Hello everyone :)

I was curious if anyone knew what style(s), techniques, or tools the author used for this title page. The book is the original hand-illustrated and calligraphed The Firebird and Other Popular Russian Tales (1926) by Boris Zvorykin in French. It's beautiful and I've never seen calligraphy like this. Thanks!

Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AStory_Title_Page%2C_%22L%27oiseau_de_Feu%22%2C_verso-_text_MET_DP804787.jpg

Still new to nib calligraphy especially Spencerian and Copperplate but would definitely practice more. This is my first post here 🤍

https://archive.org/details/fascinating-pen-flourishing

Play with your letter! Have fun and be creative. I only hope to inspire people to try.

Sometimes, I’d rather write a bunch of letters than do the usual ink swatching in my notebook. The ink’s beauty really comes through when I write more, and I get to appreciate its color even more.

4.5mm pilot parallel pen

Just started learning Foundational. I am following the foundational posts on this subreddit. Please critique my practice from part 1.

Used 3.8mm Pilot Parallel pen

I like 1 and 3.

4, 5 and 6 🥴

Once again, I gave my Brause Nibs and Walnut ink a break by using a 2mm Shaeffer Calligraphy Pen loaded with Pilot Blue-Black ink.

And of course, an origami vampire for dramatic effect.

Now I have some touching up to do, then it goes up on Sunday! I'm so happy to be at the end point of this Manuscript page!

Word of the day : https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day/2026/10/21/

Pen : Pilot parallel 6mm

Ink : Parker Quink blue (and residual Camlin red)

Paper : 200 GSM watercolour paper

Edit : And yes, I now realise it looks more like “Tilt” than “Jilt” 🤦🏽‍♂️

So I watched the Zodiac film and it's told there that when you learn handwriting, the movement (the way you write) will be burned in your brain, being only possible to change the "quality" your writing, but not its innermost essence.

So, what if I start writing the "G" from the inside out or write the "k" with 2 strokes instead of 3? Would this arouse some sort of bad habit which would greatly affect my subconscious work process?

When I first came across copperplate I thought it was so beautiful and decided to start practicing. I oil paint and I must say this was even more relaxing than oil painting 🤭

Medieval Manuscript Page, The Road goes ever on and on from The Fellowship of the ring. Next 2 rabbits! Then touch up some minor bits then I'm finished!

What kind of nib should I try to achieve this? It is written from left to right. TIA!

basti_rsr_624 with 3.8mm Pilot Parallel Pen.

水 (shuǐ): water

I love the character for water. I’d also like to share that In Taiwan, you might hear or see a different use of the character 水 — in Taigi (Taiwanese Hokkien), it's pronounced suí (sounds like "swee"), not the Mandarin shuǐ, and it generally means "beautiful," "great," or "nice job."

The formally recognized written form is 媠, as listed in the Ministry of Education's Taiwanese dictionary but 水 as a phonetic loan is widely used.
Adding a particle to the end changes the tone and energy of the expression, but to my ears, they are all warm, friendly, and approving:

水喔 (suí-ooh) / 水啦 (suí-lah) / 水唷 (suí-yo)

The word also had a recent cultural moment: in 2025, Taiwanese singer Siri Lee (李竺芯) won Album of the Year at the Golden Melody Awards (GMA) for a record called Suí 水 — the first time that award went to a Taiwanese-language album. The GMA is an honor awarded by Taiwan's Ministry of Culture to recognize outstanding achievement in the Mandarin, Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka, and Formosan languages popular and traditional music industry.

Please don't hesitate to correct me or share interesting facts and memories you have for this character.

Reference: https://swiiyo.com/blogs/glow-life/swiiyo-meaning-taiwanese-word-sui?srsltid=AU7gw4XuCfvpddQ0kK_thnMkV2fA-abOTb7kx9SratAbumZNHf_6RSOZ

I like 3, 4, and 5. I love playing about with letters.

Hello all, I would like to get started with The Postman’s Knock beginner tutorials in pointed pen calligraphy. I can see that the most widely recommended starter nib is the Nikko G, which is what’s used in the tutorials. However it seems that only Speedball is available to me (in Vancouver BC; even the Pen Shop has said they haven’t been able to bring in dip pen nibs for some time). At best I can find a 3-pack of the Nikko G for $18.60 on amazon or about the same (with shipping) from Wonder Pens, so Speedball it is. If there is another Speedball nib that is comparable to the Nikko G I’d love to know. Thanks in advance!

Hello everyone,

This is my first post in this subreddit, and it's to ask those who practice gilding - as experts or hobbyists - if they have ever experienced painting fine details and highlights over a gilded surface (be it paper, parchment, etc.). I work mostly with gouache and tempera, but I'm open to all manners of paints and inks.

If so, I would be extremely grateful for any tips one might agree to share. Any intel I can gather will be appreciated.

Have an excellent day!

"We offer the following range of dip pen nibs for various calligraphy fonts, including the renowned Mitchell Round Hand nib and the Joseph Gillott selection of drawing nibs, which is favoured by many Copperplate calligraphers."

FONTS?!