Calligraphy--a perfect wedding gift. Part 2, the next to rendering

Ready for performance, with a few tweaks. 

Yesterday I worked on early drafts for a wedding gift based on Philippians 4:8.  I took that draft, critiqued it, revised it, and used it with the guideline overlay to letter the final rough draft.  

Right away, I noticed I had left out the citation of chapter and verse.  Calligraphers should always take care to include this information, as average mortals often forget or think it's implied.  

This version is like a dress rehearsal.  I usually try to make it as good as I can but not worry about making little errors that don't require redoing the whole thing.  I'm more concerned about some basic aspects like the exact curve of the long line; is it too curved at the ends or too flat?  Do the purple and blue read with enough clarity?  I solved those questions with a calligrapher's  most powerful design tool--and an essential step in the process--I slept on it.    

And here is the very final rendering, done today.  At the very last minute, I decided to use black ink, to keep the design from being all about purple rather than all about joy and grace.  The margins are wider so that the frame can offer the option of a mat.  Or the framer can cut it down.    

BTW Designs evolve more smoothly for me if I work on a 3-hour project for one hour each day, rather than putting in 3 hours on one day.  If you are a more spontaneous, confident scribe than I am, you don't need this pacing. 

Calligraphy will help you give your friends or relatives a wedding gift that nobody else has given them, one they haven't even imagined, and one that is uniquely personalized for them.  


Some helpful tips about hand-lettered wedding gifts, from my experience; 

• Ask the couple what text they would like.  While you are at it, find out what color they prefer.  Take their wall space into consideration and don't make the piece too large!  
• Don't rush to get it to them by the wedding day--much better to take your time and get it right.  Good manners forbid you from bringing a gift TO the wedding, anyway.*  
• Add a line at the bottom, in tiny letters, with your name, their names, the occasion, and the date.  
• Send it to them in a modest standard frame, since they will be too busy to go get it framed themselves.  Or include a check to cover the cost of their choice of frame, which might guilt them into getting it done.  
• And, before you render the final piece, proofread that final draft. If you blink while you letter "Philippians," can you swear to how many l s and p s there are?   Trust me, typos will find a way to creep in during the design process.  

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*With enough lead time, you can ask the couple if they would like you to letter the text not only as a gift but as a design element in their service, to be used in, for instance, the printed program or as a separate handout or mailing.  Be sure they loop you into their stationery source, early on, to ensure that you provide what the printer needs.  

Calligraphy--a perfect wedding gift. Part 1, the all-important draft.

Although I am willing to click on a box to buy a gift in a wedding gift registry, sometimes I'm up for a more personal gift.  I've recently been working to handletter a wedding present for a relative.  Most people are thrilled to have a copy of something that was read at their ceremony.  In this case it was a verse from Philippians 4:8.  

Finally, 
brethren,
Whatsoever things are true,
Whatsoever things are honest,
Whatsoever things are just,
Whatsoever things are pure,
Whatsoever things are lovely,
Whatsoever things are of good report;

If there 
be any virtue, 
and if there be any praise,
Think on these things.

Thumbnail sketch. 

Beautiful, austere, and inspiring words, but calligraphers will probably join me in their first reaction; WHAT am I going to do with that one long line!?  I tried focussing on the repeating W, but turning them into six butterflies or nesting swashes didn't work our for me.  Then, sooner than most of my searches for a rough draft, I did this thumbnail sketch at right:  

I saw right away it would transform that long line from a problem into an asset, so I enlarged the sketch from 1" across to 8" across, took a stab at the guidelines, and wrote a rough stab at the word placement, at left below.  Yesssss!  

Check to see if the words will fit the idea.

Get the lines accurate, try colors.

On an overlay, right, I carefully penciled my guidelines, checking the space between lines with a ruler.  I also use vertical lines you can't see to keep the words "Whatsoever things are..." the same length in each line--it's easy to get disoriented on curved or slanted guidelines.  If you are not sure of the color scheme, use colored pencils to hatch in your idea and then squint at it. 



You'll still need to write a final rough draft to get the letter spacing right and make sure the chosen pen nib fits the letter size.    Check tomorrow's blog post to see how that calligraphy turns out.