May Calliarts - Unlocking the Majesty of Uncial - Part 2

 Dear Members and Followers,

Please join us for part 2 of Unlocking the Majesty of Uncial calliarts.

This month after a warm up of our letters and writing a few short words, we will be exploring how to use your Uncial. 

Come along for a creative afternoon. 

You must bring:

A4 paper

A3 paper (minimum of 2 sheets)

Pens, Nibs, Coloured gouache, etc. (water jar, palate, brushes) or

Coloured calligraphy/felt calligraphy pens

Ruler

Eraser

Graphite pencils

Geometric compass

Tracing paper

Usual calligraphy gear.

 

It is essential you book in no later than the Thursday night before class, so the tutor has photocopies for you. 

When: 9 May 2026

Where: Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania

Time: 12.30pm - 3.30pm

Cost: Members - $20.00, Visitors - $25.00

Bookings - email southscribes@yahoo.com.au

Calliarts - Unlocking the Majesty of Uncial

 Dear Members and Followers,

Calliarts - April & May 2026 – Unlocking the Majesty of Uncial – Cathy

Step back to the dominant script from the 4^th to the 8^th century and discover the hand that shaped early manuscripts. Uncial is one of the most beautiful and influential hands, preserving great bibles and early literary treasures of the west.

This workshop is designed for anyone who wants to slow down, pick up a pen, and master the rounded, rhythmic elegance of this classic majuscule script. We will break the individual letters down, focusing on its signature “roundness” and the specific pen-angles required to achieve its characteristic weight.

Over the two months we will:

·       Foundations – history of the script, tool set-up and basic warm-up strokes.

·       The Alphabet – Group letters by shape and practice.

·       Refining the Hand – Adjusting the X-height, alternate letters, etc.

·       Work on aspects of decoration and usage that are associated with the hand.

Who are these afternoons for?

·       Beginners – No prior calligraphy experience is necessary. Uncial is an excellent starting point for calligraphy as we work with majuscules and limited slopes.

·       Intermediate and More Experienced calligraphers. Time to refine the hand and add some extras to your uncial.

Materials List Across the Two Months:

·       A3 Bleed proof Paper Pad – (Reeves from Officeworks, works well or an alternative from Eckersley’s)

·       Graphite Pencils – HB and 2B

·       Ruler – 40cm

·       Eraser

·       Penholders and broad edge nibs (chisel) in a variety of sizes (beginners April – Artline calligraphy markers in different sizes, again Officeworks)

·       Ink and/or Gouache (you will also need gouache for lettering a piece). Please include a gold gouache.

·       Some sort of palate, cheap small brush, good small brushes (000, 00 and 0 – not expensive), water jar/s, paper towels or cloth for cleaning

·       Black fine liners

·       Tracing paper

·       Grid paper

·       Geometric compass

·       Suitable quotes, + one longer piece

(the list may seem extensive, but I promise we will use everything).

When: 11 April 2026 and 9 May 2026

Where: Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania

Time: 12.30pm - 3.30pm

Cost: Members - $20.00, Visitors - $25.00

Bookings - email southscribes@yahoo.com.au

March Calliarts - Running Bookhand Part 2

 Dear Members and Followers,

Calligraphy Southscribes are trialling something new this year. Instead of a different hand each month, we are instead enabling our members to extend their lettering skills by working across the one hand for two months.

So, on Saturday March 14 we will be working on Running Bookhand - Part 2 with Glenis Sheather.

Running Bookhand Part 2 will build on what we covered in Part 1 last month. This will entail using different size nibs and tools.  In particular, we will be using double pencils for larger letters, which can be used for a decorated letter at the start of a piece of work or for a full word or name.

 

We will also look at creating a small piece of work, with instructions on how to arrange your chosen wording on your page.

Materials List:

 

·           A3 Bleedproof layout pad

·           2 x graphite pencils, either HB or 2B

·           2 x rubber bands or masking tape to bind the pencils

·           A variety of nib sizes (bring what you have)

·           Any monoline pens you may have, eg. Speedball “B” Series nibs, biros, gel pens, etc.

