Hi everyone! I was asked by Paper & Ink Arts to do a fun Instagram takeover on the topic of Italic Hand. This and following posts mirror what I shared on their social media.

Hi calligraphy and letter-loving friends – my name is Linda Yoshida, and I am honored to be asked by Paper & Ink Arts for this week’s Instagram takeover. My focus this week will be on the beautiful Italic Hand!

A little about me – I’m from Los Angeles, and work full-time as a graphic designer. I have been doing calligraphy for fun since I was 12, but really started my formal training 2011 when I came across the website of my local calligraphy guild, Society for Calligraphy, and found my first calligraphy teacher, Yukimi Annand. I became a member of the guild in 2013, and since then I have been fortunate enough to not only learn from Yukimi, but also from some of the best calligraphers in the world. I see myself as a “perpetual student” and always strive for progress.

Like many of you, I started my calligraphy journey with pointed pen. But I soon became interested in broad edge calligraphy scripts such as Roman Capitals, Foundational Hand, Blackletter, Uncial, and Italic Hand. When I first started to learn Italic Hand, I found it very challenging. I had such a tough time that I stopped working on it for years. Last summer, after attending Sheila Waters’ and Julian Waters’ masterclass, I got motivated to study Italic again. I took an Italic class with Carrie Imai a few weeks after I got back, and this time it felt less daunting. Maybe having done other scripts during my break helped me understand better. I still very much consider myself a student, but I am happy to share my love of Italic Hand with you this week. Thanks for following along as I share a few basics of one of my favorite scripts!