Creative Lettering Specialization: Handcrafted Designs and Digital Innovation

Inspiration / Jimbo Bernaus

I’ll be showing you that you can get inspired from almost everything. Even though my visual aesthetic is clearly influenced by certain artists, I would like to show you people, things and experiences that inspired me beyond my work and somehow shaped the person and designer I am nowadays.

Inspiration / Rylsee

I'm inspired by moments of everyday life, the city, and my passions. In this lesson, I'll show you how random things I see influence what I create.

In this lesson, I will review all the standard sign painting tools and materials. I’ll then show you the supplies you'll be working with to make your custom sign.

Module 2

Join Christopher Rouleau, a graphic designer and lettering artist with clients like LG and Pepsi, as he shares his expertise in hand-painted signs. Learn the lettering and painting techniques needed to craft eye-catching signs that leave a lasting impression.

13 lessons (1h 48m)

Presentation of Supplies

History of Sign Painting

Let's go back in time! In this lesson, we will take a brief look at the origins of sign painting. I will provide some historical context and introduce the traditional styles of lettering.

Hand-Painted Lettering Techniques 1

Now, I will show you how the magic happens! First, I will demonstrate how to set up your painting station. Then, I will model how to handle your paints and brushes. Finally, I will introduce how to start creating letterforms using precise, controlled paint strokes.

Hand-Painted Lettering Techniques 2

In this lesson, we will continue the theme of practising our brushstrokes. You will create rounded, tapered, and uninterrupted lettering before starting your sign.

16m

Project Ideation, Sketching, and Refinement

I will show you how to approach the creative process from start to finish, with lots of examples of sketching and refinement.

Sign Prep and Image Transfer

This lesson will explore how to transfer your final design onto its surface.

It's time to begin painting! In this lesson, I'll teach you in detail how to paint the first part of the text.

Painting Your Sign Blue

Here, we will move on to the second part of the text. I will share my best tips and tricks to achieve better results.

Painting Your Sign Red

Painting Your Sign Yellow

It's time to move forward! Therefore, I'll show you how to paint the third part of the text.

Touch-Ups

This lesson will focus on the special additions that will refine the piece. Namely, I will show you how to achieve a good level of opacity and do the necessary touch-ups.

Finishing and Hardware

Let's take a moment to admire our finished signs. Now is the time to add a clear coat or layer of varnish. This will preserve and professionalize your image. Then, I will guide you in installing simple hardware to hang your sign.

Sharing Your Sign on Social Media

In this lesson, I will teach you how to professionally photograph your sign and thus make it shareable on social media. Then, you can build your portfolio!

Using Your Skills to Do Good in Your Community

To finish, I will talk about how to find sign painting opportunities in your community.

Module 3

Lettering artist and designer Nico Ng believes that creativity is in our nature. In this module, he shares his process for crafting meaningful lettering pieces, from concept to final design. Learn his tips for recording engaging process videos and discover how to express your thoughts and beliefs through purposeful, inspiring artwork.

17 lessons (2h 34m)

Tools and Materials

In this lesson, I will share my favorite lettering tools and materials. Then, I will teach you how to pick the right tools for your project.

Harnessing Creativity: Successful Lettering Compositions

In this lesson, you will learn the power of lettering and the secrets to successful compositions.

The Basic Lettering Styles 1

Before we go straight to the concepts of lettering composition, we need to get the foundations right – which is drawing letters correctly. In this lesson, I will introduce you to the three basic lettering styles: Sans Serif, Serif, and Script. I won’t go through how to draw every single letter. Instead, I will teach you how to use the alphabet guides to draw your letters correctly, paying attention to the basic shape, size, and weight.

The Basic Lettering Styles 2

Here I will complete the Serif exercise, before demonstrating the third lettering style: Script. This style is one of elegance; it captures the artistry of calligraphy with a handwritten aesthetic. For this reason, it can be more challenging to master. In this lesson, you will learn key tips and tricks.

