To the untrained eye, calligraphy can look incredibly complex. We understand that; it’s a delicate artform, after all! But hang out with us at Loveleigh Loops and you’ll start to see the magic and intention behind every single stroke. Today we’re going to distill the wonderful art of calligraphy into just 8 basic strokes that are used to write the lowercase alphabet.
The basic strokes are steeped in tradition (historical references below), but there are also practical benefits. Calligraphers practice 8 strokes instead of 26 different letters. This makes consistency much easier to achieve, especially when following a guided worksheet.
We’re thrilled that you’re learning with us here today. This blog post has something for everyone: beginners will enjoy the simple break-downs, and seasoned hobbyists will love the history behind each of these strokes. Let’s get our pens out and dive in!
Calligraphy letters are written using basic strokes instead of normal cursive letters. The basic strokes are building blocks, and each letter is written with a combination of strokes.
The basic strokes are (see a full tutorial on each stroke below):
Use our free worksheet to learn each of the basic strokes. Start by tracing over the printed strokes, then practice them freehand on the guides. The consistency of the guides and slant will help you write in a line and achieve even spacing. Get it instantly in your inbox!
Scroll through the lowercase alphabet below to see how each letter is built using the basic strokes. First we’ve written the strokes, then the entire letter and then guidance on proper letterforms.
Consistent letterforms are achieved through consistent strokes.
→ For a breakdown of the entire calligraphy alphabet, see this guide.
Although we’re using modern calligraphy in these examples, the fundamental strokes work with other styles of modern and traditional calligraphy. In this basic calligraphy strokes guide, we’ll show you how each stroke presents independently before showing them in the context of the word “balancing.”
Follow along with our video tutorial:
Now, let’s go over the individual strokes!
An underturn starts with heavy pressure coming down, curves at the bottom, and then finishes off with a low-pressure thin stroke going up.
The transition from the thick downstroke to the thin upstroke in the middle of the underturn is tricky! It takes practice to achieve smooth transitions.
In the word balancing, you can find the underturn in the letters ‘a’ and ‘i’.
An overturn is the same as an underturn but upside down. Start at the baseline, with thin light pressure going up, curve at the top, and then go back down with thick pressure coming down.
In the word balancing, you can find the overturn in the ‘n’.
You may also like: Calligraphy Course Directory (Free + Paid)
An oval can be tricky for beginners. Start at around 2 o’clock on the oval, drawing counterclockwise, paying attention to apply more pressure on your downstrokes and use less pressure on the light upstrokes.
A quick note on ovals: Some letters such as the ‘c’ use a partial oval, a slight variation on the oval stroke. Instead of drawing a full oval, draw the first half before coming back to extend the top of the oval.
In the word balancing, you can find the oval in the ‘a’ and ‘g’. Also look for partial ovals, such as in the ‘c’.
You may also like: How To Write “Thank You” In Calligraphy
A compound curve is a combination of an overturn leading into an underturn. Starting at the baseline, draw up using light pressure, curve around the top then plunge down to the baseline with more pressure and finish with a light upturn.
In the word balancing, you can find the compound curve at the end of the ‘n’.
The reverse oval starts with a straight line that goes up, around clockwise, with a thick line going down and slight curve back in at the bottom.
In the word balancing, you can find the reverse oval in the ‘b’.
Most strokes stay within the x-height. However, there are some letters such as the letter ‘q’, ‘b’ or ‘g’ that go beyond the baseline. There are two strokes that you use for loops; the ascending loop goes up and the descending loop goes down.
The ascending stemloop, sometimes simply referred to as the ascending loop, begins at the header line with a thin curved line up, then turns down with a thick stroke straight down – always parallel to the practice sheet slant lines.
In the word balancing, you can find the ascending loop in the ‘b’ and ‘l’.
The descending loop looks kind of like a lowercase ‘j’. It starts at the header line, goes down below the baseline, curves around and loops back in.
In the word balancing, you can find the descending loop in the ‘g’.
