My favourite calligraphy supplies and tools
*The links at the end of the post may be affiliate links where appropriate. This means that an eventual purchase through these links may result in a few pennies in payment to me, but I am never suggesting supplies that I do not personally use and thoroughly recommend.
Hi everyone,
After receiving endless questions about what ink, nibs, pens I use in my Instagram posts and which are my favourite, I’ve decided to make an official blog post that lists all of my favourite calligraphy supplies, to date. This list is more based on MY personal preferences, trials and experiences. So, if you are a beginner, you must spend the time to try out different supplies and see what works best for yourself as well.
At the end of the post, I have included direct links where I buy them so that you can access these quickly. Please pay attention that many of these materials can be accessed in many different stores depending on your location. Always have a search online before placing any order.
We all know that when you start your calligraphy journey, all you need is practice paper, a pen holder with a nib and ink, which you can get these for about £10 online. Sounds like a cheap investment to start a new hobby. But, the reality is different.
When you get addicted by the beauty of pointed pen calligraphy, inside you, curiosity is born. To buy and try all calligraphy supplies you find online, in art stores or simply because you saw a fellow artist sharing a new ink/nib on Instagram.
I’ve been there myself. When I started my calligraphy journey with a modern calligraphy workshop at Quill London, all I got to take home was a straight black plastic pen holder, a Nikko G nib and a pot of Higgins Eternal black ink, plus something extra I bought in their shop. If I remember correctly, I purchased the Modern calligraphy book by Lucy Edmonds, a full bottle of Higgins Eternal ink, a pot of coloured ink and a pad of Rhodia paper. The truth is, this was only the beginning of my new shopping spending on calligraphy supplies. With the time, I wanted to test more inks, nibs, penholders and papers, especially when I gained an interest in learning Copperplate calligraphy. Since exploring other supplies, I stopped using my fist black plastic holder and the Higgins black ink, that bottle is still sitting almost full in my drawer.
But, I don’t regret doing all the crazy shopping on my calligraphy journey. By testing so many inks, nibs, and paper, it helped me decide which ones I prefer using most. I firmly believe that everyone’s preferences are different, and if I prefer using a specific tool, you might hate it.
Below is a list of all my favourite supplies tested and which I use most nowadays. I always refer to these when studying, practising and doing client work. Most of these supplies will refer to Copperplate, Spencerian and Flourishing.
Books // I believe that books are a tremendous source of knowledge and are necessary when exploring various styles of calligraphy, either you purchase physical or digital copies. As I mentioned above, my first calligraphy book was a Modern Calligraphy book, but I fell in love with the traditional style of Copperplate, and I do own a few books on this style. When I wanted to study Copperplate back in 2018, I wanted first to find an in-person workshop here in the UK, but I had no luck. For this reason, I randomly found a Copperplate book online and bought it straight away - “Mastering Copperplate Calligraphy - a step by step manual” by Eleanor Winters. I consider this book a bible for Copperplate. It is such a comprehensive book for studying Copperplate calligraphy by yourself, and I have always recommended to other beginners. It took me about a month and a half to go through each section and practice alongside.
Another book for studying Copperplate is “Copperplate Script: A Yin and Yang Approach” by Paul Antonio. This book is a much in-depth study of Copperplate, with lots of assignments in pencil to get you started before moving to ink. It also has a Flourishing section, and you’ll need a lot of patience and perseverance to complete this book.
Book 1: Mastering Copperplate calligraphy: a step by step approach by Eleanor Winters
Book 2: Copperplate Script: a yin and yan approach by Paul Antonio
Another favourite book in my collection is “The Universal Penman” by George Bickham. I fell in love with this book when I first got it—an inspirational book for letter variations, flourishes, plus beautiful ornamental borders ideas.
