Modern Calligraphy and Hand Lettering: A Mark-Making Workbook for Crafters, Cardmakers, and Journal Artists

I love the book so much that I take it with me wherever I go - to work, shopping, to a movie etc etc. and it stays right next to my bed!! It is the first thing I pick up in the morning and the last thing I put down at night. It contains tons of NEW information/samples on hand lettering and calligraphy. I've bought quite a few books on calligraphy in the past and this is the BEST! Most of the calligraphy books I bought end up on the shelf, I only go through them if I wanted some inspiration. But this book is different. I can't put it down and it inspires me to try out new techniques!! The samples on the book are so beautifully illustrated that I have the urge to pick up a pen and start practicing every time I look at them. The book still goes through the basic, traditional old school method BUT with a twist. The letters are funky, trendy and lively! Not just that, the book also covers quite a few DIY tools for the adventurous artists out there, using ordinary materials you already have at home, like yogurt containers, glue, foam brushes etc. It also talks about popular topics like collage & mixed media. A very good book for scrapbooking and journaling. The author, Lisa Engelbrecht is a very talented calligrapher. You will not only see a lot of her beautiful penmanship, but also various artists' beautiful artworks throughout the book.

Ms. Engelbrecht's book is a delight to look at (I'd say read, but it's more form than substance-- on purpose).Rather than being a manual, in the manner of "This is how you write italic script, and this is how to do Gothic, and this is...", she has given us a mass of beautiful, colorful, decorative scripts obviously based in a good knowledge of traditional calligraphic scripts, yet unbound by traditional restrictive form-- it's calligraphy meets watercolor, with hints of modern art and modern poster art mixed in.I could probably describe it better if I had the book in front of me-- I gave my copy as a Christmas gift to my college student granddaughter, who is an artist. A second copy may well end up on my shelf someday soon, though.Recommended.

I really loved this book. Particularly the parts on brush lettering. I am sure some day I may revisit calligraphy but for now I am having way to much fun Werth brush lettering and hand lettering. I especially liked the chapter on DIY tools.

Beautiful presentation of calligraphy and use of various media. However, I would have loved to see more lettering styles in full lower and upper case lettering.

The examples are beautiful and inspiring, but this isn't really my favorite how-to book on modern hand lettering, I would recommend  Modern Calligraphy: Everything You Need to Know to Get Started in Script Calligraphy , but I'm very happy to own both.

Ms Engelbrecht does a great job of presenting many different types of hand lettering with beautiful examples of a rich array of finished work for all the lettering styles presented.I will use this as a reference book. Both modern and traditional styles are shown. She presents the foundation with chapters on tool and materials. Her instructions for lettering are clear and helpful. I love her chapters showing how to make your own pens and using non conventional materials for mark making. This really is a gem of a book.

I read the book on my Kindle on a trip to AK. Fascinating, Creative,, Contemporary. THe sample calligraphy is beautiful and inspiring. I am now using the book as a tool to teach young women. It is written as if Lisa is sitting beside you at the calligraphy table.

Lisa Englebrecht is all out extravagant! Love her out of the box creativity and the colorful format this book is written in. I get her language and want to take this book and add my own creative application. So grateful for this contribution to the Calligraphic community.

I'm surprised this book as been so well-reviewed. Firstly, this is not a book suitable for beginners; the book promises on the back detailed illustrations on each stroke - this isn't strictly true. You need to already be familiar with calligraphy to have any success with this. There are hand draw pictures with some numbers but very little instruction on technique. A bit, but not enough for a beginner.There isn't an awful lot of writing either, it's lots of pictures of a few alphabets, but no instructional or explanatory commentary; just random hand drawn alphabets. It feels very confused in format and layout and isn't very coherent. I don't feel it progresses or takes you on a journey.I can appreciate how this might be useful for an experienced calligrapher looking for ideas; the sections on layout and suggestions (inspiration) on what you can do with your lettering are genuinely interesting. It's just not long enough for me to feel like I learned anything new, and the alphabets felt dated and not very modern. Casual brush was nice though, and I found that grabbing some tracing paper was useful. I wish there were sections in the book for you to practise; as a spiral-bound workbook this would have the potential to be incredible.

So many calligraphy books repeat the same old lists of styles: foundation, roman, italic . . . Ms Engelbrecht gors beyond. Very refreshing. Quite exciting.

Good, although more emphasis on calligraphy (as the title suggests). So maybe not for complete beginners. Lovely art examples.

Just read through small bits of chapters and it sounds fun to do. And it is just what I wanted

Love this book, easy to follow, lots of information to encourage practice of a more free flowing calligraphy style.