·           Ink or gouache of your choice, if using calligraphy nibs

·           Coloured pencils or watercolour paints

·           Plastic Ruler

·           Eraser

·           A sheet of tracing paper

·           A piece of better-quality paper, A5 size.

·           A short quote      

·           Usual calligraphy gear.

When: Saturday, 14 March 2026

Where: Sylvania Community Hall, Canberra Road, Sylvania

Time: 12.30pm to 3.45pm

Bookings Essental: email southscribes@yahoo.com.au for payment details.

February Calliarts - And Welcome New Year with Running Bookhand

 Dear Members and Followers,

We are back with more calligraphy in February 2026 starting off with Running Bookhand.

The first Calliarts workshop for the year is Running Bookhand with Glenis Sheather. A modern variation of a 10^th Century hand, Running Bookhand is easily read and written, which makes it an ideal script for beginners.  

This workshop will be taught over two months and in Part 1 we will be working on the lower- and upper-case letters of this lovely hand.

We won’t forget our experienced calligraphers, who can use the workshop as a refresher, as well as trying some other variations.

Materials List:

 

·        A3 Bleedproof layout pad

·        Nibs, such as a William Mitchell 2, Speedball 3, Brause 2 or a chisel edged felt tip pen, such as an Artline Calligraphy Pen size 2 (available at Officeworks)

·        Ink or gouache of your choice, if using calligraphy nibs

·        HB or 2B pencil

·        Plastic Ruler

·        An A4 sheet of tracing paper     

·        Usual calligraphy gear.

When: Saturday, 14 February 2026

Where: Sylvania Community Hall, Canberra Road, Sylvania

Time: 12.30pm to 3.45pm

Bookings Essental: email southscribes@yahoo.com.au for payment details.

November Calliarts - Let it be Crafty, Let it be Crafty

 Dear Members and Followers,

The November Calliarts will see us getting into the Christmas spirit, with tutor Glenis Sheather showing us how to make a Christmas card using the Iris Folding technique.  Iris Folding has been around for quite a few years now and the designs are formed from strips of paper.  The paper shouldn’t be too thick; envelopes, wrapping paper, Japanese paper or Origami papers are all suitable.  This will be a fun afternoon making some cards in time for the Christmas mail.

Materials List: 

·       2 x A4 sheets of craft card - one dark and one light colour (which will make 2 cards)

·       2 or 4 different papers, which can be contrasting or matching, but should match your cardboard

·       Narrow ribbon or cord

·       1 sheet of tracing paper

·       Cutting mat

·       Craft knife

·       Small scissors

·       Steel edged ruler

·       Bone folder, if you have one

·       Sticky tape (in a dispenser if you have one)

·       Removable sticky tape, if you have it

·       Double sided tape or glue suitable for cardboard

·       Pencil and plastic ruler

When: Saturday 8 November 2025

Time: 12.30pm to 3.45pm

Where: Sylvania Community Centre, Canberra Road, Sylvania

Bookings Essential: email southscribes@yahoo.com.au for payment details

October Calliarts - Embossing with Valerie Keevers

 Dear Members and Followers,

Embossing is a technique for creating raised, three dimensional designs on paper (as well as other materials), using tools to apply pressure and form. It adds texture and depth, with the opposite technique, creating a sunken design.

This technique would be great for Christmas cards, etc. especially with the CSS Christmas card swap happening again this year.

General Requirements:

• Pencil, ruler and eraser
• Masking tape
• A4 pad, tracing paper and bone folder if you have one.
• A5 or any size pieces of 120 - 180 gsm papers. Coloured paper is fine but white is better.
• Light weight card stock (optional)
• Watercolours and fine brish or coloured pencils (optional)

Tools:

• Ball or spoon embossing tools
• Fine double ended embossing tool
• If you do not have any of these ...... an empty ball point pen can be used - ensure it has no ink in it.
• Small teaspoon can be useful

If you wish to make your own stencils:

• Light weight card (e.g. cereal box)
• Fine pointed scissors
• Cutting mat and sharp craft knife
• UHU type glue
• Needle point tweezers are handy as is a satay stick.

