How to Draw Cool Fonts
Everyday and everywhere, you are surrounded by letters and written messages. From logotypes to posters, billboards, t-shirts or book covers, letters non only tell a story but evoke certain emotions equally well. What if, instead of using an already existing font, you could draw cute hand lettering that's full of personality?
Even if you've already dipped your toes into the infinite universe of mitt lettering, or you've thought about trying it out but weren't sure where to start, you are in the correct place! Nosotros're going to take a look at the essentials that you need to offset this wonderful journey of hand lettering.
I've been hand lettering for a niggling over a twelvemonth, and it all started when a weekly challenge popped up on Instagram and I decided to enroll. I previously played effectually with calligraphy, merely I wasn't really sure what the departure between that and hand lettering was. I had naught feel, never taken a class, never watched someone practise it live. I just thought it would be fun—and it was! Since and so, I've been lettering almost daily, and learning this skill has been one of the all-time things I've ever done!
By the end of this article, you'll know the basics of hand lettering and have the conviction to create your ain pieces!
What is hand lettering?
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Many people out there confuse hand lettering, calligraphy, typesetting and type design and use the term "type" or "typography" to refer to all of these.
Type blueprint
Blazon design is the process of making typefaces which all of us tin utilize. A type designer creates systems of letters, making sure that all letters of the alphabet work together in endless combinations.
Typesetting just means arranging blazon that's been created by a blazon designer in a given layout. This might be as simple as a black and white newspaper or as complex equally a typography-driven brochure.
Dorsum in the day, this was washed by hand. Today, we do it all on a computer.
Calligraphy
Calligraphy is flawless, gorgeous handwriting. Afterward many years of exercise, calligraphers use muscle memory to perfect their way then that the adjacent fourth dimension they gets deputed to create a wedding invitation, for example, they can perfectly write all the copy on the beginning try. Although hand lettering often imitates calligraphy, the process behind the two is very different.
Hand lettering
Finally, manus lettering is the art of cartoon messages and can take on many shapes and sizes, from traditional-looking letters to intricate, detailed and not-so-obvious looking ones. This can be done in any style, on whatsoever material, with any media.
Even though there are no rules in manus lettering, there are still guidelines that we need to take into consideration.
How to start hand lettering
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Before we start, let's take a quick look at how manus lettering can be used. You might exist surprised to meet but how many ways in that location are to utilize this art form!
i. Get your tools
You don't need any fancy tools to exist a hand-letterer. When I started to get into lettering, I idea I needed the most expensive and professional pens, judging by all those super-duper shots from Instagram. I bought a agglomeration of brushes and pens which I probably used… five times?
The but tools yous will truly use are a pencil, paper, eraser and ruler. If yous want your lettering to look calligraphic, consider using the proper calligraphic tools (such as brush pens or nibs), but y'all can do only fine without (more than on that later on).
If you lot want to bring your lettering in the digital medium, there are a few ways to make it happen. To start digitally from scratch, use a graphic tablet or an iPad Pro and Apple Pencil to draw. Or scan your piece, and edit information technology in Photoshop or Illustrator past using the built-in tracing selection or by tracing it yourself using the Pen tool.
two. Know virtually alphabetic character construction and relation
Guidelines are very important in the process of drawing letters. They assist you keep your messages in proper proportion then they'll have a harmonious human relationship between one another.
The ascender line shows how long the ascender of a lowercase letter should be (like l, h, b). The cap height is the height of an uppercase letter. The x-superlative is the height of a lowercase letter of the alphabet and the line that holds the crossbar. The baseline is where all letters residue. The descender line shows how long the descender of a lowercase letter of the alphabet should be (like p, j, grand).
In some cases, you'll have to slightly ignore these guides and brand some optical adjustments.
Here is a technique I've learned from Martina Flor. No matter what style of lettering you lot employ, at that place are a few basic shapes that we work with—shapes she calls "mother forms." We accept rectangular shapes (like the messages H or E), triangular shapes (like the letters 5 or A), rounded shapes (like the messages O or C) plus the combination of all of these.
