Virtual Russian

Here's a recent Wall Street Journal hybrid headline,
which replaces the letters E and U with look-alikes
from the Cyrillic alphabet.

I've been interested to find so many "Virtual" alphabets in the years I've been paying attention to this kind of letter.   Anytime you mix alphabets, you can turn readable Roman into an exotic cross-breed.  It's subtle but eye-catching.  I've included a lot more examples of hybrid writing in my new book Learn World Calligraphy. 

Judicious reversal turns this Cambridge bar
named "The People's Republic" into "The People's Pub." page 174

& an extra day

29 different ampersands to celebrate Leap Day,
from Calligraphy Alphabets Made Easy. 

If you count up the capitals and small letters, you have an alphabet of 52--one for each week of the year.  But what about that extra day in Leap Year?  There's no better symbol for this year's leap than the ampersand.

By the the mid-19th century the ampersand was recited by English-speaking students as the 27th letter of the alphabet.  Its name comes from a dog Latin pronunciation of and per se and, which means "and by itself and." 

Allies in the letter-writing crusade

Sometimes the people who write by hand can feel like they're the last ones left on earth who believe that pen and paper are the best way to communicate.  Not true! There are a lot of writers and readers out there thinking on this topic--and publishing, blogging, speaking, giving workshops, and, naturally, writing letters. 

I've been heartened by the tenacity of my fellow snail-mail support group.  Here are a few:

• Cindy Zimmerman, mail advocate, WritingInStyle.com
• Jodi Smith, etiquette consultant, Mannersmith.com
• Mary Robinette Kowal, puppeteer and author, maryrobinettekowal.com 
• Vimala Rogers, handwriting advocate, iihs.com/vimala-alphabet.html
• Inga Dubay and Barbara Getty, handwriting educators, http://handwritingsuccess.com/

You can check out their websites to keep track of what they are doing.  You won't need to bemoan that "nobody writes by hand any more" and "penmanship is a dying art" if you simply pick up your pen join the ranks of writers who send their words by mail.  Join us!

Write a better envelope

Here is a gizmo that will take over the job of guiding the lines of a hand-addressed envelope.  It lends itself to several different uses.
Size it up or down to suit the pen size, the letter size, and the envelope size.  

• Print it out on standard paper; cut it to fit inside your unlined envelope so it shows faintly through. 
• Print it out onto transparent acetate; lay it and the envelope on a light table.  
• Print it out onto stiff paper; cut slots; use it to rule pencil lines on each envelope; erase them once the ink is dry. 

  

  With thanks to Katrina Berry

You can lay out the address with each line starting just under the one before, or you can use the slanted lines to start each new line a little to the right of the one before.

Straight lines don't necessarily mean strait-laced designs.  

If you don't have to worry about lining up your address, you can give all your attention to making the envelope a one-of-a-kind work of art.  Here are two from my archives [not my current address, by now].  For ideas about gussying up your design, go to The Washington Calligrapher's Guild, which offers the winners from their yearly contest "Graceful Envelope" contest.  http://www.calligraphersguild.org/envelope.html

The center of the world

Vũ Thi Phim, self-taught Hanoi calligrapher. 

Travel is good for you.  It broadens your world, and reminds you that you are not the hub of the universe.

In this picture, I have just met Vũ Thi Phim, a calligrapher in Hanoi who hand-draws her own special style of letters shaped like characters.  Look behind us to be reminded about how the Vietnamese prefer to see their world; the Americas are off to the right of the uninterrupted Pacific, while Asia is on the left near the center.  This is just the opposite of the usual configuration in the West. 

American and European maps split the world at the Bering Strait, group the continents around the Atlantic, place Europe at the center, and minimize the size of the Pacific.

When I was very young, world maps were even more obviously America-centric: they put our country at the center and divided Asia into two.  Even then, I couldn't make it make sense.

USA at the center of the world, cutting Asia in two. 

Day 14, Countdown to February 14, Special delivery

If you haven't mailed your love letter, you can deliver it by hand to somewhere it can't be missed.  Mail it ahead of time, slide it under the door, place it on the pillow, or slip it into a surprising spot such as a lunch box, keyboard, or dashboard.  Use what you know: if he reads his email before everything else, prop it on his computer keyboard; if she checks her bangs in the rear-view mirror, place it there. 

Day 13, Countdown to February 14,

SWAK: the memory of a kiss can decorate your love letter or its envelope.  Apply that lipstick sparingly to make a “print” that will resist smearing.  If you don't usually wear lipstick, make a heart out of your two fingerprints, touching. 