You may also like: How To Use A Pointed Pen
The entrance stroke is a thin, curved line found at the beginning and ends of letters. For this reason, it’s also sometimes referred to as an exit stroke.
It’s also found between letters, connecting them. In the word balancing, you can find the entrance stroke in the ‘b’, ‘a’, ‘c’, and ‘g’.
You may also like: How to Improve Handwriting
While these 8 basic calligraphy strokes make up all basic letters, there are a few extra elements that are not accounted for. Examples include the:
Scroll through the images below to see exactly how the dots (i), crossbars (t) and small downstrokes (r) are added.
Dots and crossbars are straightforward, but the letter ‘r’ has more variations. We explain the letter r in more detail in the video below. Hit play to jump straight to this point in the alphabet:
Let’s look at how words are written using the basic strokes using the days of the week as an example. We won’t get into letter connections yet, but will focus on the letterforms alone (letter connections tutorial here if you’re ready!).
If this is your first time ever learning about the strokes, then this might feel like a lot to remember. We promise that the basic strokes become second nature!
Learning calligraphy is a hobby that requires patience and regular practice but you’ll be amazed by how much you can progress in a week! These tips will help make it second nature.
Learning calligraphy without using a guide sheet is kind of like practicing an instrument without tuning it first. You’ll never achieve the same level of precision, and things will be left feeling “off.”
Consistency is a essential part of making your letters look good and a practice sheet is incredibly helpful for making sure your letters are of identical size and written at the same angle.
Like with learning any skill, it’s best to practice calligraphy consistently. A few minutes of daily practice will get you much better results than cramming in a mammoth 3-hour long practice session on the weekend!
Don’t be alarmed if initial progress seems a bit slow. Writing consistent letters is a matter of building muscle memory, and this requires time and repetition. While it make take some time before you feel confident enough to show off your new-found hobby, it will come eventually as long as you stick with it!
Easy tip: Leave your paper and pens out on kitchen table or desk. This makes it easier for you to sit down and write for 3 minutes while your tea is brewing or you’re on hold on the phone.
Calligraphy is an endless artform — one that’s learned by layering skills:
Being excited to progress and learn what’s next is a wonderful part of having calligraphy as a hobby. Scroll below for some inspiration of the styles you can learn (we teach all of these in Calligraphy Together!).
It’s why we created our community. Members ask questions, share work and practice together on the monthly quests.
We used to teach calligraphy in person (pictured below!) but we love the online forum for learning so that students can work at their own pace and learn from each other 💕
It doesn’t take much to start trying your hand at the basic calligraphy strokes, but a few tools will help set a good tone for your practice.
This is a previous of tips from our dedicated practice guide.
It’s possible to practice calligraphy basic strokes with pencil or a ballpoint pen. When you’re ready to invest in your new hobby, make calligraphy pens your first investment. We know you likely love pens as much as we do!
In our pictures, we’re doing our basic strokes with a basic small brush pen. This utensil works well for these strokes because the stroke thickness is determined by pressure on the pen: it creates a thicker line when your press down harder on the page.
No brush pens on hand? You can get started with household supplies! We’ve made these tutorials for you:
Here’s a look at using a household marker to write the basic strokes from our Crayola tutorial:
You can browse all of our favorite lettering supplies here.
Practice sheets aren’t just for beginners learning the basics — calligraphers of all skill levels use guides as they practice (us included!). We’ve produced thousands of pages of practice sheets for our 60k+ students.
They’re all available to download:
Depending on what pen you’re using, it is important to use proper calligraphy paper. Using the wrong type of paper can lead to all kinds of problems, from relatively harmless ink bleeds to ruined pens.
We have an entire paper guide here, and here’s a quick reference:
At first glance, calligraphy can look like a simple natural evolution, but great care has gone into these strokes over hundreds of years! If you’re anything like us, you’ll be intrigued by the history.
The basic strokes are old conceptually and there are many books dating back hundreds of years that teach them in different ways.
Tools varied over the centuries, from sharpened quills, to steel tips, and now the popular brush pens. As the tools evolved, so did the instruction of these basic calligraphy strokes by teachers throughout the ages.