Date:     Saturday, 11th October, 2025

Time:     12.30pm – 4.00pm  

Cost:      $20.00 – Members, $25.00 – Non-Members  

Place:    Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania  

              (Near Southgate Shopping Centre)  

              Bookings Essential: southscribes@yahoo.com.au 

Payment Options: Direct Deposit, Cash on the day or Cheque. When booking, please advise which payment option you will be making. 

September Calliarts - Bend it like Bernd with Cherrie Grant

 Dear Members and Followers,

This September sees us looking at the designs of Adolf Bernd, a German born in 1909.

Fans of his designs are attracted to modern letter forms with decorative elements. He didn't use masking fluid but got a similar effect and with water colours there is a fresh result. 

His three main elements in his designs are:

• Subtle colours.
• White interlinear lines.
• The patters in the surrounding areas.

Materials List

Scripts – Neuland, Art Deco or Art Nouveau. Alphabets which have more weight to them – or look in our fabulous alphabet book in the library

Tracing paper – Office works has a Study Mate branded pad for under $5

0.5 – 1.0 Copic/Uni/Staedtler fine line marker / permanent fine liner black

Pencils – 2H, HB or F and pencil sharpener

Kneadable eraser & tombow eraser

Ruler

A3 x 300 gsm Smooth/Hot Pressed Watercolour (Arches, Fabriano, Hanumuele etc) . or 2 x A4 sheets we will leave a 2.5cm margin on the left hand margin. For binding into a book, if we have time.

Watercolour pencils / water-soluble graphite pencils (Derwent Graphitint) + plus colour swatches (if you have them)

Boku-Undo E-sumi Japanesque watercolour & plus colour swatch (if you have them)

Watercolour tubes or pans – professional/designer/artist grade is best especially when it comes to pigment. 3 warm & 3 cool colours. If you don’t know if they are warm or cool – in your internet browser search  …<is name of your paint colour a warm/cool colour?> if that fails feel free to contact me

some Colour suggestions are

Warm > Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Phthalo or Winsor Blue

Cool > Alizarin Red, Lemon Yellow, Ultramarine Blue

 

White ice block tray &  Palette

Water containers x 2

pipettes

Pointed brushes sizes 1, 2, 4 and 6 & mixing brushes

Rag or paper towel

Light pad

Bookings - southscribes@yahoo.com.au 

June Calliarts - Italic Capitals

 Dear Members and Followers,

To quote a famous song "I simply must go, baby it's cold outside" is the perfect segway to our June Calliarts. It's cold outside so you simply must go to our afternoon of calligraphy. 

As a follow-up to  previous Italic calliarts, our afternoon this month will be centred on Italic capitals with Gloria Scott.

We will look at:

1) the basic capital letters

2) a subdued flourished entry as an alternate choice. 

Requirements

·       Usual calligraphy equipment (ruler, pencil, water etc)

       but particularly:

·       A3 bleed-proof paper pad.

·       Broad (chisel) edged nib pens either Speedball (or other brand) nib sizes 1, 2 or 3.

·       Ink or gouache, water pot, paper towel.

·       Coloured felt tip pens, felt tip broad edge pens.

·       Most importantly, your slope board (if you don’t have one, they are available at the hall).

Time: 12.30pm – 4.00pm

Date: 14 June 2025

Cost: $20.00 – Members, $25.00 – Non-Members

Place:   Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania

(near Southgate Shopping Centre)

 

Bookings Essential: southscribes@yahoo.com.au

 

Payment Options: Direct Deposit, Cash on the day or Cheque.  When booking, please advise which payment option you will be making.

April Calliarts - Art Deco and All That Jazz!

 Dear Members and Followers,

I dare anyone to admit that they don't like Art Deco in any shape or form. With that in mind Calligraphy Southscribes, Inc. for the April Calliarts session is bringing to you Art Deco with Glenis Sheather.

Elegant, geometric and streamlined are adjectives that epitomize the Art Deco period, and

in this workshop we will be looking at some Art Deco inspired monoline scripts. Monoline

means a single line so every stroke in the lettering is the same width. You can use many

tools to create monoline letters, e.g. ball point pens, gel pens, pencils etc., but using

Speedball B series nibs will be our main focus. We will also look at some Art Deco style

decorations to use with the scripts, which will be suitable for cards, bookmarks etc.