The latest book and my newest is “Foundations of Calligraphy” by Sheila Waters. This book is the bible for broad edge calligraphy. I started to study Italic script at the beginning of January 2020, and I wanted so badly to get my hands on this book. I couldn’t find it anywhere in Europe/UK, so I had to order it from John Neals Books in the USA. This book covers everything from basics on broad edge nib, plus in-depth instruction in foundational hand, blackletter, gothic cursive, uncial and half-uncial, Carolingian, italic and variations. Moreover, you get information on analysis and practice, design and layout and much more.
An immense source of online rare penmanship books you can find on IAMPETH website.
Image 1: The Universal Penman by George Bickham
Image 2: Foundations of Calligraphy by Sheila Waters
2. Paper // My favourite paper list is relatively short and straightforward: practice paper + sketching paper and paper for client work. For practice paper, I love using Rhodia plain paper pad. However, when I don’t have it in stock which happens most of the time, I use single sheets for digital colour printing from Color copy by Mondi. I usually buy the 90 gsm in blocks of 500 sheets, and it lasts me for a good few months. It is such a smooth paper and works well with all the inks I use for practising. For coloured paper, I usually use the Colorplan range or Clairefontaine. And for client work, like bespoke commissions, my go-to is: hot pressed 300 gsm watercolour paper by Fabriano and cold-pressed 300 gsm watercolour paper from Arches, both purchased online in big rolled sheets at Jackson’s Art London.
3. Nibs // I think that nibs deserves a separate blog post because there is so much to say about each one of them. Even though many are similar, they are all unique. I honestly don’t have a favourite one, because the nib I need to use will depend on the work that needs creating. I will come back with a more in-depth blog post about various nibs, but for now, here’s my favourite list with the ones I use most: Hunt 22b, Hunt 101, Leonardt EF Principal, Gillott 404+303, Blanzy 2552 and Nikko G. My advice for beginners is to test as many as you can and try them on the different textures. By testing will help you familiarise how a nib behaves on various papers and make a note of this.
4. Penholders // I use both straight and oblique penholders, and I prefer pen holders that have a little bit of weight, especially those made from wood. I find all plastic holders very light, and I use these very rarely. Examples of these are the Moblique ones, I have these in 3 colours, but I use them rarely. My favourite and most used are (1) an ornamental wooden oblique penholder with metal flange which I bought it about three years ago on Scribblers.co.uk, and I use it mostly for practising, and it’s still in good condition. Another beautiful wooden pen holder is a custom wooden penholder (2) from Unique Obliques. This holder is by far the most expensive pen holder I have, and I use it for client work and very rarely for practising. Another wooden pen holder (3) is from a teacher of mine Nikolietta Calligraphy. It is such an elegant penholder, and I use it mostly for client work and very often featured in pictures on my Social Media account. From the range of straight holders, I sometimes use some of the Manuscript range (5). But, most of the time, my go-to is a beautiful straight wooden holder by Heather Victoria Held. This one I bought it directly from her last year in October when I attended an in-person workshop in London. I use straight holders holder, particularly for off-hand flourishing.
Image 3: Most used pen holders
Image 4: My most used pointed pen nibs
5. Inks // Same as nibs, inks deserve a separate blog post, and I do not have only one favourite ink. I use quite a few for various type of works, and the one I choose will depend on the paper I choose for the artwork. But, here is the list of my most used inks: For practising, I use Moon Palace Black Sumi Ink, Vermillion Sumi ink or Walnut ink. For artworks, I also use Moon Palace Sumi Black ink, plus McCaffrey's iron gall ink and Walker's Copperplate ink. If I need permanent inks for a specific type of work like envelopes, my go-to is Ziller range. Favourite white ink has always been Dr Ph. Martins Bleedproof white. It is a thick paste that needs diluting with water.
For metallic coloured inks, I use the Finetec range, and my fave has always been Arabic and Moon Gold. For matte coloured inks, I make my inks from gouache. The gouache brand I mostly use is Winsor & Newton. I do not have a formula for making inks from gouache, but my tip is to add the water drop by drop until you get a preferred consistency. Sometimes I will add a bit of gum Arabic. For permanent coloured inks, I use either Ziller on paper and Liquitex mostly the gold one for other surfaces like glass, leather, marble or agate.
