Over the past few years, we’ve been developing and expanding our reach into the world of making, by offering both programs and resources.
What exactly is making? Well, we actually helped craft a formal definition for it for library staff across the nation. But the short answer is pretty simple: it is the process of being willing to get your hands dirty and learn while you create whatever you want to make to accomplish a task or just have fun. Do you cook? Do you craft? Do you invent? Do you build? Do you fix things? You are a maker!
In fact, some are even talking about making as at the core of a new type of literacy: invention literacy (i,e, the ability to look around you and figure out how human-made things work). Like any type of literacy, you can never be too old or too young to start your making journey and nurturing the growth mindset on which all making depends. You also can never have enough tools in the forms of books to get your creative juices flowing.
So, this year we plan to highlight all of the various making resources we have–which range from needlework to Legos to more. August is all about calligraphy!
Learning the Basics:
Molly Suber Thorpe’s Modern Calligraphy: Everything You Need to Know to Get Started in Script Calligraphy (2013)
This book is an excellent overall introduction to calligraphy. It covers everything from equipment to beginning techniques to using other materials beyond calligraphy pens. It starts the budding calligraphist on letters before building up to words then sentences. It then offers a range of projects (including digitalized calligraphy) that will have you creating everything from fancy place cards for dinner to guest books to your own thank-you cards.
Veiko Kespersaks’s Calligraphy in 24 Hours: Core Techniques, Alphabets, Projects (2011)
This is also a good introduction to calligraphy. Like the previous book, it covers equipment and technique, but it is also broken into 24 1-hour lessons, so if you need structure for DIY courses, it’s the perfect option. It even includes timed exercises. It is also well illustrated with hundreds of color photos and offers a range of projects you can do once you’re done, including wedding invitations and wall hangings.
More Advanced Calligraphy Instruction:
Mye de Leon’s Mastering Hand-Lettering: Your Practical Guide to Creating and Styling the Alphabet (2017)
This calligraphy book is all about the ins and outs of lettering. But what is especially appealing for anyone with a grasp of the basics of the art form is its extensive coverage of how you can add unique flourishes to your calligraphy, including drop caps, serif adaptations, and more.
Exploring Calligraphy Projects:
Maybelle Imasa-Stukuls’s The Gift of Calligraphy: A Modern Approach to Hand Lettering with 25 Projects to Give & to Keep (2018)
If you want to learn calligraphy, this is not the book for you. But if you want to learn what to do with your newfound calligraphy skills, it’s an excellent resource. The author walks you through a range of calligraphy gift projects, allowing you to personalize wall hangings, tote bags, wrapping paper, and more.
Nicole Miyuki Santo’s By Hand: The Art of Modern Lettering (2018)
There is coverage of calligraphy basics, but this book likely will be more effective after you’ve learned the basics elsewhere. It includes coverage for how you can create your own unique calligraphy style and offers instructions on projects that will help you jazz up everything from menus to pillowcases to balloons and more.
Kathy Glynn’s Hand Lettering Step by Step: Techniques and Projects to Express Yourself Creatively (2018)
This book features some unique project ideas (applying calligraphy to everything from temporary tattoos to family trees to glass etchings). It also provides helpful coverage on how to personalize your own style by combining styles and adding flourishes. There’s also material on how to digitize lettering.
Reference for Inspiration:
Mary Noble and Janet Mehigan’s The Encyclopedia of Calligraphy Techniques: A Step-by-Step Visual Guide, with an Inspirational Gallery of Finished Works (2005)
As with some of the other books listed here, there is a basic how-to guide for calligraphy here, but its appeal is likely more in what else it offers. Namely, this book documents dozens of techniques and also includes a rich gallery of pictures highlighting them in both historical and modern examples. It would be an excellent reference point for anyone interested in calligraphy, both as a serious student looking for project inspiration or as a casual reader who wants to appreciate lovely penmanship.
Love calligraphy? What are your favorite calligraphy projects? What’s your favorite book about calligraphy? Tell us in the comments, and I’ll tell you about the time I sort of failed a calligraphy class at the library! 😂 As always, please follow this link to our online library catalog for more information on any of these items or to place them on hold.
Berryville Book Buzz 