How to start hand lettering – first steps (for beginners)
Do you want to get started with hand lettering?
Awesome. You’ve come to the right place.
If you don’t know what hand lettering, typography or even font design is, you might want to watch my video about it first:
What's the difference between Calligraphy, Lettering and Type Design?
Before I get started I want you to read this quote:
Do you want to get started with hand lettering?
Awesome. You’ve come to the right place.
If you don’t know what hand lettering, typography or even font design is, you might want to watch my video about it first:
What's the difference between Calligraphy, Lettering and Type Design?
Before I get started I want you to read this quote:
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and starting on the first one.”
Lettering is very complex… trust me, I’ve been doing this for years now and I still have soo much to learn.
That’s why I’m going to break it down so much so, you probably will think I’m joking. haha.
THE FIRST STEP
GET READY
Yes, before we start drawing we need to prepare our workspace, just as you would do it before cooking.
Make space, get your tools ready,
This signals our brain that we are about to start something new and helps us getting into the right mental space.
STEP TWO
PREPARE YOUR TOOLS
Unlike popular belief, you don’t need an iPad or all these fancy brushes to start lettering.
A pen or pencil and paper is all you really need. Don’t have paper? I’m sure in your trash, you’ll find an envelope with a blank side on it.
See how easy all of this was so far?
STEP THREE
WRITE A WORD
Let’s get started with writing. We are going to write a four letter word in all caps on the piece of paper.
I’m saying writing because drawing actually scares most people.
For this step you really just have to scale up your letters a tini tiny bit but write like you would normally write.
STEP FOUR
DRAW AN OUTLINE
Let’s draw an outline around every letter.
STEP FIVE
FILL IT OUT
Let’s fill it out. you just got to fill it all out.
DONE!
Congratulations. you just completed your very first hand lettering piece.
Wait, are you disappointed?
Were you expecting something more?
AWESOME!!!
That means you are motivated to try it again.
See, this is how you get started.
You don’t try to run a marathon on your first run in under 3 hours. You start by running around the block. and go from there.
You just jogged around the block in lettering terms. You started! that’s what matters and we got a great journey ahead of us.
#KEEPCREATING