Day 12, Countdown to February 14, A symbol for two

Both illustrations from Calligraphy to Celebrate your Wedding
by Margaret Shepherd

Every great merger deserves its own logo.  Mingle two sets of initials to make your own symbol. 

This chart offers you a plain alphabet in the center, with decorative swashes in 8 different orientations, to help you find ways to weave your design together.

Day 11, Countdown to February 14, Your favorite age

You can experiment with formats from an earlier age.  If a Renaissance Faire, for instance, is something the two of you enjoy together, declare your love on a rolled parchment scroll and tie it with a red ribbon and gold seal. 

Day 10, Countdown to February 14, Tag that bud!

Sometimes a love letter has to share center stage with a gift of flowers, candy, or something to wear.  To put it simply, you're writing "I love you" on a gift tag.  But you can make this little detail add depth by choosing an apt quotation and writing it nicely.  If you're giving roses, for instance, search quotations websites for something original about flowers such as,"A single rose can be my garden... a single friend, my world."  Leo Buscaglia.  

Day 9, Countdown to February 14, Much better handwriting

Start with your basic ballpoint handwriting. 

If you’re really ambitious about helping your handwriting speak eloquently for you, spend some time learning to use a “crowquill” pen.  This flexible metal nib varies from thick to thin when you press down or let up.

Just varying the line width makes your script infinitely more appealing. 
You’ll be amazed how much easier it is to write script when you have guidelines.  You can erase them after your black ink dries.  Add slant lines at 60° to keep your letters leaning the same direction.  

Dip the pen into ink just above where

the slit ends, and then wipe off the excess. 

Choose paper with a hard surface, and be careful on the upstroke
to avoid snags that make splats. If you want to add pizzazz with colored ink,
put your guidelines on a thin sheet below your paper and backlight it to avoid
making pencil lines permanent where the strokes cross them.  

Day 8, Countdown to February 14, Good-enough handwriting

There’s no need to be shy about sending “I love you” in your own handwriting; it expresses you just as much as your voice or face does.  Your beloved is probably less critical of you than you are. 
Like your face, however, a few simple steps can enhance its appeal and help it look its best. 

1.  Here’s your handwriting, without any help.

2.  Add a little weight to the line by using a wider pen.

3.  Try a fountain pen with a point such as a “signature stub” that varies the line width a little.

4  A light calligraphy point will also vary the line width in a regular way. 

5.  A broader calligraphy pen point will let you experiment with historical styles like Italic...

 

 

 

...or Celtic.

Tomorrow, we'll progress from "good-enough handwriting" to "much better handwriting." 

Day 7, Countdown to February 14, Mail it with love

Although the U S Post Office is cutting back on all kinds of services, it continues to offer a “love” stamp design, now in its 39th year.  When you mail your love letter, you should accentuate the stamp, with matching ink, extra framing, and even a cupid’s arrow pointing to it. 

You can also find stamps with other people’s designs, or you can even commission your own design (either choice costs more than regular postage, of course) on websites such as zazzle.com.

Day 6, Countdown to February 14, Endless Love

"Our love is forever; it never will end"

This simple paper loop is heart-warmer that also is a brain-teaser.  You can write this promise on two sides of a strip of paper and fasten the ends, to make a one-sided Möbius strip that has no beginning and no end.
How to:

• Choose any text of 35-45 letters and spaces, depending on the style of letters [Celtic is shown here]; 
• Divide message in two; 
• Write the first half on one side of a strip of paper 3/4" x 6"; 
• Start the second half of the message upside down on the back of the beginning of the first half, leaving 3/8" overlap to glue the ends.  
• Fasten ends together with half a twist

Those who remember meeting this paradoxical figure in grade school may also recall that if you cut it carefully in half the long way, it turns into two interlocked rings.   It's especially nice for party favors or wedding souvenirs. 

I have also seen this rendered in silver as a Möbius strip bracelet, and in a smaller size as a Möbius strip ring. 

Day 5, Countdown to February 14, Love in any language

Valentine's Day has spread over the whole planet, touching the hearts of people in Japan, India, and South Africa.  You can borrow the word for "love" from anywhere in the world to express yourself in exotic languages and alphabets.   Some of these may have special meaning for the two of you:

Chinese "heart"

Korean "love"

Hebrew "love"

Georgian "love" [courtesy Alexander Mikaberidze]

On-line translation makes it simple to find the word you want.  You can write virtually any script using either a broad-edged nib or a brush, both of which you can buy as markers.  To learn the basics of every writing from Ethiopic to Mongolian, see my book Learn World Calligraphy, Random House.  http://margaretshepherd.com  


However you write it, you will find that there is a world of love beyond the English language.  