There are an infinite number of ways to create your letters. Aside from choosing and combining different lettering styles, you can play with the lettering properties to create a more dynamic, interesting, and unique design. Let’s go through the different lettering properties and how they affect the appearance of your letters in this lesson.

Lettering Properties

Hierarchy

In this lesson, you will learn the benefits of having hierarchy in your composition and how to apply it.

Balance

Next, you will learn how to plan and develop a balanced lettering composition. This will create a more stable, neat, and orderly finish.

In this lesson, you will learn how to make your lettering composition easy to read by achieving a good flow. I will guide you in an exercise to practice bringing harmony to your piece.

Flow and Harmony

During this lesson, you will learn the importance of creating your lettering consistently and the techniques you can do to achieve it.

Consistency

The Quote

In this lesson, I will show you how to properly plan the first three steps of choosing a quote, assigning hierarchy, and dividing your quote.

Layout and Style

Now that you've picked a quote, assigned a hierarchy, and divided it into lines, it's time to test the different layouts and match lettering styles. Let me show you an example of how to do this!

16m

Sketching

Once the composition has been planned and finalized, the next step is to sketch out the layout and letter guides accurately. In this lesson, I will guide you through this process.

Effects, Color, and Decoration 1

With the layout and letter guides set up, let’s ink the final piece. I will show you how to add interesting designs and decorations.

Effects, Color, and Decoration 2

Here I will continue to enhance the piece. You will learn how to add shadows. To do this, imagine that there's a light source coming from the top left-hand corner that's casting a shadow from the bottom right of your letters.

15m

The Final Touches

Congratulations! You're done. But wait! Before packing up all your materials, there’s always a way to refine and improve your work. Personally, I like to leave my work for a few hours and come back to it with a fresh perspective.

Capturing and Editing the Photo

Want to know how to make your lettering composition look even better? By styling it up on a flat lay and taking a photo of it. I’ll show you how to achieve this in this lesson.

Sharing Your Work Online

Do you know that you can create more than one content for every lettering composition you make? In this lesson, I will show you how to make the most out of your lettering content.

Module 4

Discover the art of custom lettering with renowned artist Dan Forster. From brand marks to book covers, you'll learn how to create stunning compositions with swashes and flourishes. Dan will guide you through the differences between calligraphy, lettering, and typography before sharing essential principles and expert tips to elevate your work.

23 lessons (5h 31m)

Materials

In this lesson, I'll tell you about the materials that you'll need and their properties, before walking you through the module project.

Definitions

Calligraphy, lettering, typography and type design are all different but related disciplines. In this lesson, I will teach you about some differences by looking at examples.

I will now talk about what I believe to be some of the most important principles of lettering. These are some things you should pay close attention to and endeavour to study further. Get these details right and you'll be on your way to becoming a great lettering artist.

Lettering Principles

One thing that I believe can make or break your success as a lettering artist is having the right mindset. In this lesson, I will discuss some of my recommendations for building the right attitude and approach towards your work. I'll share some of the things that have helped to keep me going when things have become challenging, along with insights that have encouraged me to keep striving to make my best work.

Attitude and Approach

15m

The Importance of 'Pen Influence': How Calligraphy Informs Lettering

Pretty much all lettering styles can be traced back to the pen. In this lesson, I will explain the importance of understanding the concept of 'pen influence'. This was one of the most crucial lessons for me in my early career – a light-bulb moment when it came to understanding correct letterform construction, the placement of weight and other aspects of drawing letters.

'Pen Influence' in Practice 1

Continuing on from the previous lesson, you'll now see how 'pen influence' works in practice, by trying your hand at some calligraphy. Don't worry, you don't have to be a good calligrapher to be a great lettering artist.

'Pen Influence' in Practice 2

In the second part of this lesson, I will continue to demonstrate how the practice of calligraphy can help to improve your lettering. I will home in on the importance of flow, showing how to merge lines without the formation of any kinks.

Swashes and Flourishes Basics

In this lesson, you'll learn about some of the basics of flourishing, how to get started, and some warm-up exercises you can do to practice.

