Wondering what it takes to be a successful calligrapher? What are the hacks and tricks that the best calligraphers know? If you’re just starting out, you want to up-level your calligraphy practice or turn your hobby into a business, there are a few secrets that I want to share with you about what it takes to be a great calligrapher. After running a successful custom calligraphy business and teaching thousands of students in calligraphy workshops and online, I know a thing or two about the art of pointed-pen calligraphy. I’m happy to share a few of my best secrets to help you get a jump start on your passion, and hopefully save you hours – maybe even years – of practice.

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They say it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill. And while dedicated practice is crucial to developing your skills as a successful calligrapher, that is not the only important element to aid in progress. Having some artistic skills or abilities may also help in your calligraphy journey but is not a requirement to learning calligraphy or hand-lettering. In addition to repetition and practice being a surefire way to improve your calligraphy skills, another important element is the calligraphy tools and supplies that you are using.

Getting The Right Tools

As a beginner learning calligraphy, you might not want to make the investment in tools, like trying out different pen holders and nibs, or high-quality calligraphy paper since you are just learning, but it will make all the difference. Having the right calligraphy tools on hand will save you time and energy, in the long run, to start your calligraphy practice with the right supplies.

Visit our shop to discover the curated calligraphy tools and supplies to elevate your skills and create the stunning works of art you’ve always envisioned. In there, we’ve hand-picked our favorite calligraphy tools that work well together, so that you don’t have to do the work!

“Calligraphy is a kind of music not for the ears, but for the eyes.”

– V. Lazursky

Calligraphy combines beauty and functionality to elevate the simplest text into a work of art. 

When you create a piece of art with calligraphy, the creative process can be transcendent. But creating beautiful calligraphy and enjoying the beauty of the process requires patience, training, and of course, the right tools and instruction.

We’ve worked with thousands of skilled calligraphers and aspiring artists who are just starting in their calligraphy journey.  Whether they are looking to turn their hobby into a business, find a new way of relaxing, or just up-level their art, supplies are the most common barrier getting in the way of progress for any level calligrapher.

Investing In Your Art

I had the same problem when I started. Like so many artistic folks, I assumed that my skills and keen eye would make it easy to become a calligraphy artist, regardless of the tools I used. So, I purchased the least expensive tools and practiced my pen strokes on….yes…regular old printer paper! I made a massive mess on my parent’s kitchen table. As you can imagine, my lettering bled. And I was incredibly frustrated.

This was not the joyful artistic experience I was looking for. By the end of a few sessions, I had nothing worth showing for all my hard work. 

But I wanted to master pointed-pen so I did a little more research. After speaking to a few friends who were visual artists and spending time reading about calligraphy as an art form, it became clear that high-quality calligraphy materials are essential.

When it comes to calligraphy, you get what you invest in it. And so began my quest for better calligraphy supplies, nicer calligraphy paper, and quality ink. Investing in my calligraphy gear was the most critical investment in this work.  

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From Hobby To Career

Now that calligraphy is my career, the right equipment was a massive investment in my life too! Having the right calligraphy tools removed most of the practical barriers to my progress. It allowed me to hone that keen artistic eye, train my steady hand and nurture my creative spirit.

Once I started my practice with proper paper, the right pen, and better nibs, my progress as a calligrapher finally started to improve. I wasn’t wasting time on unnecessary things like paper that bled or broken nibs.  

Good calligraphy tools allow you to write smoothly and precisely — even when you’re a beginner calligrapher or when you’re trying to take your calligraphy skills to the next level. As my pen glided across the paper, I could experience that “flow state” so many artists talk about.  And this elevated my experience and craft to the next level of expertise.

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My Best Calligraphy Tip

Whenever a calligraphy enthusiast asks me for a tip, I always say to invest in proper tools and get formal instruction on how to use them. Using the right tools improved my calligraphy. But once I received proper guidance and training, my skills skyrocketed!

