make your own handwriting script // and a personal font

hello!!

Firstly, it's the holidays and happy easter southern hemisphere. 
Secondly, this little blog has reached 100k page views. Maybe it's not so little anymore
and thirdly, lets get onto the post.
Today to continue All Art for April I've put togehter a post on handwriting
everyone has a sort of handwriting
one you might be seriously jealous of or impossible to read messy scrawl
but each will represent their personality and be unique to them
it's kind of like a thumb print. No two are the same!!
So I'm taking you through a tutorial on creating your handwriting and then a font at the end to celebrate


1 // have a look at fonts online
browse sites like dafont.com or 1001fonts.com for inspiration
print out a selection of alphabets and layout
have a notebook to practice different handwritings and collect inspiration with alphabet glyphs

2 // what can you change
look at your current handwriting. note: do not use school notes because they can be quite messy and different 
what can you change. could you add more flicks or slant it a bit, have a look at the fonts you have collected and make some changes


3 // reflecting your personality
as you create your handwriting script make sure it reflects you
if you are quite bold and simple (for example), don't use frilly cursive writing!!
it should defintely represent you and be unique to you and something that people can recognise
like I can recongise friends and classmates writing because it is unique to them

4 // write a simple word + experiment
start with a simple word like 'hello' as it has nice flow for cursive
check that it looks good in a range of everyday words
keep experimenting and adding different bits to it like serifs or links to make it even more special

5 // Practice your script
when you are writing out something (I suggest not something important at the beginning) use the handwriting so you get used to using it and get faster and writing it after using it for a while, you might find it doesn't work for you so you can go back to step 1 again

6 // write out the alphabet as reference
write out a quick alphabet of all your letters and maybe numbers if you have designed them as well
use as reference while you are practicing and/or editing it
keep track of what you are changing as you go along the creative process
and remember it is a process so don't expect to be happy first try

Now it is time for font making!! woop woop!!!
from the app store you can get this app called iFontmaker for iPad
now I'm warning you it is $10 but really worth it
I seriously use it all the time. I make so many fonts!!
Once you download it, you draw in each glyph, with some grid help so they even not wonky
and then you email it to your laptop and install your font and volia! 
you have your very own personal font that no one in the world has anywhere else!!!!!

hope you might be able to really create a special font for yourself

please send me photos of your alphabet that you have created for reader creations.
please do not send me screenshots of your font, I would like to feature handwritten fonts
have a hip hoppity easter!

xx harri