If yous have all these shapes on the same baseline, all the verbal aforementioned size, the circumvolve and the triangle would look significantly smaller than the rectangle. Why? Because the foursquare touches the baseline and cap height with its unabridged border, while the circle and triangle don't.
Even if technically they are the same size, optically they're not. This is when yous'll utilize your eyes and instincts to overstate those letters just a fiddling over the baseline and cap tiptop. How much should yous enlarge them? Well, that's upward to y'all! In time, you'll find it easier until you'll exercise information technology without fifty-fifty thinking nigh it. The same rule goes for the lowercase letters, too.
3. Learn the beefcake of letters
Earlier yous swoop into the actual lettering, it'due south important to know the most ordinarily used terms, so that next time you'll be able to call the 'piddling thing on the end of a lowercase letter' by its proper name—a final. Once you know these terms, you'll be able to talk with anyone about this topic.
Here are the ones you'll use the nigh:
4. Choose a lettering fashion
This is where we go wild! Equally a letterer, you have to know all the different styles so y'all tin can choose the 1 that fits your current project the best. Knowing the basic styles volition help you create endless variations of the same letter.
Nosotros all the same have some rules to play past, but your imagination can become crazy!
The most important rule to go along in mind at all times is legibility. Y'all can create the well-nigh ornate, fancy looking E, but at the end of the day, if it can't be easily recognized every bit an Eastward you lot failed. Since at that place'southward not just one right way to draw an E (except for its basic skeleton, which can yet exist modified), information technology'southward up to us to determine how to draw it.
Set? Hither nosotros become!
Serif lettering
A serif is the modest line attached at the end of a letter of the alphabet's stroke. Initially, it was invented to help with legibility but designers and letterers accept pushed it and reinvented it many, many times, creating some really funky and interesting serifs.
Within this category, there are many other styles. We've got one-time manner serifs, transitional serifs, didone or modernistic serifs, glyphic serifs or slab serifs. Whoa, right?
Let'due south take a wait at what all these await similar:
And hither are a few examples of all the ways you can apply them:
Sans serif lettering
"Sans" means without. So this category of lettering contains typography that has no lines fastened to the ends of each letterform. Sans serif lettering is oftentimes used to convey a more than gimmicky mode.
Even though these letterforms have a more basic structure than serifs, at that place are still a number of creative ways to do this. You might think there'south not much y'all can do with something so simple, only allow me evidence you wrong!
Let'southward run into a few of these in action:
Script and castor lettering
Script and castor lettering refers to letterforms that are connected to each other. This tin be very formal looking and elegant, playful or even super trashy. This style imitates calligraphy, only instead of drawing the messages with a single movement of the hand like you would in calligraphy, you describe the messages from many little pencil strokes to build that look.
The most of import dominion to keep in mind is that a alphabetic character's upstroke is ever thin, and its downstroke is e'er thick. Upwards thin, downward thick. You minimize the pressure of the pen on the ups, you push button and create more pressure on the downs. Upwards thin, down thick. Up sparse, downwards thick. That'south just four words to memorize!
Yous tin can likewise play effectually with a brush pen or different nibs to get the experience of the stroke so that y'all'll know what you have to imitate.
These are the three bones lettering styles. Tweak them however you please, and get to some actually crazy, funky looking letters.
Brand the messages very slim or very fat. Invert the weights to become that nifty feel. Add together a super heavy weight contrast. Use really crazy serifs or flourishes.
There'southward really no limit to what you lot tin can achieve. Just accept fun with it!
5. Add dimension, details and decorative elements
Now that you are more familiar and comfortable with the bones style categories, let'southward accept a wait at what we can do to make them more than interesting and decorative.
Adding dimension and shadow
When we talk about dimension, we're talking almost three types of shading: the drop line, drop shade and drib shadow. You tin can create these by drawing the same shape behind your main one. Simple every bit that. If you lot got comfortable with creating these you can play around with them and brand some really interesting shadows to brand your letterforms even more expressive.
For case, you can create a vanishing bespeak and connect all the edges of the letter (or word) to the same bespeak, or you tin can have some actually heavy, bold shadows, playing with the positioning.