Because here’s the thing — great tools are best used when we have solid guidance. Lucky for you, in addition to my hand-picked calligraphy ink, pens, and supplies in our online calligraphy tools and supplies shop, I offer several online calligraphy courses that you can take at your own pace, whether you’re a beginner just starting, or you’re hoping to learn a specific calligraphy skill, like addressing envelops with calligraphy or creating an oversized wooden sign with calligraphy, or you want to know how to write calligraphy in a straight line.

So, what should you be looking for when sourcing the best calligraphy tools and training?

Here are my suggestions for the best calligraphy tools and supplies to have at the ready for any level calligrapher.

All About The Calligraphy Pen

A good calligraphy pen comes in two parts — the pen holder and the nib. This allows you to switch between nib sizes to create the exact kind of lettering, flourishes, and connections you’re looking for.

In our online calligraphy shop, we offer oblique calligraphy pen holders in many different colors. Their weight and feel in the hand make them ideal for any calligraphy pen work you wish to do.

Shop this oblique calligraphy pen holder

Onto The Calligraphy Nibs

Now that we have the pen holder taken care of, it’s time to move on to the nib, or the piece at the end of your calligraphy pen that dips into the ink and is then used to press onto the paper.

My calligraphy nib starter pack is a set of nibs that I have personally hand-selected for our calligraphy product line because they ensure steady and reliable ink flow on paper and minimize the chances of bleeds.

Shop the best calligraphy nib starter pack

Calligraphy nibs are a personal choice and are specific to each project you may be working on. Someone else’s favorite nib may not be the best for you or any specific project. So, we recommend trying out the variety pack of calligraphy nibs, which gives you a few different nib types to see what works best for you. There’s a little bit for everyone to find their favorite too! (Don’t forget to get our favorite calligraphy nib cleaner too!)

The Right Calligraphy Ink

After the pens and the nibs, comes the calligraphy ink. There are many different kinds of calligraphy ink on the market. In our online calligraphy shop, we sell the same calligraphy ink formulations that we use for custom wedding invitations with calligraphy, and event calligraphy. 

Again, our calligraphy ink is of the highest quality so that it ensures steady flow, but also has a rich color to ensure that your calligraphy writing pops off the page exactly how you envision it.

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A Must Know About Calligraphy Paper

If there’s one thing we can teach you here about calligraphy, it’s this — please don’t use generic printer paper for calligraphy! We repeat: do not use printer paper for your calligraphy. Using the wrong paper is a very common source of frustration for aspiring calligraphers and it tends to turn them off to the art form altogether when it is such an easy fix.

Calligraphy quality paper does cost more, but the value you get from honing your craft on a suitable medium is priceless. You will save yourself so much time and frustration by using quality paper. All of the tracing pads that come without our courses are printed on high-quality paper for just this purpose.

Starter Kit: The Perfect Combo

There’s another easy way to maximize your calligraphy experience: get the help and support that you need in your journey. Whether it’s a tried and true tool in our shop or one of our online calligraphy courses, everyone needs help and someone to take their hand and show them exactly how to enjoy calligraphy and not be frustrated and upset about it.

If putting together your collection of gear seems a little daunting (it was for me when I started calligraphy), then I suggest getting our signature calligraphy starter kit, which includes everything you need to just get started…and find success!  People are always asking me about where and how to get started and I always point them to this starter set. Our calligraphy starter pack has all of the best calligraphy tools that you need as well as an online self-paced course that you can stop and start as much as needed.

This is the combination of supplies and instruction in our calligraphy starter kit I wished I had when I started. I’m telling you – this starter pack alone would have saved me years of learning!

Shop our signature calligraphy starter kit of tools & online course

Our starter calligraphy kit has everything you need to take that first step and gives you a fair measure of what you should expect from high-quality tools and equipment.

Give yourself a chance to be the best calligrapher, even when you’re just starting. Get the right tools to enjoy the process and create something extraordinary.

Happy writing calligraphy!

Be sure to check out more of my calligraphy tips and advice to learn more, as well as our shop for the best calligraphy supplies, tools and courses to support you in your calligraphy journey. Our FREE beginner calligraphy guide has everything you need to get a jump start on your calligraphy practice.