Hi all, I've been practicing my hand lettering skills(or lack there of)lately and wanted to hear from some of the old pro's here on the best way to learn, such as quill size, paint mix, substrates, and so on. Also, any lefties out there? Thanks in advance for any advice!
Posted by Joe Endicott (Member # 628) on :
I'm far from being an "old pro", but the first thing I would do is get yourself to a real live Letterhead Meet"
More talent and skill shared at a meet than you can shake a mahlstick at!
Posted by Wilson Ardmore (Member # 3230) on :
here's an Idea..! Make youself a pattern, using gerber mask or the like. Remove the copy ( leave background ) and apply it to some mdo scraps or whatever. Try using a plain letter style like "Futura", a light stroke style. Mark around the leters with a sharpened stabilo ( blue ). Remove all the mask and take a #6 quill (after preping the quill by giving it a good thinner wash and a couple trips through some lard oil or oil of some kind and then re-clean and use a palette to work paint into the hair. Then go to work practicing, staying in the lines kinda like paint by number.
Give it a shot.
CrazyJack...............
Posted by timi NC (Member # 576) on :
The best advice I can give you is to find a text on lettering and read the fundamentals of lettering before you start.As you read you should find examples of the proper formation of the characters of the alphabet and any practice from that point will be with a better foundation for learning . As for tips,... persist and be diligent in your practice.Once you have learned the basics of letter formation, study the basics of spacing and layout,just knowing how to letter an alphabet is not enough.
Posted by CJ Allan (Member # 52) on :
Check out an old "Speedball" book.......
...........cj
Posted by Signs by Shawn (Member # 426) on :
Lefty here...and it can be fun to learn!!! I've foun that being left handed I like to start on the right and work my way to the left... works great if you've got someone paint from the left to the right!!
as far as tips, get a mahl stick, or better yet, make one, get a dowel rod, one that feels comfortable in your hands (i prefer 1/2") and either tape a rubber ball on the end or a bunch of electrical tape..., learn how to hold it and feel comfortable with it.
Probably the best thing to practice when you start would be learning how to start and stop your stroke and to get exact with it. practice S's alot, also X's will help you in control your line thickness.
More or less, just practice alot... It will come.
Shawn
Posted by Jeffrey Vrstal (Member # 2271) on :
I am left handed. Ralph Gregory's book 'Sign Painting Techniques' tells you this in the preface: "Left-handed signpainters will find certain procedures to be of little use, but these people usually have the innate ability to adapt".
I have adapted to the point of painting left to right, right to left, upside-down, from under something, from over something... even on boats next to the dock. Yeah, you'll screw up sometimes but what a fun way to learn. Frustrating sometimes too.
When you were a kid in school, was the side of your left hand always smudged? Same here. Then I found a mahl stick. I use a bridge when I do pencil drawings. I made it out of a couple pieces of wood and a piece of clear acrylite FF.
Posted by John Lennig (Member # 2455) on :
Jim, good to see you're working the brush!
I'm a lefty too, and way back, in sign class, the instructor just said, John, just do it like I am, uh, yeah, you'll use your left hand tho. Basically, the moves are the same, you just get there another way.(Like sign softwares)
There's nothing like a face to face demo, I'd suggest discovering(this could be fun!) a Signpainter, probably an older man/woman, that you feel a rapport with, and ask them if they'd do a few sessions with you. I'd bet that they would love to!!!(I know I would).
There are a lot of subtle bits and moves to manipulating a brush, whether hand-down, bridge, mahlstick, paint mix, ...so seeing will REALLY HELP.
Also, I have a theory(actually, quite a few!!!) that people wanting to get into handlettering nowadays don't really have to learn all the Gothic Style, etc., but want to use some brush to enliven their work and give it some "one of a kind" style. Scripts and casuals , those really look sharp, and can be easy to learn, there are shortcuts to get you there pretty fast.The block letters kind of stuff can be done with masks, or vinyl.
And, script can be done by lefties, you just "do it a little differently"
So, find the Brusher, and make a friend.... tell them about Letterheads...
Have fun...John Lennig / SignRider
Posted by Rich Stebbing (Member # 368) on :
I trained a "lefty" (I'm a rightie) and she had her doubts about brush handling, but found her way, and in the end her lettering looked exactly like mine (scary). Even the casuals and scripts were almost identical, just a few degrees different on italics. It was a program where we drew letters first before getting on to "one-stroke" letters. We started on paper with 1-shot as that was going to be our preferred paint. We then went to glass, metal and other real surfaces. I guess a #6 or 8 could be a good starter size. To have someone review your work (constructive critizism)will shorten your learning curve and keep you from a lifetime of producing repeated incorrect letters and other mistakes. It is a real discipline. You could turn some "want-ads" sideways and practice your straight strokes, short and long. And to make a perfect "O" you make have to paint a million of em',...so the practice practice practice really comes into play here. Use black paint so you will see in good contrast your flaws. Letter words beneath each other so many of the like letters will look identical. Also letter words like "bookeeping" and other words that have "twin" letters so you can become more consistent. You sure you wanna learn this? The "lefty thing" is not the hard part, it's the rest of the iceberg. Those who have diligently pursued and have accomplished some respectable degree of Hand Lettering are rewarded with sense of satisfaction and joy that is hard to put into words. Now start making them "O's".
Posted by PKing (Member # 337) on :
Left handers have the BEST looking "script" lettering after........................ practice practice practice
Posted by Randy Campbell (Member # 2675) on :
said the leftie "rite" P King. ha ha ha.
Posted by Jim Hansen (Member # 1927) on :
Thanks for all the great replys. What I have been doing lately is drawing out a 3" word "brush" on our plotter and pouncing it by hand and then painting it with a #6 brush. I thought the word brush was kind of ironic, but it had a good mix of straight and rounded letters, so I gave it a go. Some of them come out so good, then some look like kindergarden finger paintings, so I guess I will keep on Practicing! Thanks again for all your kind replys
Posted by Kimberly Zanetti (Member # 2546) on :
Rich,
Funny you mentioned the "want-ads"...when my father taught sign-painting/lettering classes, he had the students bring the want ads with them to practice on.
Jim,
I have a short video (from a NJ cable TV program)of my father Al Zanetti demonstrating proper lettering techniques.I actually watched it this morning for the first time since he died last year. If you'd like, I can make a copy of it for you. Email me at TheWizardofAHZ@aol.com.
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P King. ha ha ha.