When I first picked up a dip pen, my reasons to learn calligraphy were as follows: first, I wanted to try something new. Second, I had just moved to Colorado, and I wanted to send my friends in my home state (Kansas) beautiful correspondence. Finally, I hoped to make a little bit of money on the side! Now, with several years of teaching calligraphy under my belt, I’ve found that people have all sorts of motivations for learning calligraphy. This article is a compilation of my seven favorites!
1. Mental Health
Throughout the course of writing this blog, I’ve received countless emails detailing how calligraphy got someone through a tough time. Calligraphy provides an ideal outlet when things feel out of control because it forces you to slow down, focus, and breathe. Whenever you feel frustrated or overwhelmed, try reaching for your dip pen and do some drills! While calligraphy isn’t a cure, it can help you to feel a whole lot better.
Related articles:
2. Calligraphy Isn’t Expensive
Like any activity, you can throw as much money at calligraphy supplies as you want to. But, in order to create calligraphy, you really only need a pen, a nib, ink, and paper. If you’re on a budget, I recommend buying a straight pen, a Nikko G nib, India or sumi ink, and a ream of 32# laserjet paper (which will sustain you for a year or two of practice). Then, browse through the TPK blog for information, instructions, and free printables!
Related articles:
- The Beginner’s Guide to Modern Calligraphy
- The Ultimate DIY Modern Calligraphy Starter Kit
- Anything in the “Beginner’s Calligraphy” blog category
3. You Can Save or Make Money
While most TPK readers create calligraphy for the sheer joy of it, there are some who have used their skills to save or make money. Calligraphy is an art that takes time and practice, which means that it can cost a pretty penny to have someone create calligraphy for you. If you create calligraphy yourself, you’ll save money on things like event announcements (e.g. wedding invitations) and custom-designed paper goods. Additionally, you can offer your calligraphy services to others to make a little bit of extra jingle on the side!
Related articles:
- The Ultimate DIY Wedding Invitations Roadmap
- How to Make Extra Income Selling Calligraphy
- 8 Tips for Starting a Calligraphy Business
4. Calligraphy Enhances Your Living Space
One of the coolest reasons to learn calligraphy is the fact that you can use it to up the hygge factor in your home. I’ve used calligraphy to create a lot of home décor … general art, labels (see my mom’s pantry!), wifi signs, you name it! There are a lot of calligraphy-based projects that you can make that will help to personalize your space and make it feel more homey.
Related articles:
- Anything in the “Wall Art” category of the TPK blog
5. Calligraphy Adds Beauty to Sketchbooks and Bullet Journals
If you’re an avid sketchbooker or you love working in a bullet journal, you can use your calligraphy to enhance pages! I love using calligraphy to add information to my sketchbook pages. I think that the extra bit of written communication really helps to preserve memories and emotions — all while increasing the aesthetic value of the page.
Related articles:
- Incredible Bullet Journal Ideas + Examples
- How to Make a Sketchbook Journal (and Why You Should!)
- Sharing My Sketchbook So Far
6. Calligraphy Can Show Affection
As I was brainstorming this blog post with my assistant, Geni, she suggested that calligraphed cards mean a lot to her. “I’ve never thrown away a handmade card,” she told me. I agree! Investing the time and energy to make a calligraphed card and/or envelope shows love for the recipient in a subtle and elegant way.
Related articles:
- Any of TPK’s greeting card tutorials
7. Calligraphy Can Help You Stand Out
At university, my friends used to have me write out notes after job interviews to help them stand out. I always did the same after my own job interviews with fantastic results! Beautiful handwriting and a stunning envelope presentation convey a message beyond what you actually write in the note. It says you are fastidious, you pay attention to detail, and you aim to impress. On another note, when we lived in an apartment, I always sent beautifully calligraphed “rent check envelopes” to our property manager. He was devastated when we moved out, and he wanted to help us in any way that he could as we transitioned into homeownership! In five years of living in our apartment, I never met the property manager face to face, but my envelopes helped us stand out to him.
