Over 3,000 Students Taught
Modern Calligraphy Course
11 Modules | 91 Pages Of Worksheets | Learn At Home, At Your Own Pace
Lifetime Access, Including All Future Updates
Before You Go Any Further
Looking For A Calligraphy Workshop In London?
We ran in person modern calligraphy workshops in London for years, and taught over 3,000 people at them. Those classes are not currently running. Everything taught in them, and a great deal more, now lives in the online course.
That is not a consolation prize. A workshop gives you one afternoon, a nib you have never held before, and a long train home hoping you remember it. The course gives you eleven modules, worksheets you can print as many times as you like, and the ability to watch the same stroke again at midnight in a fortnight when it stops working.
A Typical London Workshop
- Two or three hours, one evening
- Covers the alphabet and little else
- Nothing to refer back to afterwards
- A fixed date you have to travel to
- Around £70 to £120 for the session
The Online Course, £100
- 11 modules, yours for life
- Strokes, letters, joins, flourishes, layout
- 91 pages of worksheets to print again and again
- Start tonight, pause whenever life gets busy
- Rewatch any lesson, any number of times
The same tutor, the same worksheets, the same teaching. Only without the commute.
Start Here
What Is Modern Calligraphy?
Modern calligraphy is a contemporary style of pointed pen lettering, written with a flexible nib and ink. Pressure on the downstroke spreads the nib and lays a thick line, a light upstroke leaves a hairline, and the contrast between the two is what makes the letters look the way they do. Unlike traditional scripts such as Copperplate, modern calligraphy has no fixed rules on slant, spacing or letterform, so every calligrapher develops a hand of their own.
It is not handwriting, and it is not drawing. It is closer to learning an instrument: a small number of movements, practised until your hand stops thinking about them. That is why it can be taught properly to someone who believes their handwriting is terrible, and why the people who get good are the ones who practise ten minutes a day rather than three hours once a month.
This course teaches modern calligraphy from the first stroke. Eleven modules take you from holding the pen correctly, through the basic strokes, the lower case and capital alphabets, joining letters into words, then on to flourishing, layout, colour and making your own ink. It is built for complete beginners, and detailed enough that improvers find the gaps in what they taught themselves from Instagram.
£100
One Payment
11 Modules
Video And Worksheets
For Life
Including Updates
Eleven Modules, In Order
What You Will Learn
Each module targets one skill, with a video, dedicated worksheets to complete as you go, and a homework sheet to consolidate what you have practised. Work through them in order, at whatever pace suits you.
1
Welcome And Introduction
What modern calligraphy is, how the course works, and how to get the most from it. Ten minutes before you touch a pen.
2
Tools And Materials
Exactly which nib, holder, ink and paper to buy, and which to avoid. Watch this one first if you have not bought your supplies yet.
3
Getting Started
Preparing a new nib, loading ink, how to hold the pen, how to sit, and how to set the paper. The unglamorous part that decides everything after it.
4
Basic Strokes
The handful of movements every letter is built from. Master these and the alphabet falls out of them. Skip them and nothing else works.
5
Lower Case Alphabet
Every letter from a to z, broken into its strokes and demonstrated at a pace you can follow, with worksheets to write over and then repeat alone.
6
Upper Case Alphabet
Capitals, which are where most self taught calligraphers come unstuck, because they are drawn rather than written and follow their own logic.
7
Joining Letters And Writing Words
Where it starts to look like calligraphy rather than practice. Connections, spacing, rhythm, and what to do about the letters that refuse to join neatly.
8
Flourishing
The extended strokes and loops that give a piece its personality, and the judgement to know when to stop, which matters more than the flourish itself.
9
Layout And Composition
How to plan a piece so the words sit properly on the page. This is the module that turns nice lettering into something worth framing or sending.
10
Working In Colour
Coloured inks, metallics and gouache, how to mix them to the right consistency, and how to write on darker papers without the ink dying on the nib.
11
Making Your Own Ink
Mixing your own inks from scratch, so you can match any colour you are asked for rather than hunting for a bottle that does not exist.
Eleven modules, 91 pages of worksheets, and no deadline to finish any of it.
One Payment, Yours For Life
What You Get For £100
No subscription, no upsells, no second course you have to buy to get the rest of it. You pay once and everything below is yours.
Eleven Video Modules
Each one filmed close enough to see the nib, at a pace you can actually follow. Pause it, rewind it, watch the same stroke fifteen times if that is what it takes. Nobody is waiting for you to catch up.
91 Pages Of Worksheets
Printable, and printable again. Practice sheets for every module and a homework sheet to consolidate each one. This is the part that makes the difference, and it is why people who only watch videos never improve.
Lifetime Access
No expiry date and no monthly fee. Come back to it in two years when you have a wedding to write place cards for. Any modules added later are included at no extra cost.
Work At Your Own Pace
No start date, no live sessions to miss, nothing to keep up with. Do a module a week, or three in a weekend and nothing for a month. Your progress is saved wherever you left it.