Image 5: Some of the inks in my collection that I had in stock
Image 6: Coloured inks
6. Miscellaneous // This section brings additional calligraphy supplies that I use a lot.
In Image 7, you can see two glass pens. These tools became popular within the calligraphy community, and there are so many you can find online. The green one (1) is my first ever glass pen purchased in an artisan shop while visiting Venice in April 2019. The second one (2) is the newest addition from Kalligraphy Pro, based in London and has a much finer point that I love. I love using these pens for monoline calligraphy or faux calligraphy and work well with any liquid inks and even fountain pens. You dip in ink and write and is so easy to clean, dip in the water, stir once and is ready to change for a new colour. The only downside I find is the material. You have to pay extra, extra careful not to drop it on the floor because you can imagine the outcome.
Image 8 is a collection of other favourite miscellaneous I have on my studio desk. (1) Brush pens: the black one is a Tombow Fudenosuke Hard brush pen, and the green one is a Pentel Brush sign pen, both suitable for modern brush lettering. (2) Pigma Micron fine liners in various sizes. I use these for monoline calligraphy and drawing sketches. (3) Colour mixing brushes. (4) Watercolour pencils from Faber Castell and Sakura gelly roll pens in white and stardust - these are essential when adding extra decorations and little touches. (5) Permanent markers which work great for unusual surfaces like glass, marble, acrylic. I have various brands including Molotow, Pen touch and Edding and you can find these in more colours like white, black, copper and silver. (6) Dinky dips - I couldn’t leave without these as they are so essential for avoiding accidents on ink spillage from the big bottles. I always use a pipette (7) to add the ink into the dinky dip. The little water bottle with a pipette (7) is useful for adding water when mixing your ink from gouache or when diluting the Finetec watercolours. (8) Pencils - I mostly use a mechanical pencil or sometimes a well-sharpened Blackwing Palomino pencil. Both are good for sketching a layout on white paper. I use white watercolour pencils for sketching on coloured paper, and my go-to eraser is a kneaded rubber (9) from Winsor & Newton. When it comes to drawing guidelines on envelopes, I use a long transparent grader ruler (10) and an Engrosser ruler for Copperplate lining and Spencerian ruler for Spencerian lining (11). And I use a steel ruler (10) and a sharp knife (8) on a silicon mat to cut any paper to the size I need. When I need to replicate deckled edges, I rip off the paper using a deckle edge ripper. Finally, a tool that saves so much time when working on more significant commission artwork is the light pad. It is such a time-saver, and this is the second one I have in A3 size.
Image 7: (1) Green glass pen bought in an artisan shop in Venice; (2) Swirly black swan glass pen by www.kalligraphypro.com
Image 8: more calligraphy supplies
Image 9: Deckle edge ripper/ruler
Image 10: Lightpad in a A3 size with 3 adjustable brightness
I’ll probably be doing some short videos to show you some of the supplies I mentioned. Please let me know in the comments if you have a particular request on demonstrating a tool.
I hope you enjoyed reading my post about my most used calligraphy supplies and tools.
I’m thinking also to create an in-depth downloadable e-book about my calligraphy tools and supplies. What do you think? Let me know in the comments, would love to hear your opinion.
Until next time,
Uliana
* Below are links where I usually buy my supplies so you can easily access them as well. The links below may be affiliate links where appropriate. This means that your purchase through these links may result in a few pennies in payment to me, but I am never suggesting supplies that I do not personally use and fully recommend.
