So how do you learn to letter by hand?

[Freehandan]

The moon is my sun. ! FOR REAL! I was painting a few recycling symbols tonight. I work Mostly at night and am accustomed to dim light. Changing texture shadows on the wall from the course of the sun during the day will give you vertigo! I do not use anything but a chalk-line and a level to paint(sometimes) No Pounce, No Stencils, No Airbrush(painting was invented before then), No Projector.- Only - Paint, Cup, Brush, Rags, Thinner, Gloves (optional in distressfull scenarioes) and mindset. Oh, and I don't use a Maulstick.
I have not bought tires in about 15 years. I paint signs instead. I painted a gun for a gun. I've painted food for food. When I was in Brazil, I drew what I needed so not speaking the language fluently did not matter to me. I just painted two banners the other day for my lawyer so he will take care of my traffic ticket. My landlord as well. They have rental properties. I could paint about 500 quick-stroke words in about an hour if needed. This way I can help, AND EARN my KEEP(!) in an Emergency situation.
( A SIDE NOTE in mentioning...THAT ARTIST:In the earliest days of man, even the churches needed signs. The better they looked, the more the people believed. Without Davinci's works from guilt, that church would be extinct long ago.)

As far as the positive sides of hand painted signs, Ddubai put it the best. I enjoyed his wording and his point of view. If I had said that, I wouldn't have to say all this. Does this make me ..A Marine.. in the core of the arts???!
There are many good uses for plastic signs and graphics. There are also many good artists that have a digital perception. Good thing we have electric.

 

[onesource]

There is a few twist and pull techniques but a calligraphy set is a good way to start because most strokes you learn with a steel pen transitions smoothly to a brush.
Also most all the strokes will be used in forming letters.

 

[OldPaint]

Fort Lauderdale........

OH, ok. i was thinking you was a guy i know in the ft.myers/coral gabels area, who did fantastic WINDOW SPLASHES, i spent a couple days with him in sarasota, wathcing him work.
as for what he is saying, to those WHO CAN, work without a computer, THEY UNDERSTAND & know what he is trying to make a point of. to those WHO CANT...........you will never know.
sorta like people who spent time learning martial arts and those WHO play MORTAL KOMBAT game and belive they are good at martial arts))))))))))))))))))))))))

 

[Borges Lettering]

Being able to hand letter adds another dimension to your designs. But there is no shame in not being able to do it. Anyone can learn and it doesn't matter how old you are. I am shocked that Universities do not teach lettering as the first requirement in design programs. Having a basic knowledge of lettering will dramatically improve anyones layouts.
I encourage anybody to start. If you are a vinyl shop and do not use enamel paints then I would recommend using a red sable showcard brush
http://mackbrush.com/sables2.htm)
and Showcard Paint (Rich Art).
http://www.pacificcoastsignsupply.com/catalog/paint_RichArt.htm
Its any easy way to start learning lettering as it is also easy to clean up (brush soap and water). Also tempera is also a lot cheaper than one shot for practicing with.
If you can get your hands on Mike Stevens Brush Lettering Video I would highly recommend it. If you are a beginner you are lucky because you can start fresh and not have to relearn how to correctly hold the brush. I have watched that video over 50 times and still pick up on things that you might miss. Buy a roll of Butcher paper and practice, practice, practice. Hand Lettering takes time to learn but it is so rewarding. It is nice when designing a logo and not having to rely on fonts to make the letters but I have full control of how my Logo should look. If you do not feel like learning lettering whether it is brush or pen I encourage anybody to pick up a sharpie or a pencil on your next design (logo or sign) and write out the persons name or a word in a script and scan it in. You just might surprise yourself at how cool it looks and also you have shown yourself that doing something by hand can create such a visual impact on your design.
The process of learning hand lettering is a fun adventure that never stops. I am always learning new things or styles and it just keeps getting better and better. I used to spend my time trying to make typographically perfect lettering and it honestly took a lot of the fun out of lettering. I realized that lettering will never match a computer and that is where the warmth and character become revealed. I gave up on trying to make absolutely perfect lettering and have noticed a great improvement. Hope some of this helps those who are eager to learn. And just remember that now is great time to learn because of all of the valuable resources that are at your disposal ( internet, video, books)
-Charles Borges de Oliveira
www.borgeslettering.com

 

[Borges Lettering]

Thanks Pat I appreciate it.

 

[GAC05]

I have to echo Pat, nice stuff you have there.

wayne k
guam usa