Different types of Lettering

*Sans serif

*Serif

*Cursive / Script

*Vintage

*Gothic – Blackletter calligraphy

*Graffiti

*Creative lettering

*Other sub-lettering styles

Sans serif lettering (a.k.a block letters) is one of the best starting points for lettering beginners.

-This is due to their basic shapes which allows you to focus on their individual form and their relation
with other letters.

-The term comes from the French language where ‘’sans’’ means without – which exactly describes this
style of lettering.

-Although today they are mostly used as text and display for computer screens (due to the easy
readability) sans serif fonts are a great addition for your lettering pieces – especially in a combination
with a script style.

-When creating sans serif lettering you need to pay close attention to the letterforms. (like with any
other style)

-It is highly important to maintain a level of consistency throughout the thickness, heights, spacing etc.

-The easiest way to learn how to draw sans serif letters is with the ”wooden board” technique.

-The idea behind this technique is quite simple – we just need to divide a letter in it’s most basic shapes,
here is a quick example for that –
how to draw a sans serif letter A

Tools used –

Rolling ruler

Staedtler mechanical pencil

Sakura Pigma Micron

With the letter A we can see that it’s formed of 3 different parts, and we are combining them together.

Imagine having 3 wooden boards and stacking them together in order to create the letter A.
What about curved letters?

When it comes to creating curved letters such as – B, P, S, R, O, C, etc. The situation get’s a bit trickier,

Method 1 for curved letters –

The first way is with the ”box” technique, and here it’s how it works.

Let’s take the letter R as an example.

We start of by drawing a basic horizontal and vertical grid of the same size.

You can do this either free hand or with a ruler.

Grid for the letters

letter R - with the ''box'' technique

Letter R done
Method 2 for curved letters –

The second way to do this is by eye-balling it.

This method is a bit more difficult and it will require more practice.

Here is a quick example on how to do it –

Serif lettering
shares the main
form of the
letters with sans
serif letters, however, there are two main differences between sans serif and serif lettering.

The serifs – small decorative strokes added at the end of the letterforms

The different thickness in the strokes – not every stroke has the same thickness.

So, how to draw a serif letter?

The process is fairly similar to the creation of sans serif fonts, however, we must address these
differences.

First of all,

You need to know where to add the serifs – i would highly recommend you to have an alphabet in front
of yourself so you can observe and study the letterforms (remember what we mentioned earlier)
This way you will know for sure where to add them and how, instead of just guessing.

The second thing is that serif fonts don’t have the same weight on each stroke.

You can either memorize all the strokes or simply imagine how a letter is written and know that the up
strokes are thin and down strokes are thick (the horizontal strokes are also thin).

step-by-step process

how to draw a serif letter A

Tools used –

Rolling ruler

Staedtler mechanical pencil

Sakura Pigma Micron

We basically follow the same process like with the block letters.
We use the ”wooden board” technique to divide the letters into separate shapes (remember some
strokes are thinner), and then we add the serifs at the end.

3. CURSIVE

Cursive lettering also known as script, cursive is originally a penmanship style where the characters are
written together in a flowing manner.

However, when we talk about hand lettering, cursive is created in different way – since hand lettering
and calligraphy are not the same thing.

Cursive in hand lettering is created by following some of the rules of calligraphy, most commonly by
following the up thin and down thick rule.
The beauty of cursive hand lettering is that you are not limited by the capabilities of your pen!

What i mean by that is that with a calligraphy tool like for example a dip pen – you will be able to create
only a certain stroke thickness.

With hand lettering you can create whatever shapes or forms you wish – as long as you follow the
fundamentals such as consistency, balance, spacing etc

Here is a quick tutorial on how to create cursive hand lettering –

how to draw script letter a

Tools used –

Rolling ruler

Staedtler mechanical pencil

We construct a letter by dividing it in separate shapes rather then drawing it as a whole.

4.VINTAGE

Vintage lettering can be characterized as a style that used to be contemporary in the 19-20th century.

