Saving Money Ordering Calligraphy ~
There is a way of saving money on the cost of calligraphy you order online. Calligraphy is a time intensive artwork and can cost a lot of money depending on how long your text is and by adding your personal photograph that needs "work" with photoshop. But if you have a lower budget and still want to have handwritten custom designed calligraphy I have some great options to cut the cost of calligraphy for you that will save you a bit of money! I hate to turn away anyone who loves beautiful calligraphy designed by a professional calligrapher so I came up with these lower cost alternatives by combining handwritten calligraphy with computer calligraphy.
Combing Calligraphy With Computer Font
There are so many beautiful computer fonts available now, actually thanks to Steve Jobs!
With all the tributes to Steve Jobs, one thing tends to get forgotten: the man helped us write. Jobs was the first to give us a real choice of fonts, and thus the ability to express ourselves digitally with emotion, clarity and variety. "Throughout the campus," he remembered at an address to students at Stanford in 2005, '"every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphied." So, having dropped out and finding himself a free agent, he decided to take a class in this art. "I learned about serif and sans serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating."
At the time, the student dropout believed that little he had learned would find a practical application in his life. But things changed. Ten years after college Jobs designed his first Mac, and it came with something unprecedented -- a wide choice of fonts.
Long Text for Calligraphy and Small Budget
Using calligraphy for titles and personalization gives your long text the look of custom calligraphy. It can look great with a smaller budget.
In fact, doing titles give a professional calligrapher the opportunity to show off how calligraphy enhances any text. The titles can draw attention to your text and the meaning of important lines of text. I frequently use the size, bold and type of calligraphy to bring attention to sections of your text.
Instead of writing out your entire poem or text of any kind entirely in calligraphy I combine computer calligraphy that makes the text look like custom designed calligraphy.
The titles in this blog are actually a computer font that looks like Italic Calligraphy letterforms! And there are thousands of available "fonts" (in calligraphy it's called a "hand") that you can choose from.
Fake Calligraphy
Some unscrupulous people are actually telling customers that they are writing their text in calligraphy but just typing out the words on their computer. They are lying and selling fake calligraphy because the fonts look similar to a calligraphy style. Unfortunately, it's buyer beware. Much of the "calligraphy" looks great because of the letterforms that are designed by calligrapher and designers who understand letterforms. But computer calligraphy has a "dead" look to it.
There are some people who are doing what is now called "fake or faux calligraphy" or "modern calligraphy". It's being used to address envelopes and other prints. It probably takes a lot longer to do it because after you write these bouncy letters that are uneven and pretty much illegible, the writer goes back in and thickens the letters by going over parts again to widen it. Just look at the text to see if you can actually read it!
Computer Calligraphy or Handwritten Calligraphy
There is definitely a way to tell if the lettering you are paying for is "faux calligraphy" or real handwritten calligraphy. Compare the letter "e" in the text (or any other letter that is repeated frequently). If they are all EXACTLY the same it's probably done by a computer and not by hand. Yes, expert calligraphers are consistent- but they are not machines!
Buyer Beware
I just want to educate you so you get what you are paying for. Computer calligraphy is a great option if you don't have the money. But for a little more, you can have handwritten custom calligraphy with titles done beautifully. ASK the "professional calligrapher" if they are WRITING by hand or typing your text!
Get what you pay for. Don't be fooled or lied to!

Framing Your Calligraphy
Printing and framing your calligraphy poem in an untraditional way (without glass) can go a long way towards making your piece look totally fabulous! Check out the options below!