Love your Handwriting
I have heard from many of our customers that they love beautiful stationery and cards but really don't love their own handwriting. We do so very little handwriting these days that for many of us our handwriting muscles are truly out of shape. Like any skill you can get back into shape and improve your handwriting with a few tips and practice!
Penmanship is a real art form and there is a real "International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers and Teachers of Handwriting (IAMPETH). While joining this club may not be on your bucket list, they can offer us a few tips to put us on the road to better penmanship.
- Assess your handwriting. Write out a sample and scrutinize each letter looking for what can be improved.
- Find a sample of a style that you would like to emulate. Check out the limitless handwriting fonts online and print out the alphabet.
- Visualize the letter shapes as you write.
- Practice writing each letter in the air. Write great big "air letters" visualizing each shape.
- Warm up. On a sheet of lined paper make a series of squiggles, loops and shapes similar to the letters without having to concentrate on the details of each letter. Just let your fingers warm up through the repetition of moving through letter-like shapes over and over.
- Pay some attention to posture and paper position. Sit in a comfortable upright chair. Keep your paper in from of you at an angle. You will also want to practice moving your hand across the page as you write.
- Slow Down! This will likely make the biggest difference at first. Keep your sample lettering in front of you and carefully "draw" each letter at first.
- Practice, practice, practice! Before long you'll discover your true inner penman (penwoman)! Also a little wine doesn't hurt - just to relax a bit :).