Christmas Ornaments & Ampersand Day

In order for us to get an early start on Christmas, Carol Savage and I will be showing you different mediums to use on Christmas ornaments. We will demo on the camera and there will be time for you to try it for yourself. We will have supplies available for your use. The pictures shown are just a sampling. I use them for my package tags, place cards, gift items, etc. Come and join in on the fun!

Also, in honor of Ampersand Day, bring a sample of your favorite ampersand to display, along with our envelopes. Vicki Brandt has lettered a page of ampersands that will be given to all attending.

— Sheryl Bracey

Punch Up Your Envelopes!

This is one of the top voted topics for programs. Since we will be signing up for our summer envelope exchange, we thought this would help you get out of your blah doldrums toward decorating envelopes. The topics will include:

1. JoAnn Bates will show some cute and easy ways to doodle your way towards the “wow” envelope.
2. Maxine Gaither will demonstrate how to make a card and envelope from one piece of paper, and many more creative ideas.
3. Rose Wathen will present pointed brush ideas that will make your lettering pop, and things to draw with the brush.
4. Sheryl Bracey will show clever tools to add to your arsenal of wow-popping add ons…from pearls to glitter!

I will have years of envelopes that I have received for you to drool over. Aren’t I a lucky girl? We will have a great time!

— Sheryl Bracey

Envelopes by JoAnn Bates, Vicki Brandt, Linda Floyd, Mary Henderson, Kristina Howard, Carol Percy, Ron Ross and Rose Wathen. Photo kindly provided by Sheryl Bracey.

Hand Cut Rubber Stamps!

After seeing that the St. John’s Bible had numerous hand cut rubber stamps in it I remembered a time when Alice Fuqua taught a class in that for our guild. It’s probably been 25 or 30 years ago. I have asked her to come and do a repeat performance of that class. She has refined that skill to a fine science. This skill has come in handy many times for me while decorating envelopes. I know you will enjoy this fun program.

The tools we will be using include:

1. x-acto knife
2. white rubber erasers
3. soft lead pencil
4. tracing paper
5. stamp pad or marker

I will be bringing all of the items except for the x-acto knives and I ask that you bring one of those.

Sheryl

Photos kindly provided by Alice Fuqua

Hi everyone,

After talking with Plaza, I’ve decided to cancel the meeting tomorrow. There is a layer of ice that has fallen, and they are calling for a bit of snow before this storm is done tonight. The temps will stay below freezing, so the ice won’t be melting by morning, especially on side streets. I don’t want anyone to get hurt trying to get out in the morning.

Sheryl has confirmed that we can move the January program to March — Alice will be able to come then.

I’m so sorry — but I feel that it is better to be safe…

Maybe we can all use the time gained to start our lettering projects for the year!! The instructions were in the January newsletter. If you did not receive one please let me know and we’ll get one mailed to you. We’ll also get the newsletter loaded into the website as soon as possible.

Stay warm — the cold air is definitely back!!

Lynn Noga, President

Creative Cards

Greeting Cards Can Be Very Expensive So Why Not Make Your Own?

We will have three of our members, JoAnn Bates, Vicki Brandt and Valerie Cypress teaching us how to make different types of cards.

JoAnn will demo how to use the Sizzix embossing machine and how to do hand embossing. 

Vicki will be making the cards we learned in Carrie Imai’s class…except…she has taken it to the next level. Even if you don’t paint you can still do these by using words instead of objects.

Valerie will demo how to do the round vine and you can put whatever greeting you need in the center.

I have been a recipient of all of these and they are fabulous!!!

There is something for all levels so come and join in. All supplies will be provided. You will have an opportunity to make some of these cards and you can use calligraphy with all that will be shown. 

See you in November.

Rainbow Writing

I wanted to give you more details about our September Program. There are many ways to do the Rainbow Writing so I wanted you to see them all with hands on experience. These ladies have agreed to help demo these. We will have five tables set up and you can take turns going to each table and learning all of the different techniques.

