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Calligraphy is regarded as the art of beautiful writing and has been in existence for centuries, dating as far back as the early Egyptians. If you are just starting to learn to calligraphy, then it makes sense to choose an inexpensive set that meets your needs until you are sure that this is a craft you wish to pursue.
The three main types of calligraphy are Western, Chinese and Japanese. Western calligraphy uses a pen whereas brushes are used for Chinese and Japanese calligraphy, so naturally you need to decide which type of calligraphy you intend writing before purchasing a calligraphy set.
Choose a set that meets your needs
Calligraphy sets for western calligraphy vary in size and price. Beginners should easily be able to purchase a set that fits their requirements without spending too much money. A fairly inexpensive basic set will contain about three pens at most. These pens will typically have fixed nibs and if you want to change the thickness of the point, it normally means swapping between pens. The sets may also contain a couple of spare ink cartridges. Constant swapping of pens can become frustrating so you may prefer to purchase a set which contains one pen and a variety of different sized nibs. These often come with a supply of ink cartridges in various colors, such as black, blue, brown and even pink or they can be used with a bottle of ink.
Using a pen holder or dip pen
You may even prefer to buy a pen holder, or dip pen, which you use with the different nib sizes of your choice. They can be messy to use at first, as most of us nowdays have little experience of writing with wet ink since most writing mediums, such as biros and roller balls, dry the instant the ink hits the paper. The advantage with this type of pen is that once you have found a dip pen that fits nicely in your hand and feels comfortable, it is all you need and you simply change your nibs as and when you need a different thickness. Also must calligraphers will agree that you get a greater choice of inks and your lettering shows a greater clarity of distinction between thick and thin.
Brush strokes
Chinese and Japanese calligraphy is very different from Western, as it uses brushes instead of pens to draw different strokes. However, like pen nibs, the brushes vary in thickness and are available in different types of hair. This type of hair can include goat hair, rabbit, wolf and even rat hair, which are all soft and make the brush strokes very smooth.
Beginners would have advised to start with stiffer bristles however, as these are easier to handle. Although some writers will urge the use of soft brushes since they say it teaches the beginner to control their strokes. Chinese and Japanese sets are usually supplied with an ink stick, water container and ink stone. The ink is made by gently rubbing the ink stick in a small pool of water in the ink stone. It's a very traditional way of avoiding ink wastage as there is no chance of it drying up. Rice paper would also be an authentic medium on which to write.
Where to buy calligraphy pens and brushes
Most reputable craft or art stores will house a selection of different calligraphy pens and other equipment. In addition they can be bought from specialist online stores or companies such as Amazon do a wide range of inexpensive equipment for calligraphers.
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