2020 in Review: 75+ Resources for Calligraphers
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With 2020 behind us, it’s time for a big roundup of the resources I published throughout the year. Many were 100% free – videos, written tutorials, downloadable practice sheets – and others were premium content like new Procreate brush packs and Skillshare classes.
When the pandemic hit in February, I took a close look at the New Year’s resolutions I’d written for my business just a month before. I realized that I didn’t have to pivot much to fulfill those goals, while at the same time meeting the new needs of my audience. My list was focused on making practice sheets and tutorials and digital tools. In other words, my resolutions already centered around creating new resources for learning and making calligraphy.
I knew that I wanted to focus a lot of my time on tools that were either free or very affordable. It was clear from the start that at-home activities would rule the year, so I also wanted to focus on resources that would be available to anyone on Earth with an internet connection. In place of preparing the in-person calligraphy workshops I usually offer every summer and winter, I turned my attention to online learning content.
I installed an overhead camera arm above my desk and started my YouTube channel, filming analog and iPad calligraphy tutorials from the edge of my desk. Publishing a new video every Friday was certainly a challenge, but turned out to be one of the year’s most rewarding endeavors. As my channel has grown, my subscribers’ feedback continues to inform the new content I produce, whether that’s an overview of my favorite Procreate 5X shortcuts or a quiet demonstration of a calligraphy layout.
Whenever I sit down to produce a learning resource or tool, whether that’s a book or a brush pack, I start with a couple simple questions: What tools did I wish existed when I was learning calligraphy? What tools do I still wish I could find for making my own art? The answers to these questions inform every resource I create. So when I created my six premium Procreate brush packs for lettering artists, I made sure each one filled a gap that I had in my own toolkit. I plan to expand my digital tool collection in 2021, producing even more kits for iPad calligraphers.
This year also saw the launch of Molly’s Lettering Toolkit! Another of my most rewarding endeavors, my library of free downloads started with just four resources, but grew each month for a total of sixteen by the end of the year!
Below, you can find links to all 75+ resources I published in 2020, from tutorials to typefaces!
Most Popular Procreate Tutorials:
How I Make Flourished Calligraphy Layouts in Procreate
Procreate Lettering Grid Hack
Most Popular Analog Calligraphy Tutorials:
Transform Your Modern Calligraphy One Step at A Time
Gold Calligraphy Place Cards on Cotton Paper
Most Popular Product Releases:
Calligraphy Nibs Procreate Brush Pack
Calligraphy Composition Maker for Procreate
Most Popular Articles:
A Book Cover Story: The Design Process of Mastering Modern Calligraphy
Where I Go for Calligraphy & Lettering Inspiration
The Best Calligraphy Practice Papers
2020 Complete Roundup: 75+ Resources for Learning Calligraphy
Here’s the complete list of every video tutorial, calligraphy demonstration, online class, blog article, and live event I released in 2020
Procreate Tutorials & Demonstrations:
Analog Calligraphy Tutorials & Demonstrations:
Transform Your Modern Calligraphy One Step at A Time (Skillshare class)
Procreate Brush Packs & Corresponding Tutorials
Fonts & Vector Packs
My Favorite Things:
Article:
Molly’s Lettering Toolkit
Free downloadable resources
This year I launched Molly’s Lettering Toolkit, the free hand lettering bundle that’s always growing. My newsletter subscribers gain lifetime access to all the free downloads, so if you’re not already on my list, sign up for access to all the downloads listed below, then get more free products straight to your inbox when I release them!
Whimsy Script Practice Sheets
Vienna Script Practice Sheets
Madrid Script Practice Sheets
Everlasting Monoline Practice Sheets
Gusto Script Practice Sheets
Brooklyn Script Practice Sheets
Flourishing Practice Sheets Vol 1: Pangrams
Flourishing Practice Sheets Vol 2: “Neither Snow” Layout
Flourishing Practice Sheets Vol 3: Circular Calligraphy
Calligraphy Stroke Drill Practice Sheets
12 Lettering Guides & Grids
Alphabet Exemplar Coloring Pages
Molly’s Favorite Procreate Flourishing Brush
Ombré Smoothie Procreate Brush
Chalk Calligraphy Procreate Brush
Letter Guide Stamp Procreate Brush
Calligrafile.com: The Resource Archive for Modern Calligraphers
Calligrafile is a curated library of 500+ trusted supplies, online shops, learning resources, interviews, and business tools compiled by professional lettering artists from around the globe. I founded Calligrafile back in 2016, as a way to organize all my own favorite links, learning resources, and freelancing tools that I’d bookmarked over the years. I brought on a panel of more than a dozen contributors – professional lettering artists from many different backgrounds – who contributed their own favorites. The result was a resource library that compiled over 500 recommended resources, organized into 20 in-depth archives and galleries.
Little by little, Calligrafile has grown over the years. But in 2020, I gave it the biggest update yet, with a site design overhaul, 100+ new links, and the addition of iPad Lettering, Font Design, and Handmade Tools archives. If you’ve been a Calligrafile fan, the first major change you'll notice (apart from our new logo!) is that we reorganized the site to make searching more intuitive. You'll now see three main menus that organize all our archives: Products, Learning, and Business.
Calligrafile is 100% free, and I’ve always worked hard to recommend tools that are:
very highly-rated,
affordable or free,
available worldwide, and
supporting independent artists and artisans.
Oh, and follow @calligrafile on Instagram and tag your work with #imacalligrafile for a chance to be featured!
