Modern calligraphy

TOTAL NOVICE KATE PETTIFER WENT ALONG TO A BEGINNERS’ WORKSHOP

WORDS ARE MY THING but artistic I am not, so it was with some trepidation that I approached the brightly lit shop front of Quill London on a dark autumn night. I was attending their two-hour beginners’ modern calligraphy course – a workshop-version of the exercises you’ll find in Lucy’s book, only more nurturing, with tea and cake at half time.

All eight wannabe calligraphers resemble back-stage crew, dressed in black, in this case to temper ink spillage. We’re provided with a pen holder, nib, ink pot and dotted paper. (I daren’t bring cake to the table for fear of dotting my pristine workspace with crumbs.)

Our friendly teacher takes us through the basic grip, up strokes and down, before getting us started on curves and circles. It reminds me of handwriting practice at primary school, attempting loops of equal size and interval. Next, we’re let loose on the alphabet – single letters at first. The final element is how you link letters together – the dark art that’ll allow you to pen beautifully flowing words.

From there onwards, I spend a meditative half hour, trying out words and phrases and particularly tricky letters – capital R has me stumped, and I can only make BIG LETTERS, like a child learning to write. There is gentle chatter and smiles over mishaps among strangers brought together by a love of letters. It’s a simple but insightful course, but a skill that will only be mine if I galvanise what I’ve learnt through practice at home. Since the course, I’ve enjoyed a half hour here or there practising my letters, so maybe I’ll be able to pen a Christmas wish or two… quilllondon.com