When we researched the history, we found it interesting that the tools weren’t the only things to evolve; the language itself has developed as well. In historical texts, calligraphy is not usually the term that is used. We found these terms instead:
Likewise, the names of the 8 basic calligraphy strokes were not always as poetic as “descending loop,” “overturn” and “entrance stroke.” In some instances, the strokes were simply identified numerically (i.e. “Stroke 1, Stroke 2”).
Others classified the strokes using different shapes and names. In 1813, John Jenkins wrote “Art of Writing”, calling The Principal Strokes: “Direct L, Inverted L, Curved L, J, O, and Stem”:
You may also like: The History Of Calligraphy
As you may notice from the above example, not all sources name exactly 8 strokes. As writing styles changed and instructors analyzed the scripts in different ways, the number of strokes changed with it.
Not unlike today, calligraphy was taken quite seriously by those who published writing on the subject. One author even offered an opportunity to submit writing to him via the post and have it critiqued!
As calligraphy teachers ourselves, we respect that enthusiasm. But thankfully, we live in an age where it’s much easier to get in touch with fellow calligraphy hobbyists and enthusiasts. You can simply join our membership Calligraphy Together, no stamps required.
Oftentimes, the history sources used written instructions rather than diagrams to describe how words and letters were formed. We have to admit, we feel pretty lucky to be calligraphy teachers in the modern age when we can show photos and videos to teach!
You may also like: Modern Versus Traditional Calligraphy
Here’s a recap of some FAQs around the fundamental strokes.
The basic strokes are the individual building blocks that make up calligraphy letters. Every lowercase letter of the entire alphabet is built using a combination of one or more different basic strokes. Those basic strokes are: underturn, overturn, oval, compound curve, reverse oval, ascending stem loop, descending stem loop and entrance strokes.
Calligraphy and cursive are related but very different styles of penmanship. When writing cursive, each letter is written in a continuous motion and the writing utensil doesn’t leave the page between letters. When writing calligraphy, the pen does leave the page, within words and even within individual letters.
Learn more about the difference between cursive vs. calligraphy in this article.
The basic techniques of calligraphy are: basic strokes + letter contrast. Contrast is achieved by using a pressure-sensitive writing utensil and applying pressure while writing.
The best way to learn calligraphy as a beginner is by using beginner guide sheets and following step-by-step tutorials that teach the fundamentals. All calligraphy is built on the same foundation of consistent strokes and letter forms. Use our free resources to learn today.
It’s time to get comfy with the basic calligraphy strokes! Take this learning process one step (stroke) at a time, and don’t try to rush. Start with warm-ups, focusing on thick down strokes and thin up strokes, before moving into specific strokes.
We may sound like a broken record, but don’t be shy to download your basic calligraphy strokes pdf to help you practice. We really believe it will give you a head start over practicing letters and words.
In fact, to quote Jenkins from 1813:
“I have therefore dissected the letters, placing the six principle strokes by themselves, that the learner may draw them accurately, before he proceeds to form letters; as soon as he is able to do this, he will go on to write with great ease—because twenty-five of the small letters, and several of the capitals, are made by the different combinations of these principal strokes, with but a little variation or addition.
It is therefore the interest of the learner to pay his first attention to these strokes, which are exceedingly simple, considered separately, their likeness one to another, and their dependence on each other, as may be plainly seen and easily understood…” 1813 John Jenkins, “Art of Writing”
We couldn’t agree more with that advice!
We also have more tutorials waiting for you on our YouTube channel. The basic calligraphy strokes are just the beginning – we’re here to support you on your entire calligraphy journey.
And finally, don’t forget to download the free worksheet!
Enter your email address and we’ll send it right to your inbox:
For anyone who enjoys pouring over documents and literature about calligraphy, here are the direct sources for you to enjoy:
Monthly Updates + Discounts + Bonus Calligraphy 101 Guide
As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.
Sign up for our “In the Loop” newsletter to get monthly email updates from Jillian & Jordan plus discounts + calligraphy freebies!
As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.
