Assignment 20: How to Lena Ilagan

One of my favorite things to do is hand lettering.  Most of you have probably seen me do it plenty of times, but if you didn't know how I did it, here's my secret:
First, it helps you know cursive.  Most calligraphy is done in cursive, or cursive-esque letters.  Having a strong foundation in the way to write cursive helps expand your style of lettering, reforming it into any way you like.
However, if you don't know cursive, that's okay.  You can still do hand-lettering in print.  The key to pretty and neat handwriting in general is symmetry and repetition.  Your letters should all be the same size, height, width, boldness, and should even have the same loops and lines and dots in all the same places.  Creating uniformity in your letters is a great way to start hand lettering, and is especially useful in print hand lettering, or even daily life.
If you're awful at both cursive and uniform writing, you should start by just practicing.  Pencil is always best to start out with.  The lines are forgiving, and you usually don't have to worry about the color and thickness being off. Plus, it's erasable.  Find a ruler if it helps, and practice making your letters all the same size and relative shape.  Make sure the middle likes in the E and F are in the same spots, and the loops on the Ps Bs Ds and whatnot are all on the same place.
Once you have mastered all of the above things, you're all set!  If you want to make your lettering look fancy and calligraphy-like, bold your downward strokes in your letters, just like a quill would do.