Watercolor Paint Brush Calligraphy for Beginners
A course by Lucía Nolasco, Designer and Lettering Specialist
Create compositions full of letters and colors with watercolors
Words take on a whole new meaning when we pay special attention to their shape and color, according to calligraphy and lettering specialist Lucía Nolasco. Passionate about letters and handcrafted work, she has developed extensive projects for brands such as Studio A, Chanel, Kipling, Ibis Hotels, and Innato, with which she won bronze at the 2015 Pentawards Awards in London. Drawing on her vast experience, let her guide you through the wonderful world of lettering compositions.
In this online course, learn the basics to create compositions with words and phrases using a waterbrush and watercolors.
What will you learn in this online course?
23 lessons & 15 downloads
What's included in this course?
Start by getting to know Lucía Nolasco, otherwise known as Lunol, who tells you about her career—from her first contact with letters to her most distinguished projects—and her main influences.
Take an in-depth look at the materials you need to create compositions full of letters and color from scratch. Learn to recognize the different types of brushes, watercolors, card stock , paper, and even how to organize your worktable to create comfortably.
Next, Lunol teaches you the art of calligraphy and everything she's learned from her experience. Look at the different basic calligraphy styles—script, sans serif, and serif—and some useful elements that are common in her compositions before carrying out a series of exercises to loosen up with the brush.
Choose the lyrics of a song or poem to develop your composition. Study the message and the rhythm to give greater strength to some words over others in your piece. Then devise a color palette and do some sketches until you get the final design.
Once you have your sketch ready, transfer it to the final paper with a pencil and little by little paint the letters, adding the effects required to embellish your calligraphy composition and give it a more personal touch.
To wrap up the course, Lunol shows you how to create some quick backgrounds in watercolor, experimenting with salt and acetone, among other materials.
- 98% positive reviews (670)
- 19,720 students
- 23 lessons (4h 51m)
- 15 additional resources (10 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: Spanish, English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish
- Spanish · English · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
What is this course's project?
Create a composition inspired by a song or poem that you like, designing the calligraphy with waterbrush and watercolors and strengthening its message through tone, texture, and movement.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
Anyone who loves lettering and wants to apply it to creative projects or anyone looking for a hobby to disconnect from their routine.
Requirements and materials
To take this course you don't need previous experience with calligraphy, although if you do have some you'll be able to learn about other tools to broaden your creative process.
As for materials, you need round brushes, liquid or pan watercolors, paper towels, containers of water, 2H pencils, white sheets, watercolor card, and an eraser.
Reviews
Lucía Nolasco
A course by Lucía Nolasco
Lucía Nolasco, better known as Lunol, is a Peruvian graphic designer with a passion for calligraphy, lettering, and typography. She discovered her love for letters in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2012, where she studied with renowned artists such as Silvia Cordero Vega and Marina Soria, in addition to Jaime de Albarracín and Claude Dietrich in Lima, Peru. She also honed her skills by participating in workshops with Ale Paul, Yani and Guille, Martina Flor, and Gemma O'Brien.
She has worked on major projects in branding, retail, publishing, events, and packaging, including the "Innato" project—a package design where 80% of the calligraphy was done with a flex nib pen—which earned her bronze at the 2015 Pentawards in London alongside Infinito Consultores.
Content
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U1
Hi, I'm Lunol!
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Presentation
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Influences
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U2
Instruments and dance floor
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Brushes, different voices (part 1)
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Brushes, different voices (part 2)
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Watercolors, color and taste (part 1)
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Watercolors, color and flavor (part 2)
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Cardboards and papers, dance floor (part 1)
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Cardboards and papers, dance floor (part 2)
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Desk
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U3
Dancing with the brush
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Basic calligraphic styles
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Pre Writing and lower case script I
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Lower case II, flourishes and ligatures (part 1)
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Lower case II, flourishes and ligatures (part 2)
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Script variants
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Basic capital letters
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Uppercase Script
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Capital letters with Serif
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U4
We chose the song and ¡A bailar!
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Designing our project
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Try and failure
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Let's dance (part 1)
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Let's dance (part 2)
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Let's dance (part 3)
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U5
Finishes and bonus track
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Express funds
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FP
Final project
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Calligraphy with water brushes for beginners
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
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FAQs
You’ll learn calligraphy and lettering techniques, how to use brushes and watercolors, typographic composition, digitizing hand-drawn letters, and creating backgrounds and textures for creative and commercial projects.
The course is designed for those with intermediate knowledge of calligraphy or lettering, but beginners with basic skills who want to deepen their techniques and applications are also welcome.
You’ll need round and oriental brushes, watercolors, papers of various weights and textures, ruling pens, cardstock, a dropper, and basic drawing tools. Having a variety to experiment with is recommended.
The course teaches you how to design custom letters and apply calligraphy to packaging, creating unique pieces for branding, invitations, events, and commercial products.
Yes, the course includes techniques for digitizing letters and calligraphic compositions so you can use them in digital or printed projects.
Calligraphy is the art of writing letters following rules; lettering is creatively drawing letters; typography is the structured design of typefaces. The course covers all three disciplines and their uses.
You’ll learn to create gradients, control pigment intensity, mix colors, work on backgrounds with flat brushes, and experiment with textures and special watercolor effects.
Me encantoooo! Un curso genial!
Un curso para principiantes, menciona ejercicios de caligrafía de forma general, luego las letras al final terminan cambiando sus formas que se habían practicado. Igual estoy comparando este curso con el de Bego Viñuela y me ha gustado mas el de Bego. Pero igual aprendí algunos tipsmpara mejorar mi caligrafía. Gracias.
Perfekcyjne prowadzenie ze szczególnym naciskiem na drobne szczegóły i niuanse o których nie miałam pojęcia. To mój ulubiony kurs kaligrafii!
Ha sido un curso muy enriquecedor, practico y fácil de entender, inspirador y muy educativo
Buena explicación !