Ditch the blank canvas and imposter syndrome and learn to letter by tracing over typefaces!

We’ll be learning how to install and manipulate free fonts in Procreate to create unique hand lettered floral artwork. This class is for anyone who thinks they can’t draw letters but wants to learn how!

Tracing over a typeface is totally legit!

It’s a great way to learn techniques, build muscle memory and get started in lettering designs.

I often use fonts as a basis for my lettered artwork and I’m excited to teach you all the skills you need to transform a typed font into a piece of floral artwork!

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:

Selecting Fonts:

How and where to find free fonts
How to check licenses to make sure they can be used for commercial artwork
How to download a font to your iPad
How to Unzip and instal fonts to Procreate

Manipulating Text:

How to stretch lettering to make it fit your design
How to create circular or wavy text similar to “type on a path” effects in other software
How to adjust the kerning or tracking (letter spacing) to create a balanced design
How to adjust a typeface to make it look less “typed”

In Project one we’ll learn how to create circular lettering. This is easy to do in Adobe Illustrator with the “type on a path tool” but there’s a fun way to do it in Procreate too!

Project two is all about exploring shading and extruded lettering. We’ll look at spacing and line height to help our text fill the canvas nicely. Then, I’m going to teach you an easy hack for creating perfect extruded lettering using the drawing assist function. I’ve also got a simple system for figuring out how and where to add shading and highlights using blend modes for easy recolouring.

Project three will teach you all about clipping and layer masks. We’ll be using a LOT of them in this project, so there’ll be plenty of practice! We’ll learn how to make text hide behind or poke out from floral elements. We’ll use layer mask to hide and show different parts of the text in a non-destructive way which means you can always go back and change things. I’m going to teach you an easy way to add shading using blurring techniques, blend modes and clipping masks. We’ll also explore shading techniques and have a look at recolouring artwork to make sure your lettering always remains legible.

we’ll learn how to create circular lettering. This is easy to do in Adobe Illustrator with the “type on a path tool” but there’s a fun way to do it in Procreate too!

The skills you’ll learn will enable you to tackle a wide range of lettering projects which you can share on social media or add to your portfolio.

By using fonts as a basis for your designs, you get to create and learn techniques without first having to learn how to draw letters yourself! Your brain can focus solely on learning new skills without the pressure of having to create letters from scratch. This will build confidence and muscle memory and before long you may find you’re ready to ditch the fonts and start creating your own lettering styles!

But don’t forget that using a typeface or font for a design isn’t cheating either! It’s no different to using a font on a poster or graphic design piece, except you’re adding to it and making it even more unique! So if you find this method of creating lettered art works for you and you enjoy it, then you can totally stick with it! I use this method all the time for creating lettering artwork!

Just always be sure to check the licence on your font to make sure that it can be used commercially if you intend on selling your art. (As you should any time you use a font in design work!)

WHAT LEVEL IS THIS CLASS?

This is an “almost” beginner class for artists who already have some very basic experience illustrating in Procreate, understand the basics of digital art and want to learn how to start creating some lettering. If you’ve never used Procreate before, it might be better to take a complete beginner class and then come back here for this one. But as long as you know how to do the basics such as navigating the interface and menus, drawing and erasing then you’ll be able to follow along! I’ll explain everything as we go.

YOU WILL NEED:

All you’ll need for this class is an iPad running the latest version of Procreate and an Apple Pencil. You’ll also need an internet connection to download extra fonts (or you can use the basic ones that come with Procreate.)

The brushes which I use in the class are optional extras and can be downloaded from my website via the links in the resources.

Lauraine Gibbons

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