It’s Week 2 and Day 8 of the 2017 #sendcardsspreadlove challenge! We have fabulous guest posts this week beginning today with Ameenah Samuel who has hand lettering tips to share below.

On Wednesday, we have a special feature and interview with Sara of Constellation & Co., and on Friday, Mary Potter Kenyon, author of Mary and Me: A Lasting Link Through Ink joins us.

How To Participate In The Challenge

For those of you just joining us: welcome to the party! I’m asking you to send 4 cards out into the world this month, based on the 4 weekly prompts provided, plus a few bonus challenges. Totally do-able, right? The intention with this challenge is for you to connect with the ones you love in a fun way, while bringing back the joy and beauty of real communication…that still fits into your fast-paced lifestyle.

As a reminder, make sure you sign up to receive all the info and special bonus content that won’t be shared on the blog and/or join us in the Facebook group.

Before we begin, I want to start off by saying that I have absolutely loved seeing your posts on IG and in the Facebook group. The creativity and enthusiasm you all have to send cards has blown me away. I also want to share several of the week 1 challenge entries. You still have until 11:59 pm EST TODAY to enter. To be eligible, share your week 1 challenge card and/or note on IG or in the Facebook group, tag @prettybypost and use the #sendcardsspreadlove hashtag.

     briichan / Kate N.

yourdori_girl_photos / cathym53 / constellationco

Here’s a brief recap of Week 1:

• Week 1 challenge, instructions and prompts graphic [Day 1]
• BIG LIST of reasons to send cards [Day 1]
• Resources on what to write [Day 3]
• Guest post from Alexandra Franzen on the power of a letter to change a life [Day 5]

Day 8 Of The 2017 #sendcardsspreadlove Challenge

Week 2 Challenge: Thank You

The challenge this week is to send a thank you card.

It can be a quick note of gratitude for a gift, someone’s friendship, advice you received, a specific event you attended, etc. If you need tips on crafting the perfect thank you, we’ve got you covered in the Day 3 post, or check out this blog post from Garance Doré, the French photographer, author, illustrator and fashionista.

The prize is The Best of Collection (ONLY 3 AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE). It’s the ultimate best of collection (ooh la la!) as determined by YOU, the subscribers and PbP community. To be eligible, share your week 2 challenge card and/or letter on IG (remember to follow us) or in the Facebook group. Be sure to tag @prettybypost and use the #sendcardsspreadlove hashtag by April 17th at 11:59 pm EST. All winners will be announced May 5th via newsletter, on IG and in the FB group.

And now to today’s guest post.

Ask and you shall receive. Ameenah Samuel is here to share hand lettering tips, as requested by quite a number of the PbP community for this year’s challenge. Ameenah has her top 3 tips and free resources for you. Please give her a warm welcome.

Top 3 Tips For Hand Lettering Beginners

Hey, you guys! I was asked to guest post here at Pretty by Post® (which is such an adorbs name and site!)

My name is Ameenah Samuel and I am the host and boss lady at Mariam Poppins. I recently discovered the world of hand lettering through Bullet Journaling. Bullet Journaling led me to hand lettering and rekindled my love for all things artsy! It’s a true love story! The bujo (bullet journal) community really opened my eyes and introduced me to hand lettering. I’ve been Bullet Journaling since July 4, 2016 and that’s when I started hand lettering. I was drawing letters in my journal and making them out to be a certain way. Yet I had no clue what it was called.

Fast forward to today and I’ve been hand lettering (specifically sharpening my craft and becoming a part of the community) for only three months now. Woot woot!!!

I feel so moved to be able to share some tips with you all to get started on your very own lettering journey. This is such an excellent time to write this because I’m still learning A LOT and I’m still a total youngin’!

Today I’m going to share with you my top 3 tips for beginners at hand lettering. Even if you aren’t a beginner these tips would help anyone at any level! Let’s get to it!

Tip #1: Research & Then Research Some More

Right now, I own several art supplies from various pens, pencils, markers, crayons, etc. Save yourself some money, time, and headache by doing your research.

Before you go to the nearest Hobby Lobby or any craft store to purchase a set of Micron Pens or Faber Castell artist pens – do some research. I’ve wasted money and time going with what I saw everyone else using. Sometimes we get so passionate about something that we quickly invest all our pennies into it. I’ve been there and done that! Only to find out later that what I really needed wasn’t all those items I purchased.

So, hop on the computer and go to Youtube. Youtube is probably going to be your hand lettering bestie! Read the reviews from those in the community and then set out to the local craft store. Even if you do all the research, keep in mind that there will still be some trial and error and what works well for one person may not work well for you, but the goal is to be educated and aware of all the possibilities before you invest!

Some of the things you’ll want to research are the following:

•       Pens/pen nibs
•       Pencils
•       Ink
•       Paper
•       Brush pens/markers

Art supplies can be expensive, but be sure to select the highest quality materials YOU CAN AFFORD – you really do get what you pay for. I know this for sure!

Tip #2: Take Advantage Of The Free Hand Lettering Worksheets & Practice

I know most folks want to buy a book, but there are so many websites dedicated to providing free hand lettering material. In fact, I just hooked up my printer today just so I can print out my hand lettering worksheets!

No matter what level you are at when it comes to hand lettering, everyone must practice. I remember a quote that keeps me motivated:

“The separation of talent and skill is one of the greatest misunderstood concepts for people who are trying to excel, who have dreams, who want to do things. Talent you have naturally. Skill is only developed by hours and hours and hours of beating on your craft.” – Will Smith

So, practice as much as you can. At the end of this post, I will share some free resources to help you guys out, cool? Cool!

Tip #3: Don’t Compare Your Work – Be Inspired Instead

I remember when I started Bullet Journaling, I would constantly compare my work to others. I’m telling you now that it is an energy waster to compare your work. Instead, use the work of others as inspiration and as a catalyst to push your skills. We get so hung up on whose work looks better and this, that and the third that it kills the joy in this hand lettering adventure.

Relax. Your work is your own and the next person’s work is their own. Use what you see from others as motivation to push yourself into going beyond what you thought was too hard for yourself to do.

You are unique and so is your hand lettering journey. It is uniquely your own, so embrace all the ups and downs and enjoy the process.

There are so many other tips I can offer but I figured these three are a great start. I really want to remind myself first, and then all of you guys, to make this journey your own and enjoy each moment. If you have high expectations, than make sure you have a high practice bar! To do well one must put in work, and I’m learning that big time!

You can get some worksheets from the following:

• 10 free hand lettering practice worksheets at Dawn Nicole Designs
• 3 hand lettering worksheets for beginners at Printable Crush
• Lettering practice worksheets at Tombow

Thanks again for this lovely opportunity! I appreciate the lovely Ms. Danielle for giving me space on her beautiful blog to share my tips. And I appreciate all of you out there and I hope you all enjoyed reading the article as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Enjoy the process, my friends!

***

Author Bio

Ameenah Samuel is a blogger over at Mariam Poppins. She’s an artist and planner enthusiast, who has an aficionado for hand lettering and all things artsy. You can catch her on Instagram and Facebook.