There are a variety of ways to do handmade lettering. My focus is always on using art to encourage and inspire, so I’ll show you some ways I create hand drawn words to do just that.
The Versatility of Hand Lettering
Designing hand drawn sentiments, for me, starts with a concept.
Do I want to motivate? Encourage? Add beauty? Often it’s a combination of these desires.
I’ll share with you a super simple way to use one lettering style to achieve several of those objectives.
Making Fancy Block Handmade Letters
This method of hand lettering is super simple and yet you can customize it to fit your decorating scheme in a hot minute. Change the shape, the style, the color, and the details to suit your needs perfectly.
And since you’re doing handmade letters, you can spell out the exact sentiment you want..
First, draw stick letters lightly on standard art paper. Use watercolor paper if you’re going to watercolor in the final process. (My letters are done with watercolor). Draw the letters at the exact size you want. For example, if you want to use a series of 5×7 inch frames, then draw your original letters to fit those frames.
After drawing those stick letters consider the vibe of font you want. Take a look at fonts online and choose styles you like. After you’ve narrowed it down to your favorite letter style, using a pencil, lightly add onto your stick letter what elements you like. Don’t trace or copy the font, just use it to give you ideas to build your own creative hand lettering style.
{Want to get beautiful, watercolor, printable paper you can print yourself? See my free printable stationery in pdf format.}
Add color for instant style
Once you’ve completed your drawn-out letters, choose the colors you want. Practice on a scrap of art paper with your technique until you’re ready. Remember: this is not about perfection! Who even knows what that is? Enjoy the process of creating.
Now you’re ready to color, You can use markers, acrylics, or watercolors like me. I also love to use watercolor pencils and well as standard colored pencils. You can also use a combination of these media.
If you’re unsure of how to do that, this video from Blick Art Materials will get you started.
See how beautiful this is. My hand drawn letters spell JOY. These can be hung seasonally at Christmas or displayed throughout the year. You can use them tiny or large. Totally up to you.
Using Hand Lettering For Daily Motivation
Faith. Hope. Love. Everyone understands these ideals. Many of us would like to increase their presence in our lives. I know I would.
I’ve found one of the best ways to foster a mood or vibe in my household is through the use of creative art. Putting these awesome sentiments in a handmade lettering structure means I can use them in a variety of ways for intentional character-building.
I decided to go with a typographical feel for this project. I wanted to have a strong lettering foundation from which to grow a variety of projects.
So first up was researching a variety of font forms, looking for ideas. Then I carefully drew out my skeleton letters. This took some serious time as getting the underlying structure just so will add strongly to the finished letters’ success.
I was aiming for a strong structure that would be mixed with the organic feel of hand lettering. As you can see, I start by using rulers, compasses and protractors to get my foundation just right, and that will be inevitably muddled later on when I hand ink over these precise lines.
That’s the artistic combo I’m looking for: very structured typography juxtaposed with the free-flow movement of hand drawn words.
It’s time to ink!
Embrace the hand quality of lettering
I took my time inking these hand drawn words. I wanted them to reflect the precision of my original drawings, but still have a hand drawn feel.
The interesting thing is, from a distance, these hand lettered printables look printed, but as you get closer you can definitely see the unevenness of the ink and the predictably imprecise lines of the hand inked letters. Some of this I smoothed out a bit (but not too much) as I digitized these pieces to prepare for the final digital files, but the organic nature of these hand letters will be quite apparent to my clients.
This process is not about perfection but about the vibe of the letters and how the look interplays with the sentiments.
Love. Hope. Faith. Perfect ideals. Imperfect human action. I want to capture that juxtaposition in my art.
On this particular project I also inked some of the assets separately and then digitally combined them for the final printables.
I can show you additional creative ideas using this type of minimalist hand lettering as a springboard.
Set a Tone with Your Handmade Lettering
My hand lettered printable design “Laugh” is a great example of using art to set a specific mood or tone exactly where you want in your home.
I love doing this!
I started with sketching the word “laugh” and when I was happy with it, continued on with the inking.
As you can see from the photo above, I was so focused that until I looked at the photo I had taken I didn’t even see that the inked letters spelled “ugh”. Well, that “laugh” is on me, for sure!
Since I am left handed I do a lot of my work from right to left to prevent smearing.
This time I really did have to “laugh” when I saw what I’d photographed.
The organic feel is what you’re going after with hand drawn lettering.
A closeup of this artwork clearly shows how hand lettering results in uneven inking. You can go over your inked pieces until you’re satisfied with the depth of ink, however it will never be as even as printing, which is the beauty of hand lettering. Very organic and imperfect.
I often digitally deepen my hand drawn words so they will print at their best. But often my clients can still see the uneven, organic quality of the hand lettered process. Unique, every time. Always, one-of-a-kind in my original artwork.
When I was finished inking this piece, I added watercolor stars, dots and a dry-brushed frame to complete the look. This is a handmade lettering printable piece that will work great in a nursery, bath or any space you want to add a touch of happy.
Hand Colored Fonts in Handmade Lettering
And now, for something completely different in the land of hand drawn words.
Forever Friends is one of my hand drawn lettering designs done in watercolor and ink.
This artistic project was normal in that it took 2 renditions to get it right. So if you’re frustrated with how long it takes you to complete a handlettering project, don’t worry. We all take exactly the time we need to create the piece exactly as it needs to be.
Forever Friends is a great gift option. Print it out, pop it in a frame and give. It’s beautiful between friends and also tugs at the heartstrings when given between a mom and daughter. Artwork can do that so well!
For this hand lettered project, I started out drawing on sketch paper and knew I would need to transfer it to watercolor paper.
Using 2 complimentary font ideas deeply enhances the mood of the finished piece. If you’re doing a project like this yourself, choose your font selections carefully and make sure you see them together before you start your handlettering project.
If you look closely at my hand drawn sketch above, you can see that I originally had a lot of leaves swirling throughout this art piece.
I even got so far as to paint them all with watercolors. The result was simply too busy, too much.
So I started over. I had kept my original sketches, of course, so it was easy to do another transfer to a fresh piece of watercolor paper. No problem.
Details will make your art letters shine
After I got everything painted with watercolors, I inked the details. I love adding whimsy with ink.
Details make all the difference in artistic hand lettering.
I often practice several ideas before focusing in on the final details. It pays off handsomely and when I follow this procedure I’m often happier with my work.
If you’re trying this, remember, what mood are you trying to display, give or even teach with handmade lettering? Art can be powerful and you will be more pleased with your results if you think through these concepts ahead of time whether you are buying your artwork or creating your own.
These hand drawn letters show you very different styles. Part of the fun of using artwork well, whether through decorating or using in some other way, is to give thought about the ideas you want to convey.
