A Dance of Words: What is a Calligraphy Artist?
Photo by Carissa Weiser on Unsplash
Calligraphy is the visual art form of creative writing and typography. Its serifs and strokes embolden and embellish thoughts from the mind onto paper. Though it is a rare art form today, it’s life flourishes in the wedding world as a symbol of elegance and beauty!
At Hub 925, we’re wild about weddings, and have been privileged enough to host this art form where it thrives best. Your special day. Recently, we welcomed back Wedding War Wednesday at Hub 925; where artists and creatives in the wedding industry go head to head to impress.
Wedding War Wednesday is when multiple vendors gather at Hub 925, and demonstrate their skills to our brides and followers online, in hopes of fostering a relationship with the community, and our local business owners. This past April, we hosted Wedding War Wednesday Calligraphy Edition! During April’s war we invited Christine of Littera and Kait of Bare Lettered Designs to join us.They were both paired with a bride, and given 30 minutes to consult and design a wedding invitation to show off their skills, and with it all live streamed to Facebook for people who couldn’t make it in person.
It is a lot to ask of a calligraphy artist to consult and design within 30 minutes, but we must remind everyone that Wedding War Wednesday is not always about the final product, but about the journey and conception of a brides vision of beauty, and its manifestation into reality through the skills and ingenuity of our vendors!
Please watch the stream to see Christine and Kait meeting their brides, and the attempt to deliver their visions on our Facebook page!
Hopefully you joined us for the stream, and if not, what are you waiting for? Go watch the stream! Anyway, let’s get to know our calligraphy artists!
Christine of Littera (Left) and Kait of Bare Lettered Designs (Right)
Before Wedding War Wednesday I got to know our two artists a little bit. Digging into their thoughts a little bit, and seeing what got them to where they are today, and where they plan to be tomorrow!
Hub 925: What is your name, and what’s the name of your business?
Christine: My name is Christine Carpenter of Littera.
Kait: Well hey, I’m Kait and I am the owner and designer at Bare Lettered Designs.
So what is your background? Like, what did you study, go to school for, had previous work experience in?
C: I have a degree in Baking and Pastry Arts from the Culinary Institute of America, and previously worked in the culinary industry. I’ve traveled to multiple cities to hone my skills, and work for various establishments; such as restaurants, hotels, and bakers. I took a break from the industry after getting married and moving to Orlando in 2016, and haven’t returned to a professional kitchen since.
K: This is actually my side gig. I’m a third grade teacher, and I studied Elementary Education at UCF (Charge on!). Before I became a teacher, I worked at a LASIK eye surgery center as part of their marketing team mostly. I also had the pleasure of working Katie Scully of Blue Ribbon Weddings for awhile. That was super fun, and I loved every minute of it!
Alright, so how did you get started? Like, what motivated you to do calligraphy, and how did you move from what you were doing previously, to doing calligraphy?
C: I decided to continue my hiatus after our move to Orlando, but after a short time, I found that I began to miss working in the industry, and the creative outlet it provides. My sister suggested that I give calligraphy a try and gave me a littler “starter pack” to modern calligraphy for Christmas that year. Little did she know, she had just introduced me to my next creative passion! That small gesture sparked a hobby that would eventually turn into this humble business.
K: I’ve always had good handwriting. I remember practicing in a notebook while I watched TV in elementary school. I was definitely a teachers pet, and loved when she would compliment my neat handwriting. In college, I started seeing beautiful hand lettering pieces and decided I wanted to learn. I bought a guide online, started practicing as often as I could, and eventually decided to give doing it semi-professionally a shot.
So when designing, how do you decide what techniques to use? For example, things like the texture of the stock, color of ink, the thickness of the strokes?
C: This one is a bit of a toughie to answer, mainly because it’s difficult to describe the planning process for the texture and color of the designs since it can vary so much from style to style. So, I let the couple’s vision dictate and inspire which direction to take. For instance, I’ll start by suggesting different textures and colors that compliment, or even contrast, the style of their wedding, and eventually work down to a design that perfectly represents the couple while suiting their tastes!
K: When I’m working on commissions from clients, they get what they want. Most people know exactly the look they’re going for. I just put pen to paper, or sometimes Apple Pencil to screen, and make it happen. If they give me some creative freedom, I play around with things and give a couple of options. A lot of it depends on the theme or vibe of their wedding. Different mediums work better in different situations. If they’re going for a more rustic feel, I would create a wooden sign rather than an acrylic one. But, if I’m working on projects for myself, I do whatever feels right, which I think a lot of artists do. When I sit down to design something, I usually have an idea in my head, but most of the time, that’s not what comes out. Going with the flow frees me up to new ideas, new mediums, new everything. It’s a lot of fun!
Who do you look to for inspiration when designing? What gets those creative juices flowing?
C: The calligraphy community on Instagram has been a huge support and inspiration to me ever since I started, and I continue to look to those amazing artists for ideas. However, I don’t believe in copying another’s work, so if I do come across something that I think will suit a client or a design for one of my own pieces, I try to incorporate my own twist on it, while giving the original artist due credit of course. Another huge source of inspiration for me are items in nature and natural structures. I love that it offers such a variety of patterns from symmetrical and geometric to irregular and abstract!
K: There are so many people to be inspired by on the Instagram game. There are so many talented people out there doing all sorts of amazing things, it’s hard not to be inspired. And i consider coffee to just be creative juice. Everything works better with coffee. Hot coffee, iced coffee, cold brew; you name it!
Well how do you find opportunities to plug your business? Develop your business?
C: I try to keep my mind open to any opportunity, but I love serving the local community here in Orlando and supporting the “shop locally” concept. I try to join in on local events to meet other artists/creators and potential clients in person. I always enjoy getting to know my clients before creating pieces for them! In addition to local events, I also lead calligraphy workshops with a few companies and establishments to share my passion for the art with the public so they can create pieces of their own!
K: This one is difficult to answer because I don’t really have a strategy. I just put my work out there and hope that someone sees it and thinks, “This is exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
So what trends right now in calligraphy, or art otherwise, do you follow?
C: I love all the trends in calligraphy, but none more than the wooden and acrylic decor trends. I’ve always loved the combination of calligraphy with these materials, so I am grateful that the community has been keeping the style alive! Other than calligraphy, I enjoy dabbling in watercolor paintings and resin pour art as well.
K: I try not to get hung up in trends. It’s really easy to get sucked into the competitive, comparison game, and that’s just not a healthy place for me to create in. I do get inspired to try new things though, but more so for the learning aspect. If it feels comfortable for me then I’ll add it into my wheelhouse. I recently started offering agate slices and acrylic slates for place card settings or escort cards which have been pretty popular lately. They’re also super fun to work with, so I don’t mind following the crowd so much with these.
Alright, are there any shout outs you’d like to give?
C: A special thanks to Singling Lee of CalligraLee!
K: (Hub 925!) I’m so glad you reached out to me and invited me to join in on the fun of Wedding War Wednesday!
At Hub 925, we’d like to thank these 2 wonderful Calligraphers for joining us for Wedding War Wednesday! We expect to see them making great waves in helping to build the Calligraphy community here in Central Florida.
What unique things have you always hoped to see Calligraphy used on? Let us know in the comments below, and make sure you visit our friends Christine of Littera and Kait of Bare Lettered Designs, and let them know we sent you!