The Lost Art of Hand Lettering


The word calligraphy comes from Ancient Greek κάλλος kallos meaning  "beauty" and γραφή graphẽ  meaning “writing”. 

I remember receiving my first hand lettered envelope and being unable to comprehend that somebody had written the address by hand. The fluid curves of the letters, the opaque white ink jumping off of a scarlet envelope, the sheer neatness of each individual letter, all struck me so deeply that I have kept that envelope and it sits besides me now as I type this blog post. 

Athena hard at work hand lettering

Calligraphy has become a significant part of the day to day business of Meticulous Ink. We have always incorporated hand lettering in our letterpress designs, and our unique and playful stye has become ubiquitous of Meticulous Ink. In the summer of 2013 we began offering the service of hand lettered addresses, starting with a commission of sparkling gold ink on ivory envelopes. We have now completed calligraphed addresses in everything from egg yolk yellow on brown kraft, to deep aubergine on olive green. There is nothing more exciting than experimenting with colour and style when it comes to addressing an envelope.

Handmade Cool Blue envelopes with bright pink calligraphy

We will be holding our first hand lettering workshop in store on the evening of Wednesday, 6th August, where Suzie, our calligraphy expert will guide you through an introduction to hand lettering. The workshop runs from 6pm to 8pm and will include a hand painted dip pen, nib, a pot of our own Iron Gall ink, along with a Guide to Hand Lettering and a letterpress calligraphy practice pad; all to take home after the workshop. The workshop costs £75.00 and spaces are limited, so please contact us to book your place: (01225) 333004

Hairy Manilla envelopes with egg yolk yellow ink