Taught By A Working Calligrapher
Not a hobbyist. The same hand that writes place cards for weddings at The Ned, Cliveden House and chateaux across France, and has taught over 3,000 people in person.
Watch On Any Device
Laptop, tablet or phone, propped beside you while you write. Sign in with the email address you used at checkout and everything is there waiting.
And To Be Straight With You
This is a self led course. There is no live teaching, no group to join, and no feedback on your work from me. What you get is the whole method, recorded properly, and worksheets that tell you exactly what to practise next.
Supplies are not included either. You buy your own nib, holder, ink and paper, which comes to around £25 to £40, and Module 2 tells you precisely what to get and where.
Before You Enrol
Is This Course For You?
There is no refund on a digital course, so it is worth being honest about who it suits. Read both columns before you buy.
This Is For You If
- You have never held a dip pen and want to start properly rather than picking it up from short videos
- You have taught yourself from Instagram and can feel that something in the basics is missing
- You want to write your own wedding place cards, envelopes or Christmas cards
- You are thinking about taking on paid calligraphy work and need the craft underneath it
- You want something slow and absorbing to do with your hands in the evening
- You can find ten minutes most days, which is worth far more than three hours once a month
This Is Not For You If
- You want someone to look at your work each week and tell you what to fix, since this course is self led
- You are looking for traditional Copperplate or Spencerian, which follow fixed rules this course does not teach
- You want brush lettering, which uses a completely different tool and technique
- You need to be good by next week, because nobody is, whatever they were sold
- You would rather not buy any supplies, since a nib, holder, ink and paper are essential and are not included
- You are hoping to watch it through once and have that be enough
Two Things People Worry About
Bad handwriting does not matter. Calligraphy is drawn from a set of strokes rather than written the way you write a shopping list, so the two have almost nothing to do with each other. Some of the best students at our workshops arrived apologising for their handwriting.
Left handed is not a barrier either. We taught left handed students at every workshop and they managed perfectly well. The adjustment is in how you angle the paper rather than anything about the letters themselves.
Four Things, That Is All
What You Need To Start
Supplies are not included in the course, and you do not need to buy them before you enrol. Module 2 walks you through exactly what to get, which brands work and which to avoid. Expect to spend around £25 to £40 in total.
A Nib
Around £2 each
A flexible pointed nib. Buy three or four, since they are cheap, they wear out, and a bent one will make you think you are the problem.
A Holder
Around £8 to £15
An oblique holder for most people, straight if you are left handed. One holder lasts years, so this is the piece worth spending slightly more on.
Ink
Around £8
One bottle of black ink will see you through the whole course and a long way beyond it. Colour and metallics come later, in Module 10.
Paper
Around £8 to £12
Smooth enough that the nib does not catch. This is where most beginners go wrong, because ordinary printer paper shreds a nib and feathers the ink.
Where To Buy It
We keep a list of everything we use in the studio, with direct links, on our recommended calligraphy supplies page. It is updated whenever we find something better, and it is free to anyone, course or no course. Everything on it is bought direct from the makers and suppliers we use ourselves.
Enrol first, watch Module 2, then buy your supplies knowing exactly what you are looking for.
Where This Takes You
What You Will Be Able To Do
Work through all eleven modules and practise properly, and this is what you will have at the end of it. Not a certificate. A skill you can use.
Write Your Own Wedding Stationery
Place cards, escort cards, envelopes and favour tags for your own wedding, in your own hand. Couples pay stationers a good deal for exactly this, and doing it yourself is a genuinely lovely thing to have made.
Take On Paid Work
Calligraphers charge per name for place cards and envelope addressing. One wedding of a hundred guests pays for this course several times over. Plenty of people who came to our workshops now do this alongside their day job.
Address Envelopes Properly
Christmas cards, invitations, thank you notes. An envelope written by hand is opened first and kept longest, and it is the most useful everyday application of everything the course teaches.
Make Gifts Worth Keeping
A framed quote, a christening card, a family name written out for a new house. Things nobody can buy, made in an evening once the letters come easily.
Develop A Hand Of Your Own
Modern calligraphy has no fixed rules on slant or letterform, so once the fundamentals are there the style becomes yours. That is the point at which it stops being copying and starts being yours.
Sit Down And Switch Off
Not every reason has to be productive. Calligraphy demands enough attention that you cannot think about anything else while you do it, which is most of why people keep at it.
How Long Until You Are Any Good
Ten minutes a day, and most people write recognisable modern calligraphy within a month and something they are happy to show people within three. That is not marketing, it is what we saw at the workshops year after year.
The ones who get there fastest are not the naturally artistic ones. They are the ones who practise little and often rather than in long sessions once a fortnight. The course is built around that, which is why every module ends with a homework sheet.
Who Is Teaching You
Your Tutor
Asha, Babooche Calligraphy
I found calligraphy in 2014, after years working in a heavily digitised creative field. The way the nib moved across the paper, slowly and almost effortlessly, is still the reason I do this. Babooche Calligraphy followed in 2017, and soon after a studio in central London.
