Italic Letters

The most comprehensive guide to italic calligraphy! Italic Letters: Calligraphy & Handwriting by Inga Dubay and Barbara Getty is the most comprehensive "how-to" workbook that exists on learning italic: 128 pages of step-by-step, beautifully illustrated instruction. The teaching method is "hands-on": you learn to write beautifully by writing. The book provides page after page of models to trace and letters to copy. Each letter is presented in both a monoline tool, for informal and rapid writing, and an edged tool, for an elegant, formal hand. Dubay and Getty take you through basic italic, formal italic, chancery italic then cursive italic, four classic hands that will earn you a lifetime of compliments in both your formal calligraphy and everyday handwriting. Once you have mastered the letterforms, the authors show you how to use your calligraphic skills to design and produce posters, invitations, letters, cards, booklets, and envelopes. This resilient book is for serious calligraphers and those who simply want better penmanship. Italic Letters is for professional and amateur calligraphers, art teachers, and enthusiasts of the book arts. It's also for students, business people, homemakers; virtually anyone who wants to learn calligraphy and improve handwriting legibility. In this age of computer-generated letters and forms, people admire more than ever the beauty and personal impact of handwritten communication.

An updated version of the classic Renaissance manuals, this handbook is geared toward modern practitioners. It features the best ideas from the early guides, compiled into a contemporary system that makes writing the Italic as simple as possible. With this manual as a guide, both experienced and novice calligraphers can cultivate their natural creativity.

Surveys the copybooks of sixteenth-century writing masters, provides biographical and historical information about them, and compares the style of each master.

This thorough workbook provides a complete course in calligraphy, from basic alphabets and letterforms to templates, from spacing and layout to complex projects. It’s big, it’s complete, and it’s filled with the most detailed lessons on calligraphy anyone will ever need. A complete overview of the basic tools explains what each pen can do, and how inks and paints can affect the quality of the work. Several tasks are laid out for students to master: They can start with "skeleton letters,” and then gradually try more complex forms, including Rustica, Antique Uncials, and Carolingian. Prepare for a project by understanding line spacing, centering, layout, pasting up, and using color. Then, see how to make giftwrap, fashion handmade greeting cards, design posters, and copy poetry and prose.

Revisit the lost art of writing with these fun prompts, worksheets, exercises—and more!—and experience the many benefits of writing by hand, including increased focus and memory, relaxation, and creative expression. Writing by hand may seem passé in the digital age, but it shouldn’t be dismissed as simply an activity for grade schoolers—it offers countless benefits that have been studied by researchers, brain neurologists, therapists, educators, and others who are invested in helping handwriting thrive in an age of advancing technology. Handwriting may be slower than typing—but this gives your brain more time to process information, and stimulates neurological connections that aid in memory, focus, and composition. The process of handwriting can also have a soothing, calming effect and can even serve as a great form of meditation. And of course, it’s a great way of expressing your individuality and personal style. The Lost Art of Handwriting explores the history of writing longhand, and reintroduces proper stroke sequences, letter forms, and techniques for evaluating and improving your handwriting. You will discover how the amazing variety of letter forms provide endless opportunities for making these alphabets your own, and how to choose alternatives that fit your preferences while keeping your writing neat, consistent, and unique to you. You’ll learn how to connect letters in cursive writing to help you write more smoothly, and with practice, more efficiently. Learn how easy it is to apply what you’ve learned into your everyday life with tips for integrating handwriting practice into already jam-packed schedules. Soon, you’ll notice a steady increase in the relaxation, value, and joy that handwriting offers to everyone who persists in putting the pen or pencil to paper.