I'll now show you the techniques I use for creating iterations of my designs for both analogue and digital sketching. The principle is very similar for both, and either approach will be fine for this module.

Options for Sketching

Serif Style: Brief History and Examples

The Roman serif is the foundation of modern, western type and lettering. In this lesson, you'll learn a little about its history, including where it comes from, its construction, and its different interpretations. I'll also showcase some examples of this style with flourishes for inspiration.

Serif Style: Making a Composition with Flourishes 1

It's time to take all the things you've learnt about the serif style – from the calligraphy to the history – and make an expressive piece of serif lettering with flourishes.

Serif Style: Making a Composition with Flourishes 2

I will now gather the designs I've sketched so far to extract the elements that I like and create a composition I'm happy with. You will see how I adapt the word 'Botanical' to create a unique piece.

Script Style: Brief History and Examples

Script styles come in many different forms, but they can all be traced back to a common origin point. In this lesson, I will teach you about the history of this style, including where it comes from, how it's constructed, different interpretations of it, and examples of this style with flourishes.

Script Style: Making a Composition with Flourishes 1

As with the serif style, it's time to take all the things you've learnt to make an expressive piece of script lettering with flourishes. I will guide you through this process.

Script Style: Making a Composition with Flourishes 2

From the sketches I've drawn so far, I prefer the second version. In this part of the lesson, I will add weight to the skeleton and nudge it closer to its final form.

Project Planning: Gathering Ideas and References

Let's get started! You will choose your city or place name, consider initial ideas for the lettering design, and begin some research by gathering references.

Sketching the Composition in Procreate or with Pencil and Paper 1

In this lesson, I will demonstrate how to begin sketching the lettering for the city. We'll build in the flourishes too and make several iterations using the techniques you've learnt so far.

Sketching the Composition in Procreate or with Pencil and Paper 2

I will now introduce you to a trick to quickly and effectively replicate any symmetrical aspects of your design. To finish, I will work on refining the shapes a little.

Vectoring Techniques and Adobe Illustrator Set-up

The next step is to transfer your sketch into Adobe Illustrator. I'll show you how to set up the software and demonstrate some different techniques I use for vectoring depending on the style of lettering.

15m

Creating a Vector of the Composition in Illustrator 1

In this lesson, you will learn how to vector the lettering piece. Once I've defined the positive and negative shapes clearly, I will give them a black fill.

Creating a Vector of the Composition in Illustrator 2

With the type complete, I will now turn my attention towards the flourishes. I will then choose a color palette and apply some corrections.

Preparation in Illustrator: Lighting the Design

Before bringing the artwork into Photoshop, let's make the necessary preparations in Illustrator. I will teach you how to create a bevel effect on your letterforms and look at some techniques for simulating the lighting. You will see how this helps to enhance the effect and give depth to the letters.

19m

Finishing Touches in Photoshop

We will now look at different methods for taking the vector artwork into Photoshop, how best to organise it in layers, and look at some options for adding texture.

19m

Module 5

Get ready to unlock your creative superpowers with lettering artist Jimbo Bernaus! With over a decade of experience and a portfolio that includes clients like BMW and Carlsberg, Jimbo will guide you through crafting bold, colorful lettering compositions. Play with textures, light, and shadow as you design custom letters for a striking Spotify playlist cover.

17 lessons (3h 34m)

Introduction to Lettering

Lettering is the art of drawing and illustrating letterforms. It’s really important to understand the difference with calligraphy, which is the art of writing letters with tools such as a brush pen or nips.

Mood Board

Mood boards are the key for a successful project. Getting a sense of what our project is about and analysing trends and styles is the key to understanding what we want to do. In this lesson, you will choose a music genre and do a Pinterest research about aesthetics and color palettes of references you will later be inspired by to create your project.

Selection and Sketching 1

In this lesson, you will go back to basics and, with the help of a blank paper and a pencil, you’ll create rough sketches of your lettering piece. For this, you’ll select the parts of the mood board that inspire you the most or serve a better purpose for your project idea and you’ll understand what could work best while sketching.