Day 4, Countdown to February 14, Someone else's words, or your own

Write in your own handwriting on note-size printout.....

...or print out a full page border and write with formal italic. 

You can write a love letter using your own words, in your own handwriting--or take it up a notch.   You may want someone else's words to capture the feelings you have your heart.  But rather than buy a greeting card with sentimental sentiments from a nameless wordsmith in a cubicle, you can search scripture, poetry, song lyrics, or prose for the very best words to use in your love letter.

Choose a quotation that sums up love for the two of you.  For instance, shown here at right is “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine" from Song of Solomon 6:3.  Copy it in your own handwriting or, if you're ambitious, in calligraphy.*  To give it extra appeal, you can use decorative paper.   And go to my website http://margaretshepherd.com to print out this decorative border for free. 

*Beginning calligraphers can start with my Learn Calligraphy, from Broadway/Random House, http://margaretshepherd.com/  or the now out of print workbook, Calligraphy Made Easy.   

Day 3, Countdown to February 14, Tricks of the trade

Don't let the state of your handwriting stop you from sending a love letter.  Since even the average person judges other people's handwriting much more indulgently than their own, the person who loves you is going to cut you a lot of slack when it comes to forgiving your scrawl.

Now that you've gotten motivated to use your own handwriting, you can spruce it up with a few simple tips:

 

• Lay two sheets of plain paper underneath your stationery to pad it.  [above]
• Upgrade your pen, from ballpoint to rollerball, from rollerball to marker, from marker to fountain pen, from fountain pen to calligraphy pen.  You'll be amazed at what a difference this makes.  My favorites, and great value for the price, are the low-cost Pilot Varsity fountain pen, way under $10, and the Rotring calligraphy pen with a 1.1 nib, under $20. 
• Warm up your handwriting on scratch paper by repeating strings of loops and curls. [at right]
• Practice a dozen different ways of writing your Valentine’s name, and of signing your own name. 
• Improve any awkward letter connections and capital letters.  

Day 2, Countdown to February 14, Choose the paper

You can find specialty paper in stationery,
art, and craft stores, with flowers and
leaves embedded right in the fibers. 

Paper is the most important part of any picture.  Make your love letter an original by exploring beyond the standard medium of pencil on notebook paper, or ballpoint on copy paper.  Even black ink on red background might seem too predictable if you want to be original.  Look for off-white solid tones, luminous colors, or subtle background patterns.

Let the paper you choose appeal to more senses than just your  sight by choosing an interesting texture, and add your own favorite perfume--lightly--if the paper does not have its own aroma. 

Don't let an exotic surface scare you from writing.  You may have to stick with a ballpoint pen or try out a paint pen, to write on very soft or absorbent paper surfaces.  If you love a paper that is really hard to write on, attach a smaller piece of white paper, or translucent vellum, for the actual handwritten message.

    You can find more suggestions in my books, about choosing paper, pens, and words: The Art of the Handwritten Note and The Art of the Personal Letter, both from Random House.  margaretshepherd.com 

Day 1, Countdown to February 14, Writing a love letter

Set the scene for writing words that count: provide yourself with beautiful materials, a cup of tea, favorite tunes as background music, and a comfortable chair.   Keep a picture or memento nearby of the one you're writing to.    
Tomorrow, we'll think about the paper you write on.

    You can find more suggestions in my books, about choosing paper, pens, and words: The Art of the Handwritten Note and The Art of the Personal Letter, both from Random House.   margaretshepherd.com

You may not be nimble enough to write on your lap while you sit in a garden, but at least looking at a view is good for your eyes.  Here, an Arabic scribe envisions his beloved watching him.  This illustration comes from my book Learn World Calligraphy, Random House. 

Countdown to Valentines Day: 14 ideas that say “I love you” with pen and ink

Cupid can shoot with a pen as easily as with an arrow. 

     A love letter is like a hug that's delivered on paper; it’s welcome anytime, but especially for Valentine’s day.  In the two weeks leading up to February 14, I'll offer you 14 different ways to express yourself on paper with sincerity and originality.  You may discover something to make this Valentine's Day an occasion that you'll both remember for years. 
    No love note will be exactly like another because you put so much of yourself--and your beloved--into what you write and how you write it.  Compared to a greeting card, box of candy, or bunch of flower, nothing else can be quite as warm or as intimate as your own words, written with your own hand.  Although you can try these tips with materials that you have on hand, you’ll expand your creativity if you invest in an inexpensive calligraphy marker or two, and look for some appealing paper.  Some of these valentines also make fun projects with children. 
    Check every day for a new way to write, to tell the person you love about how you feel.    Try each idea, or just choose the one that best expresses your love.