Materials List:

• Speedball Series B nibs (or similar) preferably within the 4-6 size range.

• Inks/gouache/watercolour paint of your choice.

• Any of the following: ball point pens, gel pens, fine liners, round end felt tip pens,

pencils (graphite and/or coloured).

• Layout Pad.

• Ruler (essential for drawing geometric patterns).

• Coloured pencils, water colour pencils, water colour paint or gouache if you wish to

colour decorations.

• Better quality paper if you wish to complete a piece of work or make a card.

• If you wish to do a quote, find a suitable quote from writers of the period, e.g. Oscar

Wilde, J Scott Fitzgerald, etc.

• Usual calligraphy gear.

If any of you have Speedball Series A nibs, bring them along because I have an exemplar that

suits them. However, this is only if you have them, as I think Speedball has ceased making

them.

Date:     Saturday, 12th April, 2025  

Time:     12.30pm – 4.00pm  

Cost:      $20.00 – Members, $25.00 – Non-Members  

Place:    Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania  

              (Near Southgate Shopping Centre)  

              Bookings Essential: southscribes@yahoo.com.au 

Payment Options: Direct Deposit, Cash on the day or Cheque. When booking, please advise which payment option you will be making. 

Calliarts - March - Nibs, Tools and Fun

 Dear Members and Followers,

How often do you look at a tool or a piece of equipment you own or see in store or online and

wonder, “How do I use that” or “What on earth is that for” then this afternoon is for you.

Bring along everything to you want to find out about, how to get the best results from or just

how to use. Think wide and far, from pen nibs to anything you can make a mark with (balsa

wood, coke pens, etc). The tutors this afternoon will be sharing their experience and answering

all your questions.

Materials List:

• Anything you do not know how to use
• A3 bleedproof pad
• Ink
• Gouache
• Graphite Pencil, ruler, eraser
• Scraps of paper

Calliarts - Untangled Letters - November 2024

 Dear Members and Followers,

This calliarts will see us decorating our letters to use for gift tags, bookmarks, cards with the idea of developing ideas for Christmas.

Materials List:

• Tracing paper.

• Graphite pencil/s (propelling great).

• Coloured and/or watercolour pencils.

• Fineliners (I use pigma micron black) – MUST be waterproof.

• Eraser.

• Ruler.

• Fine pointed brushes - 000, 00, 0, 1, 2 (whatever you have, don't rush and buy them).

• Water jar.

• Paper stump or cotton buds.

• Watercolour paper – bookmark size pieces and coaster size pieces (bring several).

C.J. Sayer

Date:     Saturday, 9^th November, 2024  

Time:     12.30pm – 4.00pm  

Cost:      $20.00 – Members, $25.00 – Non-Members  

Place:    Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania  

              (Near Southgate Shopping Centre)  

              Bookings Essential: southscribes@yahoo.com.au 

Payment Options: Direct Deposit, Cash on the day or Cheque. When booking, please advise which payment option you will be making. 

August Calliarts - Pointed Gothic

 Dear Members and Followers,

If you like Gothic scripts, then this Calliarts workshop is for you.  The version of Pointed Gothic that I will be teaching is based on a 16^th Century Flemish hand.  It is written with a 50-60 degree pen angle, which gives a Gothic window shape to some letters.  It is an elegant hand, which lends itself to some flourishing.

Materials List:

Usual calligraphy gear

Broad Edge nib size – William Mitchell 2, Speedball 3, Brause 2 or similar

Layout pad

Ink or gouache of your choice

An A4 sheet of tracing paper

An A5 sheet of good quality paper and a short verse if you want to produce a piece of work.

         Date:     Saturday, 10th August, 2024  

Time:     12.30pm – 4.00pm  

Cost:      $20.00 – Members, $25.00 – Non-Members  

Place:    Sylvania Community Centre - Canberra Road, Sylvania  

                        (near Southgate Shopping Centre)  

         Bookings Essential: southscribes@yahoo.com.au 

Payment Options: Direct Deposit, Cash on the day or Cheque. When booking, please advise which payment option you will be making.