I taught modern calligraphy in person for years, to over 3,000 people, in small groups where I could watch everybody’s hand. That is where this course comes from. Every module exists because of something I saw people get stuck on, over and over, in a real room.
The rest of the time I run a wedding stationery studio. My calligraphy goes on invitations and place cards for weddings at The Ned and Cliveden House, and at chateaux and villas across France and Italy. So what I am teaching you is not a hobby I picked up. It is the work.
3,000+
Students Taught
Since 2017
Working Studio
5.0
Rated On ClassBento
Featured In
Brides Magazine
From Students Taught In Person
What Students Say
These come from the in person workshops, not the online course. The teaching is the same, the worksheets are the same, and every module exists because of what we learned in those rooms.
“My long time wish of learning calligraphy from a professional artist was finally fulfilled. Being a craft tutor myself, it was wonderful to be a student and to learn this exquisite form of writing from a natural artist like Asha. I would definitely recommend this course to anyone wanting to learn and be inspired, but remember to practice every day.”
Modern Calligraphy Student
“I have just completed the beginners calligraphy workshop and really enjoyed it. The atmosphere was friendly and relaxing and Asha is an excellent teacher. I am left handed so I was concerned this might make things difficult, but with Asha’s help this was no problem.”
Beginners Workshop Student
“I cannot recommend Asha’s workshop highly enough. From beginning to end it was fantastic. Asha is a fabulous and patient teacher and told us everything we needed to know with such clarity and professionalism, even answering all my keen questions. I will be recommending this to anyone who wishes to start a new hobby in calligraphy.”
Modern Calligraphy Student
Everything You Need To Know
Modern Calligraphy Course Questions
Do you still run calligraphy workshops in London?
Not at present. We taught over 3,000 people at in person workshops in London over several years, and everything covered in them now forms part of the online course, along with a great deal more. The course costs £100 and gives you eleven modules and lifetime access, where a workshop gave you a single evening.
How much does the modern calligraphy course cost?
£100, paid once. That covers all eleven modules, 91 pages of printable worksheets, and lifetime access including any modules added later. There is no subscription and nothing further to buy from us. Supplies are not included and come to around £25 to £40.
My handwriting is terrible. Can I still learn calligraphy?
Yes, and this is the question we were asked most at every workshop. Calligraphy is built from a small set of drawn strokes rather than written the way you write a shopping list, so the two have very little to do with each other. Some of our best students arrived apologising for their handwriting.
I am left handed. Will that be a problem?
No. We taught left handed students at every workshop and they managed perfectly well. The adjustment is in how you angle the paper and which holder you use, a straight holder rather than an oblique, and Module 2 covers it.
How long does the course take?
As long as you want it to. There is no start date, no deadline and no live sessions to attend. Most people work through a module or two a week alongside daily practice. Ten minutes a day is worth considerably more than three hours once a fortnight.
How long until I can write properly?
With ten minutes of practice a day, most people write recognisable modern calligraphy within a month, and something they are happy to show people within three. Anyone promising faster than that is selling you something.
What equipment do I need and what does it cost?
A flexible pointed nib, a pen holder, a bottle of black ink and smooth paper. Around £25 to £40 for the lot. Module 2 tells you exactly which to buy and which to avoid, so it is worth enrolling and watching that before you spend anything.
Is there any feedback on my work?
No. This is a self led course, so there is no live teaching, no group and no critique from me. What you get instead is the whole method recorded properly, and worksheets that tell you exactly what to practise next and how to see for yourself where a stroke has gone wrong.
How long do I have access for?
Forever. There is no expiry and no renewal. Come back to it in two years when you have a wedding to write place cards for, and any modules added in the meantime are yours at no extra cost.
Is this Copperplate or brush lettering?
Neither. This is modern calligraphy, written with a pointed dip pen. Copperplate follows fixed historical rules on slant and letterform, and brush lettering uses a completely different tool. If one of those is what you are after, this is not the right course.
Can I earn money from calligraphy afterwards?
Plenty of people do. Calligraphers are paid per name for wedding place cards and envelope addressing, so a single wedding can cover the cost of this course several times over. It takes real practice first, and the course gives you the craft rather than the business, but the craft is the part that cannot be shortcut.
How do I access the course after I buy it?
You create an account at checkout, and the course unlocks straight away. Sign in at baboochecalligraphy.com/dashboard and it is there waiting. Watch it on a laptop, tablet or phone, whichever you can prop beside you while you write.
Have a question that is not answered here? We would love to hear from you.
Start Tonight
Learn Modern Calligraphy
Eleven modules, 91 pages of worksheets, and the whole method taught properly by someone who has taught it to over 3,000 people in person.
One payment of £100. Yours for life, including every module we add. Enrol now and the first lesson is open in a minute.
£100 | 11 Modules | Lifetime Access | Learn At Your Own Pace