Books:
Book 1: Mastering Copperplate Calligraphy by Eleanor Winters - https://amzn.to/3jqz7ms
Book 2: Copperplate calligraphy script: a yin and yang approach by Paul Antonio - available on Amazon UK https://amzn.to/34epBfO or Scribblers UK
Book 3: The Universal Penman by George Bickham - https://amzn.to/3l96SZT
Book 4: Foundations of Calligraphy by Sheila Waters - available at John Neal Books in the USA
Paper:
Rhodia paper blank pad - on Amazon UK https://amzn.to/34hLevL
Color Copy Copier Paper Premium Super Smooth 90gsm A4 White (500 sheets) - https://amzn.to/3iqjHwY
Hot pressed 300 gsm watercolour paper by Fabriano - Jackson’s Art UK, available as 1, 5, 10 or 20 sheets https://www.jacksonsart.com/fabriano-artistico-papers-sheets-91696?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec
Cold pressed 300 gsm watercolour paper by Arches 56x76cm - Jackson’s Art UK, available as 1, 5, 10 or 20 sheets at https://www.jacksonsart.com/arches-aquarelle-watercolour-paper-sheets?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec
Coloured paper Clairefontaine MAYA - available in 120gsm and 270gsm, A4 and A1 in 30 colours https://www.jacksonsart.com/clairefontaine-maya-coloured-paper?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec and from Colorplan range in A4 size, 270 gsm at PDA Card and Craft UK https://www.pdacardandcraft.co.uk/colorplan-uncreased-270gsm.html
Penholders (image 3):
Black ornamental wooden holder with metal flange - https://scribblers.co.uk/product-category/dip-pens-and-nibs/copperplate-nibs/
Custom made wooden oblique pen holder with metal flange from Unique Obliques
Long elegant wooden pen holder from Nikolietta Calligraphy
Straight wooden pen holder from Heather Victoria Held https://heathervictoriaheld.com/home/portfolio/handturned-pens/
Nibs (image 4): All my nibs I purchase at Scribblers UK https://scribblers.co.uk/product-category/dip-pens-and-nibs/copperplate-nibs/
Inks (image 5):
Moon Palace Black Sumi Ink - first time I bought this ink at John Neal Books, but later I found it online on Amazon in a bigger bottle of 180 ml: https://amzn.to/2GeYauv
Moon Palace Vermillion Sumi Ink - always bought it at John Neal Books : https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/moon-palace-vermilion-sumi-ink
Walnut ink crystals - I buy crystals and then mix with water to my preferred consistency - bought at John Neal Books https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/walnut-ink-crystals
McCaffery’s Penmank Ink - I only used the black one and is perfect for both Copperplate and Spencerian, the only downside about this ink is that being an iron oak gall ink, it corrodes the nib quicker, therefore you have to clean the nib much often https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/mccafferys-penmans-ink
Walker’s Copperplate Ink - another iron gall ink available in the UK and was created by the English master Penman Brian Walker https://scribblers.co.uk/product/walkers-copperplate-ink-30ml/
Ziller Gloss Black Ink - this is a waterproof ink, not used for practice, but mostly for paid work like addressing envelopes; available to buy at: Scribblers UK: https://scribblers.co.uk/product/ziller-ink-glossy-black-28ml-1oz/ and John Neal Books USA https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/ziller-ink
Dr Ph. Martin’s Bleedproof white - my favourite white ink, which needs to be diluted with water first: available at Scribblers UK https://scribblers.co.uk/product/dr-ph-martins-bleedproof-white-30ml/ and John Neal Books USA https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/dr-martins-bleed-proof-white-ink When needed a permanent white ink, I always use Ziller white available at the same suppliers.
