"The Artful Journey: How I Started Calligraphy"

Over the last few months I've been asked quite a few times why (and how) I started doing calligraphy, so I thought I will start with the why and work my way up to the how.

1. Calligraphy is Beautiful!

Simply put, I started practicing calligraphy because it's beautiful! I was scrolling through Instagram a few years ago (as one does) and I started seeing all these pretty videos and pictures of beautiful quotes made even more beautiful by the handwriting! I quickly got swallowed up by Instagram into hours of content, just watching pens gliding over paper making these incredible, smooth, perfect shapes and I was in awe!

Not to mention the different colours, oh the colours! All the shades, shiny, shimmery, matt - all so beautiful and all things I would love to own and be able to do... except guess what, maybe I can?!

Just as an fyi here, if you don't know me, perhaps you can assume that I LOVE all kinds of stationery; pens, notebooks, pencils, pretty things - I don't care that I may never use it, but I sure want it!

So this was like opening the closet door to Narnia as I was seeing all these amazing things being used that I didn't even know the names of, but perhaps if I knew how to do these pretty swirls too it would give me more of an excuse to try everything?!

So I guess what I'm saying is that the main reason for doing calligraphy is because I am a stationery addict, but really calligraphy is so mesmerising and it has existed for so long I'm amazed I didn't know about it sooner. Modern calligraphy has only become more popular in the last few years so I guess there's a reason why it's becoming more discoverable but I still think not enough people know about it.

2. You don't need fancy pens!

Another big reason for wanting to start calligraphy is perhaps a contrast to my first point. Whilst I love buying new things (it's a problem, honestly I need help!), what I found so thrilling about the concept of calligraphy was that you actually don't need fancy stationery and loads of different pens. If you're starting out, all you need is some paper and a pen - ANY pen!!! You can even start practicing with a pencil, that's how amazing it is! So from a practical viewpoint, it's a skill you can learn without having to fork out loads of money on stationery that you may not actually use. What's even better now is there are so many tutorials on YouTube for FREE, so you really can start practicing right away!

Granted I did buy a nib and some ink as I couldn't just start with a pencil (I'm very stubborn, I know), but the reality is you can so it makes it so versatile and easy to pick up and see whether it's something you enjoy doing before you start spending £££.

3. Use calligraphy to WOW others

Lastly, and perhaps most obviously, I loved the idea of being able to use calligraphy myself to impress friends and family, to make cards and other fun projects. See I always love the idea of trying something new, but it never really takes off, so in the back of my mind I wondered whether this could perhaps be the thing that sticks with me for longer than a few months and maybe becomes a way I could make money part time, or even full time?!

Needless to say I am still a long way away from becoming a full time calligrapher, but it has definitely stuck with me for longer than anything else I've done, and I am so glad to have taken myself on this journey. There's still a very long way to go but this is not about the destination, this really is about the journey and I absolutely love it.

So if you've been thinking about trying out calligraphy, I absolutely cannot recommend it enough!!! Do it, you won't regret it! Worst case scenario, you won't like it (I doubt it) and you can simply move on, but if you love it then you have no idea where it could take you! <3

I hope this was helpful, and if you do want to find out how I started calligraphy, look out for my next blog post!

Love always,

Odeta

P.S. If you are on Instagram, follow me (@OdetaBCalligraphy), but also I recommend checking out @TheHappyEverCrafter - she was one of the first calligraphers I started following and I absolutely love her energy (and calligraphy of course).