Review of the Brause Calligraphy Beginner's Card Set #Exaclair #Calligraphy #Giveaway

It's time for a giveaway! (The giveaway is now closed)

Exaclair, Inc. has sent me a Brause Calligraphy Beginner's Card Set for review, and is allowing me to host a giveaway.  Five winners will receive one of these sets!

The set is a large envelope, full of cards with examples of 9 traditional calligraphy alphabets - Carolingian Script, Chancery Cursive, Gothic, Gothic Black Letter, Gothic Fraktur, Italic Script, Modern Sans Serif, Roman, and Uncial.

Thank you to Exaclair, Inc.!






















Size: Approximately 10 x 13 inches
Paper: Cardstock
No. of Cards: 12
No. of Alphabets: 9

Except for two cards that are examples, each card has an alphabet.  Both upper and lower case are shown, except for Chancery Cursive.  It takes up two cards, one showing the uppercase and one showing lowercase.


These have pretty much the traditional calligraphy instruction.  The strokes of each character are numbered to show the order in which they should be made, and arrows are used to show the direction of the stroke.  If you've seen calligraphy instruction before, you know what to expect.

These are cards, so they are cardstock.  The surface is smooth, but not slick. They are also very large.
Sort of the large print of calligraphy instruction.  The photo below shows the set sitting in front of my computer screen to give you an idea of scale.




Because they are so large, the stroke and arrow information is easy to see.  You can tell, though, that these are instructions written on a smaller scale for the traditional size book, and blown up to this size, because you see the wobbles in the witing that normally don't show.

The large size is still portable, though you wouldn't be able to fit it in most purses, briefcases or folders.

The envelope is made of cardstock, similar to the cards though more slick.


It is held shut by a flap.  I think I'm going to put some Velcro on the flap, because I suspect this will tear sooner or later, if I use the set very often.



The set only includes cards (Brause does also do a set that includes nibs, ink and nib holders).

Performance
I have to confess that during my school years, the only art projects that I consistently scored poorly on were the Calligraphy projects.  And for this review, I had intended to spend some time practicing and showing you some awesome examples.  Well... the set was late coming to me, and I'm working on a big project, and my mother's needed me to do a lot lately--you know, the usual life stuff.  I don't see things changing for a while, so I bit the bullet and plowed ahead--scheduling the appointment and mixing metaphors at the same time, lol.

Deciding to get one up on personalized cards for the family, I wrote out the greetings on a mixed media card stock.  I did one practice run, and went for it.  I'm not exactly a beginner, but this is not my forte, so you a good idea of what the cards might help you do.

Carolingian Script


Chancery Cursive

Gothic


Gothic Black Letter


Gothic Fraktur


Italic Script



Modern Sans Serif


Roman Alphabet


Uncial


Overall
Although this Brause Calligraphy Beginner's Card Set is called a beginner's set, it only includes instructional cards, so you do need to get nibs, nib holders and ink elsewhere. 

There are no surprises to the set, except for the size.  The instructions have minimal wordage and assume you'll understand the numbered strokes and arrows.  Pretty much what you will see in any traditional calligraphy instruction.

The large print makes this great for anyone who finds it harder to see than they used to, and the cards can easily be propped up for viewing while you practice.


GIVEAWAY INFORMATION  (The giveaway is now closed)What Will They Win?  
Five winners will each receive a Brause Calligraphy Beginner's Card Set like the one reviewed here.

How to Enter?
Cut and paste these words: 'I want to win a Brause Calligraphy Beginner's Card Set ' into the subject line of an email, and send it to me at  LifeImitatesDoodles [at] gmail [dot] com.  

When is the giveaway over?
The giveaway starts on Wednesday, May, 4, 2016 at 06:00 AM PDT and ends Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at 11:59 PST.  I'll notify the winners by email on Wednesday, May 11.

Who can enter?
I do apologize, this giveaway is U.S. only.


Disclaimer:  I received this Brause Calligraphy Beginner's Card Set from Exaclair Inc. specifically for this review and giveaway. I was allowed to choose the item to be given away.  I'm excited about hosting this giveaway, but tried not to let it influence my opinion, and all opinions are my own.  I received no other compensation.

Comments

  1. i used to do some calligraphy but i have lost my book of alphabets. would love the chance to win.

    ReplyDelete

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