Related articles:
I hope that you enjoyed reading through these reasons to learn calligraphy! If you’d like to share why you decided to learn calligraphy, I’d love to read your story in the comments section. 🙂 Note that this article was originally written in March of 2015. I gave it a much-needed update today to reflect what I’ve learned about learners’ motivations over the years. Thanks very much for reading, and happy writing!
Warmly,
Calligraphy has been a pure joy since i stumbled on your blog a few years ago..i’m never going to be a professional but i’m so pleased with the instruction here and my calligraphy looks AWESOME…also I just viewed your live feed on Instagram and found it very informative…but can i just say, your calligraphy style is sooooooooo much prettier!!!….Just being honest..it just makes me appreciate finding your blog all the more…
Hi Lindsey when I decided to learn calligraphy, it was something I wanted to do for a long time. I just didn’t know where to start. So I went to Pinterest and searched for women who taught calligraphy. I first found someone who taught brush calligraphy. I didn’t know what I was doing but I didn’t want to give up. It helped me a lot. Then I also searched for someone who taught dip pen calligraphy. Oh, my, that was at first overwhelming. There were sooo many many women who taught calligraphy, it was overwhelming. But, I always came back to you. Lindsey, I found the right fit for me and never looked back. Your videos are amazing, learning calligraphy, learning more about watercolors, your practice sheets, and so much more. I really like the video’s because if I miss something, I can always go back and see what I did wrong. The Beginners Course is so good. That was my turning point and couldn’t wait to do more!!!!!!
Hi Lindsey, I find working on drills is very calming too. It is a quiet time. Also, it does get attentions when you use it for envelops. I started using calligraphy on envelops when I write to my pen pals very recently. My first one was the big bee on an envelop, and then slowly writing addresses instead of using typed labels. They look much nice! I wasn’t confident first but with your help and encouragements through the courses and blogs I am really enjoying using calligraphy in everyday life. It is awesome. Thank you Lindsey!
I just started doing calligraphy a fee months ago and can I just say , I love your blog. It helped m discover a new skill an with your blog I learned a lot of things. Thank you Lindsey!!
Thank you! I’m so glad you like the blog 🙂
Hi Lindsey,
I have been told to unleash my creativity: It is my Life Purpose to use my imagination to help others and help myself.
When I was a very small child in 2nd or 3rd Grades I was praised by my teachers and family for such good cursive writing. I also was reprimanded by a teacher who thought someone else did the work for me (of course she was wrong because I did the writing).
Anyway, I am trying to enhance my creativity and find my talents. Calligraphy may be one of those talents to bring out of me.
Can you help me or give suggestions how to proceed? Give me your honest opinion what you think about what I have written.
Thank you.
Hi Tommy! I would just create as much as you can — make mail art, projects to display in your home, and gifts for friends. The more you use your skills, the more joy they will give you, and the more you will improve. 🙂
I cling on to reason #1. I have a very stressful work and a “very” busy brain and since I found your blog, I purchased all the things that you suggested, and went through (and still currently reading) the tips that you have for beginners. Now calligraphy and yoga are now my two go-to activities to relax myself. I usually forget about the time and only go back to “reality” when my small cap runs out of ink. Unfortunately, I found your blog five months after my wedding! Calligraphy would’ve been a great addition to our stationery.
A big thank you from across the miles 🙂
http://www.jointhetravellingpair.com
Que sera, sera, right? 🙂 I am really happy to hear that calligraphy and yoga are helping you to de-stress! Lettering can be super-relaxing, which is part of the reason I like to do it, too. Loving your website!
Its a way if expressing your creativity.
And creativity Is something the more you use , more creative you get .
So to keep coming with new ideas and keep your creative enzymes up . You must do this!
P.S- I do a lot of calligraphy and it has helped me in my overall personality.
I love that input! Absolutely fantastic. 🙂