligraphy #calligraphytools #goldink #watercolorcalligraphy #letteringcommunity mailart calligraphypractice artmaterials creativeprocess handlettering
🕊️ I originally made these printable tags for 🕊️ I originally made these printable tags for gifts … but now I want them everywhere. On presents 🎁, yes; but also tucked into snail mail, sprinkled across a holiday table with happy words written inside (“joy”, “love”, “peace”), or styled on a mantle for a cozy seasonal touch 🎄. They’re simple, charming, and versatile. Find them on the TPK Blog (link in bio)!

#thepostmansknock #printableart #giftwrappingideas #snailmaillove #happymail handillustrated holidaydetails paperlove creativegifting handlettering makersofinstagram stationeryaddict thoughtfuldetails slowdownandsendmail gifttags diygifttag giftwrapping giftpresentation handwrappedgift
I experimented with using the chic poppies techniq I experimented with using the chic poppies technique (see my reel from a couple of days ago) to make pretty stationery. LOVE how it turned out! The poppies are just an elegant way to add personality and elegance to any paper good. If you’re a TPK Premium member, *definitely* check out Lesson 6 of the Beginner’s Modern Calligraphy Online Course (2025 version). In it, you’ll find a detailed video demonstration that shows you how to bring these poppies to life! ✍️

#stationery #diystationery #floralillustration #penandink #handdrawn #drawing #painting #sumiink #snailmail #mail #mailart #snailmailrevolution #happymail #mailbox #calligraphy #pointedpen #dippen #rosegoldsumi
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