1. Sheryl Bracey: Parallel Pens with cartridges and Folded Pens with acrylic ink
2. Carol Hall: Pentel Brush Pens
3. Ruth Haskins: Pointed nib and gouache
4. Lilo Regen: Broad edge pen, preferably a Speedball 0 or 1 nib and gouache
5. Carol Savage: Water writing with pearlescent liquid acrylic inks and/or Dr. Martin’s concentrated watercolors
6. Rose Wathen: Broad edge pen and acrylic inks

Please bring any of these pens, if you have them, though we will have some for you if you do not.

John Neal, from John Neal Bookseller, has offered to send our guild 30 copies of these two Bound and Lettered magazines. Both contain articles about Rainbow Writing. Depending upon the number attending in September you will take home one or both of these magazines. He is also offering a special deal for those who have never taken or has let their subscription lapse. You can get the four Volumes of #15 for $15. It is usually $26 for the four volumes. You can subscribe at the meeting; I will have subscription forms. (I had asked permission to copy one of the articles and he offered actual magazines and a great subscription rate instead!!). Since many of you wanted this program I hope you will enjoy it!!

Sheryl

Lettering kindly provided by Sheryl Bracey

Come Make an Envelope Book & Learn About Hashtagging!

Due to unfortunate circumstances, our March book-making had to be postponed until May. Big thanks to Rose Wathen for stepping in with a program for everyone to enjoy on lettering!

This is the easiest book you will ever make! It requires no sewing, cutting, or glueing! At our May meeting, everyone will get to make a small book out of envelopes. It can be used as a sampler, a mini journal or a gift for a friend. Four envelopes will be provided, but these books are so easy to make, you might want to bring some of your own envelopes to make another one! All of the envelopes must be the same size but can be different colors. You might also want to bring embellishments such as tiny envelopes, Washi tape, rubber stamps, and scrapbook type patterned papers. These will enhance your book but can be added at any time with a glue stick or glue dots. If you wish to decorate your book, it would help if you bring scissors and glue.

As an added bonus, Miranda Fuller will demonstrate how to post photos of your books or other work to social media using the hashtag #nashvillecalligraphersguild. To learn more about hashtags, please see her entry in the May newsletter or visit our blog.

Envelope book photo kindly provided by Carol Percy.

Fun with Pointed Nibs

Rose Wathen will be sharing a “FUN WITH POINTED NIBS” Program. She will be bringing paper and ink — if you have a favorite pointed pen, please bring it!

Rose says, "We will be demonstrating flourishing and drawing for the program using pointed nibs and moon palace ink. Come ready to lighten your pen touch and relax into curves.”

See you there!

Lisa
President, NCG

What Do You Charge?

What should I charge for my work? Should I charge by the hour or by the number of lines of writing or number of words? What if I add color or artistic elements? Should I charge for rush jobs and delivery? What is the going rate for envelopes? How do I price a large job?

These and many other questions are important for getting our calligraphy business going and thriving. Our January Program will be an informative, interactive presentation and discussion of pricing guidelines. Beth Paul will present a detailed formula on pricing guidelines for any art form by Curt Benzle, professional porcelain artist. A generalized national survey on calligraphy will also be shared. Anyone who has information to share or resources on the subject is welcome to contribute to the discussion! We all need to work together on this topic to be fair to both ourselves and our paying customers!

Come and share your questions and experiences! 

A Celebration of NCG’s 35th Anniversary & Beyond

Our program for November will offer a great recap for new members and a walk through the past for veterans. To celebrate our 35th anniversary, Carol Ann Baily gathered photos and put together a slide show that spans the history of the guild and Ann Cobb made a comprehensive booklet of our officers, workshops, meeting places, logos, etc. It was decided by the group that these would be nice to share at our meeting for those who could not attend the celebration in September. In addition, our guild had the distinct honor of assisting with the hosting of international calligrapher Donald Jackson’s visit to Carson Newman College in October, where pages of the commissioned St. John’s Bible were on display. Members who were in attendance will share their weekend experience with Donald Jackson, who headed the project and worked with a select team of lettering artists to render the Bible in a beautifully modern calligraphic hand, complete with beautiful illustrations.