Moorish flavor in a few Spainsh calligraphy signs

Well-chosen calligraphy helps add flavor to simple logos and signs.  Spain absorbed 800 years of Muslim influence on art, architecture, dress, cuisine, and music.  
Here is some creative lettering from restaurant signs, reflecting the underlying Moorish influence in Spanish art. 

A sign for a Flamenco venue at left evokes the arched doorways, keyhole screens, and pointed domes of Moorish architecture. 


The flowing curves of Arabic calligraphy appear below in the letters of another restaurant. 

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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. 

The calligrapher’s prayer

    Everyone has a ritual for easing into a task.  Runners stretch, Chinese calligraphers grind ink, writers make a cup of coffee.  Calligraphers who write in Arabic have a special prayer to recite--students before they practice, and scribes before they work. 

    I like this prayer.  Every scribe--Muslim or Zen, trained or amateur, ambitious or humble--knows how difficult it is to maintain focus and bring experience to bear on writing well.  God’s help is always needed, and often found.