Today, I’m going to show you how to create what may very well be my favorite envelope art design. 🙂 If you’re intimidated, don’t be! All you need are some tracing skills and a smidge of patience. Are you ready? Let’s get started!
In 2014, I wrote the Typography Art Envelope Tutorial. The tutorial shows you how to make an incredibly cool piece of mail art with vintage flair! The envelope was inspired by antique advertisements, which were always hand-drawn and a bit more cluttered than the clean look we’ve become accustomed to in modern times.
While I love the original tutorial for this intricate envelope art, this project is easiest to understand if you can see it in action! With that in mind, I decided to make a video to show you how to use the Printable Typography Art Envelope Template to make this gorgeous + unique design. (I also used the Premium Hand-Lettering Worksheet Set as an exemplar for this project!)
First of all, as you can see in the written tutorial from 2014, you don’t have to have a light box to make this project! That said, a light box can make life a lot easier for projects like this one. If you’re on the fence about whether a light box would benefit you or not, check out the Do You Need a Light Box? post!
Second, I want you to feel free to play around with inks! When I create this envelope art, I usually use walnut ink because I like its antique look. However, I’ve also used black ink featuring accents of gold and blue — with very pleasing results! Watercolor calligraphy (maybe a combination of brown, blue, and green?) could also result in a very cool-looking envelope.
Finally, don’t worry too much about the post office not delivering this envelope. I’ve sent out five envelopes with this design, and all of them safely made it to their destination! That’s not to say that mistakes don’t happen at the post office. However, as long as you’ve got a legible zip code, there’s a 96% chance your envelope will get to where it needs to go. (For tips on creating envelope art that is likely to reach its intended recipient, check out this article!)
I hope that you enjoyed watching this video tutorial as much as I enjoyed creating it! If you have any questions or comments about this envelope art, please feel free to ask. I’m always absolutely thrilled to hear from you! As always, thanks very much for reading/watching TPK, and have a fantastic weekend. 🙂
Warmly,
(PS – TPK spring and summer calligraphy workshop registration opened earlier this week! I’d love to meet you here in Boulder for an amazing day of calligraphy creation. For dates, times, and more information, you can visit this page!)
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