So many of our current trendy crafts include some hand writing. Crafts like scrapbooking, card making, collage, altered art, and even painting. At the very least you should be adding your signature to your crafts as the finishing touch!
I don’t know about you, but as my god son would say, “My handwriting sucks!” I hated penmanship in school (dating myself with that word!) and most of the time I’m in such a hurry that I can’t even read what I’ve written. Heck, I’m so lazy that my signature is just my first inital and last name and even then I’m just scribbling always remembering to dot the i! Many use the computer and its heavenly wealth of fonts to make their crafts neater, but the whole point of being creative is to express yourself through your own mind, heart, and hands.
My most treasured keepsake from my mother is a silly old calendar on which she wrote a little something each day. I treasure it because seeing her hand written words makes me feel close to her again. If she had used a computer, rub on letters, or sticker phrases, I don’t think the calendar would have much meaning to me.
Maybe I should have been a doctor, my handwriting is horrible!
Here are some handwriting tips I learned while teaching at a scrapbooking expo:
Practice. Practice. Practice! If you don’t write often, you’ll “forget” how.
Make it easier with light marks to keep your handwriting straight and not marching up and down or slanting. Keep pencil marks light. A heavy line will leave imprints on your page and be more difficult to erase. These imprints can also affect the way the paper takes colored pencils, chalks and watercolors.
A heavy-handed eraser can take the color off white core paper, patterned or solid. Go lightly!
Small, evenly placed characters look clean and precise.
Concentrate. Don’t be distracted. Don’t be doing four things at once. You want your lettering to look good, so take the time to do it right.
Whether you use a template or create guidelines yourself, be diligent about it. A little advance planning goes a long way.
It is great to copy and emulate other fonts or people’s writing, but the point here is to get your writing in your books. So find a style that suits you. Are you someone who loves cursive? Do you write in all caps, all lowers, or a mixture of both? Make sure that your style shines through in your letters.
Sometimes the faster you go, the better the results can be. Just making sure that you’re concentrating. If you’re trying for a carefree look, make your guide lines, pencil in your text for correct spacing, and then go for it!
Use a straight edge for your verticals. If you’re doing large letters for a title, or even for your journaling, use a ruler to make your verticals. This is a trick architects use to make their printing look prefect every time.
Use shadowing for a great effect. It softens the subtle imperfections in your writing, making your letters look better. Grab a Black and Platinum Zig Writer and create letters that jump off your page.
Do not be too critical of yourself. Hand lettering is not, and will never be, perfect. And it shouldn’t be.
