How to Draw Old English Lettering

Old English lettering is known for its decorative capitals.

Old English lettering, also known as "Blackletter" or Gothic script, is characterized by its bold lettering and ornate capitals. Today, Old English lettering is popular as a decorative script and in calligraphy. You can add style to greeting cards or letters by using Old English lettering in headings and titles. All you need to draw these letters is a calligraphy pen.

Things You'll Need

• Calligraphy pen
• Absorbent paper

Instructions

1. Start on a practice sheet of paper. Make several strokes with your pen to get the feel of it. Hold the pen at a 45-degree angle and use your arm and shoulder rather than your fingers to make the lines.

2. Use a template for your first few attempts. Calligraphy manuals usually have examples of Old English letters, and there are many available on the internet. There may be slight differences in the font style between templates, so look at several to decide what you want.

3. Start learning with lowercase letters, as these are easier. Practice letters that look similar: for instance, e, g, o and p are based on a similar ovular shape in Old English font. Look for patterns, and practice the basic strokes.

4. Work on capitals separately. Start out with the general shape of the letter. Most Old English capitals are based on a basic letter, which is then ornamented. Put the whole nib of your pen on the paper as you write to ensure evenness.

5. Add the ornaments to the capitals. Many capital letters in Old English font have an extra vertical line, or even two, on the left side of the letter. Sometimes the additional line is much finer than the main one. Practice using the side of your calligraphy pen to draw this fine line.

6. Combine the upper and lowercase letters. Write short words, or simply write out all the letters in order.

Tips & Warnings

• Practice all the lowercase letters at once by writing a sentence that contains all twenty-six letters. One example is, "Six fuzzy beavers quickly jumped the narrow gap."

References

• Identifont: Old English Font
• Calligraphy Centre: Learning Calligraphy