Easy Gift Tags by Robyn Anderson

Follow Robyn Anderson from Robyn Calligraphy and make easy lettering gift tags. If we had to choose our favourite tag would be… No, we can’t choose! Follow her steps here.

YOU WILL NEED:

SUPPLIES

  • 1 sheet of smooth white cardstock (Marlin project board, but watercolour paper will also work well)
  • Pencil (Pentel Penticlick clutch)
  • Eraser (Pentel Clic Eraser)
  • Uni Pin Fine Line – black (I used sizes 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5)
  • Koi Coloring Brush Pen in the colours of your choice (I used pink, iris, blue, sky blue, deep yellow, orange, yellow-green, vermilion and peacock green)
  • Uni-ball Signo Broad gel pen – silver (optional)
  • Ribbons and string of your choice

TOOLS

  • Cutting mat
  • Craft knife & metal ruler or guillotine
  • Plastic ruler
  • Scissors
  • Punch for making a hole
  • Paintbrush (small size)
  • Palette (laminated sheet, plastic sleeve or ceramic plate)
  • Small jar of water
  • Roller towel

Step 1

Cut your A4 sheet of cardstock into small tags of 4cm x 8cm each with scissors, a guillotine, or a craft knife. Using scissors, round the edges, and then punch holes for ribbons. If you don’t have a hole punch, then just use an office punch.

Step 2

Using a ruler and pencil, draw guidelines onto your tags and then plan out your basic text. Once you are happy with the layout, then go over the pencil with a black fineliner. I have used waterproof fineliners so that the black doesn’t smudge or bleed into the colour ink.

Step 3

Once the fineliner has dried, then erase your pencil lines using a soft eraser.

Step 4

Add colour where you want it, as well as any drawings and little dots, etc. The Koi Coloring Brush Pens are great for adding colour because you can blend them to get a watercolour effect. Use a silver gel pen to add some metallic dots and highlights where you need them.

Step 5

Once your designs are complete, then add some ribbons or twine to your tags. For each tag, cut a length of ribbon about 30cm long and fold it in half. Push the folded end through the hole in your tag (from the front of the tag, push through to the back), bring the loop up and thread the two loose ends through the loop. Pull the ribbon tight to keep it in place but be careful not to tear your tag.

Step 6

Sit back and admire your beautiful tags, and then have fun planning who to give them too!

HOW TO ACHIEVE THE DIFFERENT LOOKS:

How to do fake calligraphy (the first ‘happy birthday’ tag)
Fake calligraphy is a lettering style whereby you write out a monoline word (all lines the same thickness) and then add a second line to the downstrokes (anywhere that your hand moves down during a letter). You can either colour in these thicker areas in black, colour, or leave them open as all three looks are really effective. Use a small nib fineliner for this technique, e.g. the 0.3 or 0.1

How to paint your letters using brush pens (the ‘thanks’ tag)
It would be best to use water-soluble pens for this technique as permanent markers won’t always blend so easily.  I have used the Koi Coloring Brush Pens as their colours are vibrant and easy to blend. Draw out your letters with a pencil and then a fineliner, leaving a space for your colour. Select some colours, and then add them to your blending palette – just a little scribble of each colour will do. Using a wet paintbrush, pick up a bit of colour and paint it onto your letter. Ensure that your brush is not too wet (dab it onto some roller towel just to make sure), as too much water will ruin your tag. For a darker colour, just add another layer once the first layer is dry. To create your own colours, just mix two colours together on your palette (e.g. pink and blue will give you purple)

How to create the watercolour flowers (the second ‘happy birthday’ tag)
To create the little watercolour flowers, just use your brush pens in the same way as described above, and paint some small ‘blobs’. Once they are dry, use a 0.1 fineliner and do a rough outline to give the illusion of petals, and add some wavy stems and leaves. You can paint the leaves in green afterwards. Add in a few random dots using a fineliner and the silver gel pen. Try and keep the look loose and not too perfect.

Follow Robyn on:
Facebook:  @CalligraphyJoburg
Instagram:  @calligraphyjoburg
Website:  www.calligraphyjoburg.com
Email:  [email protected]

Robyn Anderson of Calligraphy Joburg is a full-time lettering and calligraphy teacher and handwriting coach based in Johannesburg. She runs online and in-person courses and workshops, teaching traditional calligraphy, modern calligraphy using pointed pens and brush lettering, fake calligraphy and hand lettering. She also teaches card making and basic bookbinding classes.

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