Tuesday, September 01, 2015

Things I Learned in August

Here we are again at the end of another month, and I have just a few interesting random tidbits to share about what I've learned...

1. A pangram is a phrase that includes every letter of the alphabet.
Last month I came across a fun community of calligraphers on Instagram who were doing an ABCs challenge. After they finished the alphabet, they extended the challenge with a few bonus prompts, and one was pangrams. The most famous one is probably "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog," but Sharisse of @piecescalligraphy called for more and got all kinds of fun ones:
  • Grumpy wizards make toxic brew for the evil Queen and Jack.
  • Six jelly doughnuts for breakfast very quickly zap my willpower. 
  • My girl wove six dozen plaid jackets before she quit.
  • Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs.  
photo: @piecescalligraphy
Incidentally, the extended ABCs challenge morphed into a whole new Instagram account, with a new challenge posted every Sunday. I have enjoyed having my IG feed filled with lovely lettering from so many talented people!

2. Related: Brush markers are not magical tools that make you instantly able to produce the kind of lettering you admire. 
I discovered Tombow in August (which was how I got on a rabbit trail that led to all the calligraphers in the first place) and though I didn't win their giveaway, I received a generous gift in the mail from a friend: a set of brush markers! To my dismay, I immediately learned that brush markers do not make you magically able to write beautifully. I gained a whole new respect + admiration for the talented people who create beautiful calligraphy so skillfully. As I practiced, it was a good time to remember The Nester's slogan "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful," and also to apply a quote from Goethe that I'd just read in Italian Journey
 "I can see clearly what is good and what is even better, but as soon as I try to get it down, it somehow slips through my fingers... However, feeble as his efforts may be, the amateur should not despair. ...One must not compare oneself with the artist, but proceed in one's own manner. Nature has provided for all her children: even the least of them is not hindered in his existence by the existence of the greatest. 'A little man is still a man.' Let us leave it at that."




3. "Hispanic" and "Latino" are not interchangeable terms.
A friend who has a son adopted from South America shared this enlightening comic that set me straight. It turns out that "Latino" refers to geography and "Hispanic" refers to language. You can be both; you can also be one but not the other. I had no idea!


How about you: What did you learn in August? Head over to Chatting at the Sky for more sharing of fascinating facts. 

1 comment:

faith ann raider said...

Love your lettering!! I think it's so good to practice something new. It's humbling but so good for us.