It is very recognizable on a few different aspects –

Serifs

Textures

Colors

Thanks to the internet you can find thousands of examples of vintage lettering –

I highly recommend to use Pinterest as a source of inspiration.

It’s quite intriguing to observe how letterforms of the Latin alphabet developed throughout the history,

I wonder if we will have different standards 50 or even a 100 years from now.

Vintage lettering is a great way to represent something old and traditional (or if you are a hipster).

It is also getting quite trendy in the design industry as a lot of people recognize the beauty behind the
vintage style.

How to create a vintage lettering style?

Step 1 –

The first thing you need to do is research!

Head over to Pinterest and do a search for ”vintage lettering”

Find at least 2-3 images that you like, here is a super quick example of a mood board that I’m going to
use for my example.

what are the types of lettering - Lettering Daily

Step 3 –

I’m identifying different elements from different examples that I like, and I will use them as inspiration
for my own creation.

Step 4 –

We are starting with a basic (sans serif) block letter A, that will serve as a basis upon which we will apply
the previously selected elements.

How to draw a vintage letter A

Tools used –

Rolling ruler

Staedtler mechanical pencil

Sakura Pigma Micron

Molotow One 4 All marker

Adding different (pale) colors and textures is kinda difficult with pen and paper.

Don’t hesitate to transfer your work to Photoshop or Illustrator and add some final touches.
5. GOTHIC / BLACKLETTER CALLIGRAPHY

Gothic lettering is originally a calligraphy script (dating from the middle ages), however, it’s on this list
for a reason.

Gothic letters have a very strong resemblance to medieval times and it can be a great choice of style if
you are trying to represent something with a long tradition, old and strong.

In other words, it’s a great style if you are trying to communicate a certain message.

Also, the Gothic style it’s quite distinctive and creates a very nice contrast compared with other lettering
styles.

If you want to learn more about the Gothic/Blackletter calligraphy script we got you covered!

ARTICLES

BLACKLETTER / GOTHIC CALLIGRAPHY FOR BEGINNERS – 2019

What are the types of lettering? - Lettering Daily

Artwork by @boogiesml

Hand lettering and graffiti are always looked as two totally different things, and (in my opinion) it’s due
to the whole subculture that exists around graffiti.

But hear me out,

In it’s own essence graffiti and hand lettering are practically the same thing – if we talk about working on
paper.

Graffiti is an art form that it’s mainly performed on vertical surfaces (like walls) with spray paint cans.

However, when you are drawing a graffiti sketch on paper you still use a pencil, eraser, various markers
etc.
– same as with hand lettering

(that’s what i meant when i said that it’s the same thing)

Graffiti can be characterized as a more ‘’free’’ art form, meaning that there aren’t really any firm rules
on how to create it – like for example blackletter or copperplate calligraphy does.

Thick, thin, round, sharp – graffiti gives you total freedom of doing whatever you want, but just keep in
mind that it still needs to be well balanced, have good contrast between colors etc.

Graffiti is great when you are going for that street and urban feel in your piece.

Here is an awesome video from one of my favorite graffiti artists (Sofles) –

7. CREATIVE LETTERING

This is probably one of my favorite styles!

Probably the best way to describe creative lettering it the type of lettering that incorporates some
different elements besides just the letters.

This could be illustrations, textures, play on words, perspective etc.

So instead of just drawing letters in nice shapes and forms, you add illustrations, motives, and other
elements to give it some context and bring it to life.

Perhaps the easiest way is to just show you what i mean exactly.
This may be a more complex style to pull off as it requires some illustrational experience aside from the
lettering one.

Nonetheless, like with the vintage lettering style, head over to pinterest or instagram gater some
inspiration and try your own work.

TO KEEP IN MIND – if you are just starting out, or if you are simply trying a technique for the first time,
don’t get discouraged if you don’t like what you’ve created at first. Repeat the same artwork 5 times and
compare the first and the last one –