You have a great idea for a new calligraphy piece, or perhaps you got a new commission, and it’s so tempting to start right in with the calligraphy while the excitement and inspiration are fresh in your mind.

Sometimes the immediate approach works, but usually the results of this kind of approach to your work are disappointing.

Just as athletes and musicians warm up before a performance or contest, you as a calligrapher should warm up and practice before beginning your work.

Start with some stretches and arm circles to get the blood flowing and your muscles warm and energized.  Then get out several pieces of practice paper, and before you start forming letters, have a bit of fun with your pen, making marks and swirls, long and short strokes, moving the pen quickly and slowly and observing how each movement feels and which muscles you are using.  When your pen feels secure on the paper and you feel that your movements are fluid and full of controlled energy, it’s time to start making letters – practicing the words and phrases you will be using in your finished piece.

Watch as your lines of practice become fluid and rhythmic.  Pay attention to your breathing, your muscles and your state of mind.  There will come a point in your practice when everything is going right – you will feel energized and in control, and the words will be flowing without effort.  You might also feel as if you are in a calm zen-like state, almost a trance.  This is the time you are waiting for, and you will know it when it comes.

Those of you who have been following my efforts to get my calligraphy studio back in order (see “Nightmare in Ellensburg”), might find yourseves inspired to do a little cleaning and spiffing up of your own workspaces.

Today I was cleaning out the inside of the small watercolor desk in my calligraphy studio.  I keep an assortment of paints and small paint palettes there because I love to write with gouache and transparent watercolor, and you just neve know when a calligraphy piece might find itself in need of a painting.

I decided to wash all the palettes and start fresh, so I left them soaking in a bucket of hot soapy water while I organized the inside of the desk.  Some of the palettes are plastic, but others are white porcelain, and the thought crossed my mind that it might be easier to just put the porcelain palettes in the dishwasher.

Now, here’s the important part.  Don’t do it!  If you are using artist’s quality paints (and you should be) many of them contain toxic chemicals and heavy metals.  Just because you can’t see any paint left on the container doesn’t mean there are not traces of toxics left.  Do you want that stuff in with your dishes?  I hope not.

Most people are aware of the fact that oil paints can be toxic, as can the mediums used with them, but you would be surprised at how many people think that watercolors and gouache are non-toxic.  In fact, all artist’s quality paints are  made out of the same pigments – only the vehicles carrying the pigments are different.

And here’s one more thing to be aware of.  Cadmium and cobalt, among other metals, can be absorbed through the skin, so use disposable gloves when washing out your containers, and dispose of the water responsibly.  I usually let the water evaporate outdoors, then scrape out the residue and dispose of it at our landfill.  Most landfills have a hazardous waste area, and rules for disposal.

Don’t let any of this keep you from using high quality paints in your work, but it never hurts to be cautious about usage and disposal.  We’re all on this planet together!

I just thought the nightmare was over – in truth it was just beginning!

True to her word, Ellen called bright and early Monday morning, and then she showed up for the second grueling session of “Studio Scrapeout”.  I was totally not up for this one, having been beaten down thoroughly by the previous day.

Nevertheless I persevered.  It’s amazing what one will do for one’s kids!

Over a cup of tea we decided on our goals for the day.  My urgent need was to have the top of my flat file cleared so I could use the paper cutters located there.  Ellen thought that was doable in the time we had allotted, and she also thought we might be able to clear the top of the watercolor desk, so that what was inside might be accessible (there’s a concept for you!).

Clearing the flat file was easy, but I had no idea she was going to become obsessed with the  watercolor desk!  She just had to see what was inside, and to do that we had to clear off the incredible amounts of unfinished paintings, papers and art supplies that had accumulated there!

Once again, the dining room table was drafted into service as a sorting table.  Papers were stacked in one pile, unfinished paintings were propped against the kitchen peninsula wall, and all supplies went into plastic boxes to be redistributed later.  The pile of empty boxes became a tower that threatened to topple if a door slammed.

The wind came up, and the front door to the studio slammed.  The tower toppled, and just to add insult to injury, papers and projects sailed off the drafting table onto the studio floor.

Sigh.  More job security.

I think it was at this point I suggested that we could use the unfinished paintings to start a bonfire.  Ellen gave me a withering look and offered the unwelcome comment that if the paintings and frames had gone up to the painting studio to be finished, the calligraphy studio might have stood a better chance!

Busted!

Stay tuned for Part Three…

I was buried under paper!  Every horizontal surface in my studio was covered with piles of paper and paintings and books, and God knows what else!  It was dangerous to go in there at night because of the bags of unfinished paintings and projects on the floor, just waiting to trip me; and the trail was so crowded with  frames leaning against walls and shelves I was bound to be injured badly if Iblundered into something in the dark!  Only the drafting table was relatively clear (because it’s not horizontal), and even there the flood of paper was making  inroads.  Just when I thought I couldn’t stand another minute of the horror – I woke up.

Alas, it was all too real.

And just when I thought I couldn’t stand another minute of the real horror, an angel of mercy descended in the form of our daughter Ellen, an accomplished calligrapher, musician and organizer extraordinaire, who announced that directly after our family brunch on Sunday morning, Phase One of “Studio Scrapeout” would commence.

She was not kidding.  Right after the table was cleared she snapped into action, and her boyfriend and her Dad fled the scene!

Within minutes the dining room table was covered with piles of paintings, papers and books and other things to be sorted, boxes had been dragged out of shelves, emptied and piled in a corner awaiting new (organized) uses, and chaos reigned.  She actually wanted me to put like with like!  Can you believe it?

I’m pretty sure that at one point I heard her say “Get a rake”, but that could have been an echo in my own mind – a flashback to her early childhood when I suggested that a rake would be a useful tool for cleaning her bedroom floor!

Note to self:  Be careful what you say, it may come back to haunt you.

After several hours of torture (sorting, boxing and labeling), I whined that dinner still had to be made and served, and we needed to clean off the table if anyone was going to eat.  Ellen had mercy.  We cleaned off the table, finding logical places in the studio for all the piles of stuff, and then she collected her long-suffering boyfriend and with hugs all around said “See you tomorrow Mom – I’ll call”.

To be continued…..

I’d like to take a little time here to talk about the Members Only portion of calligraphyinabox.com.

We are finally getting this portion of the site up and running, and I thought you might be interested in some of the things we will be offering to our members.

We have tentatively decided to call our member site ‘Inside the Calligrapher’s Box’.  Rolf came up with the name and I thought it was pretty catchy, as well as intriguing – who can resist looking inside a box?

So, what’s inside our Calligrapher’s Box?

For one thing, you will find Project ideas and How-to’s, from a very beginning level, to more advanced ideas on designing your own projects.  I will try to keep at least 2 projects up at a time, and there will be some project ideas that will be available at all times.

I also have a section in the Calligrapher’s Box devoted to Tips to help make your life as a calligrapher easier and more productive, as well as tips that answer the most common questions beginners ask.  There will also be tips to help you navigate the hundreds of products available to calligraphers.

Also we will have a Forum in the Calligrapher’s Box, and I think this will be the most exciting part of the whole thing.  The idea here is that you will be able to talk to me and receive replies through the Forum, but you will also be able to talk to all the other members, and they will be able to reply as well.  I’m hoping to get some very lively discussions going about all things calligraphy, and to help create an online community of calligraphers – an online calligraphy guild, if you will.

I have a few more things I would like to include that need a little more work, but one thing that might be fun is a contest of some sort to help me re-name my blog!  After all, ‘Edna’s Blog’ is pretty mundane!  Be thinking about it – only members will be able to enter the contest.

Cheers and Happy Lettering, Edna