Metallic, coloured inks (image 6):
Metallic watercolour inks from Finetec - I always buy in single pots from Scribblers UK https://scribblers.co.uk/?s=finetec&post_type=product These are also available at Penman direct UK https://www.penmandirect.co.uk/products/finetec-replacement-pans-for-m600-palette?_pos=1&_sid=378387a76&_ss=r
Permanent metallic ink - gold Liquitex Acryllic ink at Jackson’s Art UK https://www.jacksonsart.com/liquitex-acrylic-ink-30ml-iridescent-bright-gold?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec Also available as a set of 6 metallic colours (gold, silver, bronze, copper, white and black) https://www.jacksonsart.com/liquitex-professional-acrylic-ink-metallic-set?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec
Opaque coloured inks - Winsor and Newton Gouache tubes from Jackson’s Art UK https://www.jacksonsart.com/winsor-newton-designer-gouache?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec
Permanent and waterproof opaque coloured inks - Ziller range from Scribblers UK https://scribblers.co.uk/?s=ziller&post_type=product or John Neal Books USA https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/ziller-ink
Miscellaneous (images 7-10):
Glass pen (image 7): The Swirly Black Swan glass pen from Kalligraphy Pro https://www.kalligraphypro.com/collections/dip-pens/products/swan-dip-set suitable to use with liquid watercolour inks from Ecoline range available in 60 colours at Jackson’s Art UK https://www.jacksonsart.com/talens-ecoline-liquid-watercolour-ink?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec
Image 8:
Brush pens: Tombow ‘Fudenosuke’ hard brush pen, available at https://amzn.to/2GE9akY There is a version with a soft tip as well: https://amzn.to/2EXW6Gn or as a set of 10 different colours https://amzn.to/3juyUOV and Pentel Brush pens available in a set of 12 colours at https://amzn.to/2SpURCZ or found individually at https://www.cultpens.com/i/q/PN27518/pentel-touch-brush-sign-pen-ses15
Pigma Micron fineliners - available as a set of 6 fineliers at https://amzn.to/33q0yqW
Mixing brushes: I buy these in various sizes either at Jackson’s Art https://www.jacksonsart.com/brushes/brushes?___store=jacksonsart_en&acc=0c048b3a434e49e655c1247efb389cec or at Cass Art UK https://www.cassart.co.uk/_all?searchterm=brushes
Watercolour pencils by Faber castell - set of 12 https://amzn.to/3cWg5lr You can get these also in bigger sets or individual colours from your local craft stores
Sakura Gelly roll pens: white gelly rol pen individual size of 08 at https://amzn.to/2GrmqJR or in pack of 3 sizes at https://amzn.to/3jxS6LR
Sakura Stardust clear gelly roll - https://amzn.to/2GDsBKl
Permanent markers: Molotow one4all available at Jackson’s Art in various colours https://www.jacksonsart.com/molotow-one4all-127hs-acrylic-markers-2mm Sakura Pen touch available in gold, copper, silver and white as a extra-fine, fine and medium fine size at Cult Pens https://www.cultpens.com/i/q/SK21037/sakura-pen-touch-fine Edding permanent markers available in few colours and few sizes. I only used the gold fine point from https://amzn.to/36vTLOv
Dinky dips - mine is from a small business based in Italy, but their online Etsy shop is on break now https://www.etsy.com/shop/inkatable/ Similarly, at John Neal Books you can find https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/small-screw-top-dinky-dip
Pipette - bought in a random pharmacy
Small bottle with pipette - reusing from a face serum I had
Mechanical pencil - mine is exactly this one https://amzn.to/33r9RXw but I stole it from my husband.
Blackwing pearl pencil - these are usually sold in packs of 12 https://amzn.to/3iuLtZB I managed to find individual from a an Etsy seller, but at the time writing this it was not available in stock.
Medium kneaded Putty Rubber Winsor & Newton - https://amzn.to/3cZ142j
Stabilo all colouring pencil for almost all surfaces, white - https://amzn.to/3cZ1qGb
Set of AB calligraphy ruler for lining on envelopes both for Spencerian and Copperplate - available in the USA at John Neal Books https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/set-ab-calligraphy-rulers in Europe at
Transparent graded ruler - I bought mine in a Muji store in London, but couldn’t find a link online
Stainless Steel ruler - https://amzn.to/3cX1Sod
Deckle edge ripper (image 9) - https://amzn.to/3ivMDUD
(Image 10) Super thin A3 light pad with USB power led and three adjustable brightness levels https://amzn.to/3jvZjfg