Selection and Sketching 2

During this second part of the lesson, I'll keep sketching my options for my lettering piece.

Transfer from Paper to Procreate

Once you feel comfortable with your rough ideas, you’ll transfer them to procreate. I’m going to show you my easy method in this lesson.

Start Working in Our Main Sketch

In this lesson, you will learn the importance of having an accurate sketch of your piece to later develop the project with a perfect guide. To do so you’ll create your first layer on Procreate and with the help of a pencil you’ll refine the rough sketch.

Deciding the Color Palettes

Before starting cleaning up your sketch, you will learn how to find colors in your mood board and how I create my own color palettes. By the end of this lesson, you will have a final color palette to work on and you’ll be applying it roughly to the final sketch.

Texture Brushes Explanation

I will show you what brushes to use in your piece while I explain each brush I created exclusively for this course.

Teaching Letter Style: B 1

In this lesson I will teach you the first style of my first letter and for the first time you will see all the steps I use to craft every single detail.

Teaching Letter Style: B 2

Here I will continue working on the first letter, adding a shadow and lighting effects to it.

Let's now move on to the second letter of the composition.

Teaching Letter Style: L

In this lesson, I will focus on working on the third letter of my word, using the same techniques I have showed you previously.

Teaching Letter Style: U

I will show you the process for creating the fourth letter of my composition, E.

Teaching Letter Style: E

We will wrap up the letter creation with the S.

Teaching Letter Style: S

Adding Extra Elements to Our Lettering Composition

In this lesson I’ll be showing you why reinforcing the message of your lettering piece with illustrations is important and I’ll be guiding you through my piece so you get a better picture of different possibilities.

With the help of the brushes, you will add extra lights, flares and color touch-ups. You’ll also see how letters interact with each other and what that means when it comes to your color and shadows.

Extra Light and Texture

Final Additional Touches: How to Export and Share

You have finished your piece! The last step is sharing it in social media and importing the final image to your Spotify playlist! In this lesson, you will learn how and my recommended best practices to achieve better results.

18m

Module 6

Get ready to make your brand move with visual artist RYLSEE! Known for his bold lettering and GIFs, he’s worked with brands like Nike and LinkedIn to create eye-catching designs. In this course, he’ll show you how to turn simple handwriting into playful, animated lettering that grabs attention. Let’s bring your ideas to life with motion and make your brand unforgettable!

13 lessons (2h 19m)

Introduction

First, I will start by sharing the necessary tools for this course. You won't need a lot of materials or anything too expensive. Your power is your mind, not your tools. I will also talk about letters, what they are, and how to use them.

Script Letters

Most of us have learned how to write "cursive" during the early years of school. Nevertheless, how many of us can say that we've mastered this art? In this lesson, I will show you valuable tricks to turn basic script handwriting into stunning lettering.

16m

Block Letters

From blockbuster movies to your favorite musician, restaurant, or brand: block letters play a huge role in our daily landscape. Here I’ll show you some simple tricks that will give visual impact to your message.

Letters are pretty much like humans: they come in different shapes and sizes. Their styles are so diverse and can be combined to create infinite possibilities. Their unique personality conveys much more than just information, and choosing the right font for your project is fundamental when you want to communicate what you are offering to the world. In this lesson, I will teach you how to understand the basics of fonts’ personalities to guide you in choosing the one your project deserves.

Font Personalities

This might sound obvious, but consistency is one of the most important factors of great visual communication. By following simple rules, you'll make your project recognizable in the blink of an eye.

Consistency

First of all, you'll need to ask yourself: what is my aim, and what does my project want to communicate to the world? This is a question that seems easier than it really is. Let’s figure out how to identify your needs.

Your Message

Before I animate a word, I usually consider what the natural motion of this word would be. Drawing isn’t totally necessary at this stage, but you can do it if you want. Here the primary aim is to imagine how your chosen words could move, focusing on their behavior.

How It Moves