So you’ve fallen in love with that whimsical, moving-baseline, crazy in a charming way, scrawling-sprawling hand-drawn look calligraphic script typography trend, and you want envelopes and invitations that look something like this:
or this:
or this:
I totally get it! Since I first saw this hand-drawn look a few years back, I’ve fallen in love with the way it seems like some super chic and elegant calligrapher just took a fancy pen and scribbled the lettering really quick, but her extreme skill means it came out looking totally fabulous. (Yeah, I’m pretty jealous!) Ok, it probably doesn’t really work like that, but that’s how I imagine it.
But wait! “I can’t afford to hire a calligrapher,” you protest. “And I’m not super artsy enough / don’t have time / can’t be bothered to take an evening calligraphy class / don’t know how to do it myself.” (If this is not you and you want to hire a skilled calligrapher/design studio like any of the above to make such beautiful designs come to life for you – OR you want to design your own calligraphic wedding invitations yourself – either way you are awesome and go on with your bad self!)
But if you can’t afford that or just want to do it yourself (without picking up a calligraphy pen), the good news is that script fonts have come a long way in the past few years. Now you can get a similar look by simply downloading a font. None of the fonts in the following list are free, but few of the most excellent fonts are – and these are so gorgeous that it’s totally worth the $25-$50 to get a hand-drawn, calligraphic look. I’ll do another version of this post with free fonts soon! (Update: here’s the link to the post with free fonts: 34 free calligraphy script fonts for wedding invitations!)
(My favorite part? If you mess up, just hit the “delete” button! No need to toss anything in the trash and start over.)
All of the fonts listed here are from MyFonts – I love this website, they have so many fabulous fonts! It’s a great resource for really professional fonts – I highly recommend taking a browse. So now, without further ado, here are my top 10 picks for getting that hand-drawn, elegantly sprawling, informal calligraphic look:
Asterism, from type foundry Great Lakes Lettering, has that sort of whimsical flair of informal calligraphy. And at only $30, it’s one of the best deals on the list – a really high quality font for not a lot of money.
Download Asterism on MyFonts.com ($30 at time of writing)
Boho Script, with its varying letter sizes and gestural lines and swirls, is definitely a little more informal and fun – but still super chic! Just like that boho girl herself. 😉
Download Boho Script on MyFonts.com ($39 at time of writing)
Bellucia is perhaps for those who want a bit more of a formal feeling – all the extra loops and scrolls definitely add an ornate elegance to the font.
Download Bellucia on MyFonts.com ($39 (regular) -$49 (pro) at time of writing)
Acustica definitely has more of a brush calligraphy look. The thin connecting strokes and occasional swirls give it a casual stylishness.
Download Acustica on MyFonts.com ($49.67 at time of writing)
Ooh, I love the looping, angled gorgeousness of this font. A super elegant and very realistic calligraphic font.
Download Marguerite on MyFonts.com ($40 at time of writing)
And now for a blocky, modern twist – it’s a little bit of a stretch to include this font in the theme, but I really liked it so much and I think it would go really well with a modern, painterly wedding invitation.
Download Gloss Drop on MyFonts.com ($25 at time of writing)
Salt and spice and everything nice… and it is a very nice font! Upright and flowing with just the right amount of flair.
Download Salt & Spice on MyFonts.com ($29 – on sale for $14.50 until May 28, 2015!)
This is easily the most expensive font on the list, at almost $90. It’s a lot to spend on a font, but the bold differences in stroke width and little (sometimes big) curlicues – it’s definitely striking and modern, yet feminine and elegant. It’s also one of three (yes, three!) fonts on our list designed by one person – Emily Conners of Emily Lime.
Download Carolyna Pro Black on MyFonts.com ($89 at the time of writing)
Another one from calligraphy font superstar Emily Lime. I love the sleek, angled, upright modernity of this one. It looks convincingly hand-drawn (hand-calligraphed? Is that a thing?) – with just the right amount of fluidity thrown in there to keep it captivating.
Download Jacques & Gilles on MyFonts.com ($34 at time of writing)
Finally, our last font and our last font from the amazing Emily Lime: Bombshell Pro. I may be wrong but I’m pretty sure she started the whole modern calligraphy font trend with this very font – I remember seeing it when it first came out and thinking “I MUST HAVE THIS IMMEDIATELY.” $54 or not. Since then, a number of really excellent flowy, contemporary calligraphic fonts have cropped up (many of which are featured above) but Bombshell Pro will always have a special place in my heart from being the first, and still one of the shining stars of the genre.
Download Bombshell Pro on MyFonts.com ($54 at time of writing)
And finally, for your viewing pleasure, font comparison ability, and pinning convenience, all the addressed envelope mock-ups have been gathered together into one image:
PS: In case you love that tulip postage stamp as much as I obviously did, here’s the link to it on the USPS website.