A couple of days ago, I received a thought-provoking email from someone. In the email, I was asked: “When you first started doing calligraphy did you like how it looked? Did it take a while before you felt you were doing a good job and you liked how you did it? … I’m hoping if I practice enough I will get good at it – is there hope?!” I remember having the same questions — and you might, too. Since sometimes it’s just nice to read about how someone else achieved something, I thought maybe it would be fun for you to read about how I learned calligraphy, and the ups and downs along the way.
Continue reading…
Recent Creations
I haven’t blogged for about a week, and since I have {joyously!} been getting all the materials prepared for Emily’s Atlanta wedding, I don’t have a tutorial prepared. Instead, I thought I’d talk a little bit about the projects I have been working on lately, my recent creations.
Continue reading…
Cityscape Illustration Tutorial
Today’s blog post is essentially The Odyssey of illustration-centric blog posts. Like Odysseus, I underestimated how long my quest would take. Unlike Odysseus, I was only down for the count three days creating this Atlanta cityscape illustration.
Continue reading…
Kaitlin Style Calligraphy Worksheet
You’ll have to forgive me for dropping the ball on posting this weekend; we have fallen victim to the Game of Thrones epidemic. Yesterday, all we did was lie in bed, eat mochi, and feed our newfound addiction via binge-watching. Needless to say, no work got done — but that’s okay because I’m making up for it today with a free calligraphy worksheet for you!
Continue reading…
Persian-Inspired Gold Foil Wedding Invitations
I am confident that my friends have been avoiding me this month after discovering my zeal for these gold foil wedding invitations. They’re all I have talked about the past couple of weeks — I am utterly and completely in love with them, and I gush about them to anyone who will listen. Luckily for my friends, I have a blog where I can write about this sort of thing, and I’m going to let it all out here!
Continue reading…
How to Heat Emboss
There are a lot of people out there who love stamping, and are very talented when it comes to that art form. To be perfectly honest, I am not usually one of those people. However, I have been working on a gold wedding suite for a beloved Georgia client, and after some Pinteresting I realized that heat embossing on RSVP envelopes would be the perfect way to efficiently {and beautifully!} put the client’s address on her RSVP envelopes.
Continue reading…
Nautical Thermography Invitation Suite
I have been very busy lately putting the finishing touches on invitation suites — which I love! It’s a great feeling to assemble a suite, tuck it safely in its beautifully calligraphed envelope, and know that someone is going to be pleasantly surprised to receive it.
Continue reading…
Using Gold Calligraphy Ink
There comes a time in every calligrapher’s life when he or she must write using gold calligraphy ink. This time can be a stressful one if you don’t have the right ink. Luckily, I’ve been there {done that!}, and I can lend you some guidance on the topic.
Continue reading…
DIY Envelope Liners with Gold Polka Dots
This weekend provided a nice little break for us; we spent the past couple of days enjoying the slow pace of my Kansas hometown, and I got a chance to take some product photos. My vision was rustic chic, à la the works of Anna Claire Howard, a talented photographer with a knack for styling. Because my mother is an antiques dealer, I had access to all sorts of fun props!
Illustrated Wedding Maps
2018 update: There’s a newer version of this post that you may find interesting! Check it out by clicking here.
I love designing a lot of things — but illustrated wedding maps are on my top five list. I enjoy them because they add personality to a wedding suite without being campy or obnoxious. A lot of clients have been asking what the process for my maps is, and I thought it might be interesting to share with you all as well!
Continue reading…