Online – 4 Sessions – November 7, 14, 28, and December 5, 2023, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., US Eastern time.

An ideal follow-up to Perfecting Your Pencil Work, this work shop will take participants to the next level in layout skills. Working extensively with tracing vellum and pencil, we’ll experiment with creating thumbnail sketches, skeletal letter shapes, centering text, and other elements. We’ll then work toward fine-tuning your design in pencil before transferring the layout to good paper for the inking of the final product.

After you register, you will receive a separate email with log-in information for the sessions.

The Abbey Studio is offering a 10-month Calligraphy Certificate Program, beginning in June 2023. All of our workshops are stand-alone learning experiences and can be enjoyed on an individual basis. But put them all together and our workshop offerings essentially constitute a year’s course in calligraphy and hand lettering. Beginning with the sessions concentrating on Italic lettering, Copperplate Script, and Uncial we’ll gradually work into the very important step of beginning your calligraphic piece with pencil and working toward an effective layout. We’ll then begin concentrating on the various forms of decorated letters and how to create and execute everything from a drawn Roman capital to a large Lombardic decorative capital, enhanced with raised gold leaf. The final workshop will pull together all the skills that have been acquired during the preceding 10 months. Anyone completing all the workshops will receive a Certificate of Completion. To that end, we’ve established a discount program for anyone registering for multiple workshops at the same time:

Study more, save more! Our workshops have been designed to complement each other and build upon your skillsets. Register for TWO workshops at the same time and receive 10% off both — use Coupon Code 2Classes10 in the shopping cart (click where it says “Have a coupon?” near the top of the cart). Register for THREE or more workshops at the same time and receive 20% off all of them! Use Coupon Code 3Classes20 in the shopping cart (click where it says “Have a coupon?” near the top of the cart).

Supply List (supplies not included):

Mechanical Pencil (.05)

Traditional wooden pencil

White plastic eraser

T-square

Drawing table (or surface that will provide edge for using T-square)

Tracing vellum

Drafting brush (optional but recommended)

Workshop Withdrawal Policy: Unless you are paying for your class with a gift card, a refund (tuition less 20%) will be issued if you withdraw from class two weeks or more prior to the beginning of class. If withdrawal occurs less than two weeks before class, no cash refund will be issued, but a studio credit voucher will be provided. Occasionally there is insufficient registration for a class to run. In such cases, registrants will be given three options:  (1) Private or semi-private lessons (with price adjustment), (2) placement for the same class held in the future at a different date and time, or (3) refund.