Hand Lettering For Beginners: Learn the do’s and don’ts of drawing letters
When you first practice hand lettering, it can seem daunting with so many styles and characters to learn. But the easiest way to get a grasp any new subject is to start small with the basics. After all, you'll have to know the rules so you can know how to break them.
There are a lot of nuances in type that you wouldn't usually think about it because most people don't stare at the letters themselves, they just read words. They’re not paying attention to how the letters are shaped and why.
This article is here to help you jumpstart your hand lettering education with five tips you probably didn't know.
1. TREAT YOUR HANDS RIGHT
When you're a lettering noob, it can be difficult to draw smooth lines. So do yourself a favor and always do some hand exercises to warm up your drawing muscles. Just like doing a warm up before a workout, you need to wake up the muscles in your hands. These exercises will not only strengthen your hands but also help prevent against osteoporosis.
The Ball and Release
Hand and finger exercises can help strengthen your hands and fingers, increase your range of motion, and give you pain relief. Stretch only until you feel tightness, I don’t want you to hurt yourself.
webmd_rf_photo_of_fist_stretch
Start with this simple stretch:
- Make a gentle fist, wrapping your thumb across your fingers.
- Hold for 30 to 60 seconds. Release and spread your fingers wide.
- Repeat with both hands, at least, four times.
Thumb touch
This exercise helps increase the range of motion in your thumbs, which helps with picking up pens and keeping them steady as your draw.
webmd_rf_photo_of_thumb_touch_exercise
- Hold your hand out in front of you, with your wrist straight.
- Gently touch your thumb to each of your four fingertips, one at a time, making the shape of an "O."
- Hold each stretch for 30 to 60 seconds. Repeat, at least, four times on each hand.
Claw Stretch
This stretch helps improve the range of motion in your fingers and is also great for better hand-eye coordination.
webmd_rf_photo_of_claw_stretch
- Hold your hand out in front of you, palm facing you.
- Bend your fingertips down to touch the base of each finger joint. Your hand should look a little like a claw.
- Hold for 30 to 60 seconds and release. Repeat, at least, four times on each hand.
2. NEVER STRETCH YOUR LETTERS
Stretching out your lettering is a mistake I see a ton of beginners make especially when they bring in their designs into Photoshop to tweak out. You can’t just stretch out your letters for better spacing you have to redraw them so that the thin and thicks of your letters stay consistent with one another.
W Hand Lettering
Ss how the middle W is much thicker than the first? This weight inconsistency is what happens when you just stretch out your letters. It’s important that all the letters of a word match up especially when it comes to thickness.
If you find yourself needing to stretch a letter in Photoshop for better spacing, please print out your drawing and take the time to redraw it. This is something I usually do a few times to help get my letters in tip top shape.
If you do re-sketch your letters, it won’t be the end of the world. But people will notice something is wrong with your piece even if they can’t put their finger on why.
3. MAKE YOUR WORK LOOK GOOD OPTICALLY
It’s more important for the letters to look visually correct then it is for them to be on a perfect grid. There is no mathematical equation to lettering or kerning. So here are a few rules you should know to make sure your letters are looking just right.
Rounded letters should extend above the cap-height and below the baseline
Any letter that has a bowl or rounded curve needs special attention when aligning with the rest of your letters. Letters like O, Q, C, G, S and U must be a tad above and below the baseline for them to appear to be resting on the same plain.
Bowls Hand Lettering
The difference in thin and thick strokes
No matter how thick or thin your letters, your stems (vertical lines) should always be thicker than your crossbars (horizontal lines). This helps the letter appear balanced and not toppling off.
ABC Hand Lettering
I draw out the above compass to help me remember which lines are thick and thin. Your horizontal and upper diagonal lines should always be thin, and your vertical and bottom diagonal should be thicker.
ABC Mono Hand Lettering
4. THE TRICK WITH DIAGONAL LINES
W M Hand Lettering
Alternate strokes of a W and M are thick
5. DON’T BE AFRAID TO DRAW YOUR LETTERING MORE THAN ONCE.
The great thing about lettering is that it takes layers to create a smooth finished piece. So don’t expect to get an award-worthy piece on the first try and be prepared to use a ton of paper.
Millo Process- Thumbnails
For me personally, I always start super small with thumbnails and work my way up to a finalized sketch by redrawing my work, at least, five times. Just check out these recent thumbnails I created for the Millo custom logo design I worked on.
Millo Process - Drawing Concepts
WATCH ME LETTER LIVE ON TWITCH!
If you prefer, I created these graphics live on Twitch this week if you want more of an instructional video vibe. You can check out that 51-minute highlight here.
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Be sure to follow me on Twitch because I’ll be doing more of these tutorials in the upcoming days to prepare my presentation for my first Hand Lettering Workshop at Full Sail University next week.
After these first few live sessions, these videos will be taken down. So check out my recent videos while they're still available. :)