I have been Bible journaling for over a year now but was recently introduced to hand lettering and it makes a great addition to my journaling. Since I’m just starting to learn hand lettering I was excited to try out the Learn to Letter Guide (Complete Lowercase Practice Sheet, Lettering Sheet, Learn to Letter, Calligraphy Worksheet, Traceable Lettering Fancy Style Calligraphy) from the Claireligraphy Etsy shop. This digital download includes basic instructions and material suggestions, basic strokes practice sheets, and practice pages for all lowercase letters in three different styles (regular, bounce, and slant).  You will need to purchase a brush tip pen, Claire recommends a small nib for these particular practice pages. She also recommends smooth, non-abrasive paper to prolong the life of your pen. I just printed the sheets on regular printer paper. This combined PDF of four of Claireligraphy’s popular practice pages costs $30.

This product could be used in a variety of ways in a homeschool setting. It could be used as part of an art study, as practice to improve general fine muscle control and therefore normal handwriting, as a skill that can be expanded into a micro-business (hand-lettered signs or wall hangings for instance) or just for a fun extracurricular. As I mentioned, I used it to learn a technique to add to my Bible journaling and I printed out pages for my daughters to use for fun, they also dabble in Bible journaling and one of them attempted some hand lettering in her Bible as well.

I really enjoyed using this product. It was simple, and the instructions were straightforward and easy to understand. Each practice page had just the right combination of traceable letters and blank line space to attempt my own. I love that it is a PDF so I could print as many practice sheets as I needed rather than a book with limited practice potential. I also appreciated that the printable nature allowed me to print pages for multiple family members. I would love the option of purchasing both the lowercase and capital letter practice sheets so that I’m not stuck only writing lowercase letters.

Overall, this is a great product. If you or your children are interested in learning hand lettering or would just like a fun new pastime, this would be a great option!

-Product review by Sabrina Scheerer, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, May, 2018