If yous have all your dimension added you lot can go alee and add even more than depth. Decide where your light source is coming from and describe the night parts in wherever the calorie-free wouldn't impact your alphabetic character.
An easy fashion to figure this out is if yous imagine your letter is an actual object on a tabular array. Look at different objects in your room, both rounded and rectangular, to get a feel of how the lights and shadows play on it. Information technology takes a trivial practise to get it right, but hey, exercise makes perfect!
Add details
Sometimes you will demand to add some details on the letters themselves. Add together anything from a simple inline to intricate flourishes and shading. Let'south take a await at but a few examples:
There is no rule for how to add these, except for keeping the letterforms legible and relevant to your project.
Adding decorative elements
At times, you'll want to make full the empty infinite around your letters. Once more, go on the messages readable at all times.
Make sure you don't get as well crazy with the flourishes and petty decorative elements. Or if you lot choose to go crazy, do it in a fashion that fits your concept and style.
These flourishes and swashes can be part of your messages or stand on their own. Either way, they can help balance out your composition and make your messages stand out.
5. Depict expressive letterforms
Let's practice some actual lettering!
As a manus letterer you lot need to be able to express feelings and emotions solely with the style of the drawn letters. For example, you lot most probably won't be using a decorative, circusy slab serif for the title of a fancy event invitation (except if it'southward a circus conference?) or a sophisticated script lettering for a sports mag cover.
Practice past trying to illustrate random words with the help of letters. Selection your word and retrieve almost what feelings tin can that give-and-take evoke. Write a list with everything that comes to your listen when y'all think most the given give-and-take. You can write objects, feelings, styles, anything. The longer the list, the ameliorate.
You don't accept to use each of these ideas, but it's useful to see them all and use the ones that fit your concept the best.
Afterward y'all feel like you got everything you demand, showtime drawing. At first, focus solely on getting the thought from your head to the paper. Don't go precious with your sketches. Don't focus on details, and don't get sad if yous mess it up. A sketch is supposed to be messy! Try to sketch fast, without overthinking information technology and listen to your instincts. Sketch out more than than just one concept for the chosen word so that yous'll be able to choose the best.
A little play a trick on well-nigh sketching is to always commencement with the skeleton of the letters and add together weights after. You'll have a solid foundation to build on and then you'll be able to concentrate on the very construction of the letters.
Also, try to non only draw the discussion in a certain style, but utilise objects to stand for information technology. For example, you might build the word 'basic' from little letter of the alphabet shaped bones or describe bodily melting messages for the word 'cook'.
Afterward you've narrowed information technology down to one concept per give-and-take, keep sketching and refining. This is where you add dimension, flourishes and decorative elements. Reference your list to utilise relevant elements!
Now, instead of using i style to define the give-and-take, use many different styles to give the aforementioned give-and-take different meanings.
Follow the same pattern: choose your word, write the list and get sketching! Over again, don't go precious with your initial sketches, just let your ideas period. Think well-nigh the many emotions i word tin evoke. You lot'd be surprised to see how the vibe of one word can change but past drawing it differently.
Pretty fun, isn't it? Y'all can repeat this exercise daily and y'all'll start to see improvement sooner that y'all might expect. Don't forget to keep your letters legible, but permit yourself to make mistakes!
Bring hand lettering to your ain designs!
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If you made information technology through this tutorial, you're awesome and 1 step closer to mastering the fine art of paw lettering. Exist proud! I know that getting started tin can be intimidating, just you'll soon find that paw lettering can be such a fun form of art.
You probably have the urge to leap into hand lettering head first, and start drawing intricate, detailed quotations. Only first, get comfortable with drawing a single discussion. You can't build a business firm if yous don't have strong bricks, right? With these basics, you take countless possibilities to draw messages and improve your skills.
Once y'all start creating, share your piece of work with the globe! Remember, anybody started out every bit a beginner, and anybody needs their beau artists to give them a little nudge every at present and then.
>> Ready for the advanced form? Read our tutorial to hand lettering quotes and sentences.
Source: https://99designs.com/blog/design-tutorials/basics-of-hand-lettering-tutorial/
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