roman capitals

Skeleton Roman – M Group (Video)

calligraphy, traditional-calligraphy, video

I learn from the book ‘Calligraphy: Tools and Techniques for the Contemporary Practitioner’ by Gaye Godfrey-Nicholls, really the same book as ‘Mastering Calligraphy: The Complete Guide to Hand Lettering’. This is my free, completely unofficial interpretation of the lessons. I do feel that watching something done can give us serious a-ha moments, which is why I make and share these videos, but for a deeper understanding, I recommend you read the book.

For printable guides, visit my blog http://bit.ly/2b0VAT9 . I use a 2B pencil so the letters are more visible, but you should use HB.

Music: “Easy Lemon” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

The letter M requires 4 strokes, all from top to bottom. Start an eighth in to left-bottom corner. Then jump back up and go down to the middle. Continue an eighth in back to the middle, then top to the bottom right. Do the M patiently from left to right and top to bottom.

The letter W is a couple of V together. Start from the top and connect in the middle. Then start again from the top point and repeat. W is made with 4 strokes, like the M – also from top to bottom, and left to right.

S.

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Skeleton Roman – B Group (Video)

calligraphy, traditional-calligraphy, video

 

I learn from the book ‘Calligraphy: Tools and Techniques for the Contemporary Practitioner’ by Gaye Godfrey-Nicholls, really the same book as ‘Mastering Calligraphy: The Complete Guide to Hand Lettering’. This is my free, completely unofficial interpretation of the lessons. I do feel that watching something done can give us serious a-ha moments, which is why I make and share these videos, but for a deeper understanding, I recommend you read the book.

For printable guides, visit my blog http://bit.ly/2b0VAT9 . I use a 2B pencil so the letters are more visible, but you should use HB.

Music: “Easy Lemon” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

We use different guidelines for the B group, which are based on half of the square.

B is made in 4 strokes. Begin with a full downstroke. Create the curve by going straight first, then follow the circle from the top to bottom and pause. Do the same for the second circle, then join the lines from left to right. For the letter B: downstroke, straight and around, pause. Straight and around, pause again. Then left to right.

The letter E has 4 straight lines. The first is vertical, then all horizontal from top to bottom. One downstroke, then full; not quite full; then full stroke again. The middle stroke is a bit shorter, creating a pleasant variety.

The F is the E without the last stroke. Don’t go all the way to the end for the third stroke. It needs to be shorter than the top.

L is simply a downstroke and a horizontal stroke at the bottom. Go all the way to the end of the square for the second stroke, creating a balanced letter.

The letter K begins with a downstroke, then two diagonals: from the corner, and to the corner of the squares. All the diagonal strokes start from top to bottom. Mind you don’t start the first diagonal from the middle of the K.

The letter P and R use the same guideline where the larger half-square is on top. It’s like the beginning of B. Downstroke, then straight – and follow the circle and pause at the bottom line. Connect from left to right. Don’t forget to pause at the bottom, because the P is made in three strokes.

R is nearly the same as P, except at the last stroke: continue diagonally downward for the leg. The letter R: downstroke, straight – then curve, pause. Close from the left, then southeast-ward for the leg.

(S guide: note that the top circle is smaller than the bottom one)

The S is made in three strokes and particular order. The first is the body in the centre, starting at 10 o’ clock and snaking to 4 o’ clock at the bottom. Complete the bottom and top by going left to right. For S Roman Capital do not draw one single stroke. Start in the middle, then complete the S by going left to right at the bottom and top.

The I is just one simple downstroke.

For the J, start with a downstroke, then curve at the bottom and pause. Complete with a left-to-right curve. The letter J begins straight, then curve to the left, then finishes from left to right.

S.

Roman Calligraphy First Final Thoughts

calligraphy, thoughts

Having learned the Roman hand from ‘Calligraphy: Tools and Techniques for the Contemporary Practitioner’ by Gaye Godfrey-Nicholls, really the same book as ‘Mastering Calligraphy: The Complete Guide to Hand Lettering’, I do realise that it is a very simplified form. I don’t know how to create really beautiful Roman alphabet with the dainty serifs yet, so it’s safe to say that I have not quite mastered the Roman hand. I suppose it might be possible to self develop from this point, but I plan to learn from other books, exemplars, and manuscripts and truly grasp the hand. But for the meantime, onward to Foundational!

How did you learn your Roman hand?

S.

Skeleton Roman – H Group (Video)

calligraphy, traditional-calligraphy, video

 

I learn from the book ‘Calligraphy: Tools and Techniques for the Contemporary Practitioner’ by Gaye Godfrey-Nicholls, really the same book as ‘Mastering Calligraphy: The Complete Guide to Hand Lettering’. This is my free, completely unofficial interpretation of the lessons. I do feel that watching something done can give us serious a-ha moments, which is why I make and share these videos, but for a deeper understanding, I recommend you read the book.

For printable guides, visit my blog http://bit.ly/2b0VAT9 . I use a 2B pencil so the letters are more visible, but you should use HB.

Music: “Easy Lemon” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Note that all the letters in the H Group occupy three-quarters of the square.

Skeleton H is formed by a couple of straight vertical line connected in the middle with a horizontal line. Make 2 verticals, then connect with a horizontal.

The letter N starts with a downstroke. Come back up, then cross diagonally to the baseline, then finish with another downstroke. Downstroke, diagonal, downstroke for the letter N.

U begins straight, then curves up slightly at the bottom. Come up and end U with a downstroke. Just down, follow the bottom circle, then downstroke.

The letter T is made in 2 strokes only. One cutting the square in half vertically, and one crossbar at the top. Let’s do that twice more.

V is also made in a couple of strokes. They meet on the baseline, in the middle. V is not formed with one stroke, but two: all from top to bottom.

The X is two diagonals crossing in the middle. Start with the left, then cross from the right. Left and right diagonals crossing each other for the letter X.

There are a couple of ways to form a Y. One is a diagonal stroke to the centre of the square, continuing downward without lifting, then a second diagonal stroke. Another way is to create a small V at the top, then a downstroke in the middle. I think I prefer the latter option.

The Z starts with a top horizontal stroke; a diagonal from right to left, then a bottom line. The letter’s direction is pretty straightforward, only it’s divided in 3 strokes.

The letter A starts with an upside down V, from top to bottom. Then draw a crossbar slightly below the centre of the circle, creating a more balanced counterspace (than if you cut it straight half).

S.

Learning Roman Capitals – Now I Know My (Roman) ABCs

calligraphy, thoughts, traditional-calligraphy

After about 30 hours of practising each letter group, I’m beginning to practice the alphabet combined. Strangely, this is the moment when I feel that I’ve forgotten everything. It’s very much like the moment before a final essay test. Your classes are ending, and now they’re simply asking, ‘Show me what you know.’ And you feel like you know the big picture, but your explanations turn out to be simple, feeble, and inadequate.

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Learning Roman Capitals – Part One: Skeleton Roman

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Here I’m sharing my experience learning calligraphy by the book: Calligraphy: Tools and Techniques for the Contemporary Practitioner (or Mastering Calligraphy: The Complete Guide to Hand Lettering) by Gaye Godfrey-Nicholls. I will write my process, what’s going on in my head and add some tips at the end, so this will probably read like an informative diary or an unofficial companion guide. This might be the most helpful if you also have the book and planning to learn as well.

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