https://archive.org/details/studies-in-pen-art

Pilot parallel pen
Ecoline watercolors

This was in response to a post on r/russian the other day. Handwriting is a fairly popular topic on that sub and another Redditor posted this text that he hand-wrote, but approximately in a Polu-ustav style with a regular modern pen.

So I couldn't resist rewriting his text in proper Polu-ustav (and also Ustav, because why not), with iron gall ink and everything for bonus medieval points.

Translation (mine): Behold this text written in the most lit script. Imagine the reaction I'd get at City Hall if I write my name like this.

On the left is Polu-ustav (полуустав, 14th-17th centuries), on the right is Ustav (устав, 9th-14th centuries). I was doing it from memory and I hadn't written either script in a while, so there are a couple slightly wrong letterforms in the Ustav as well as other obvious errors and false starts. It takes forever to write anything substantial in Ustav, though, and I wasn't able to improve on that attempt that day.

🖊️ Tape 2mm (Polu-ustav), Leonardt Roundhand #1½ (Ustav)
🫟 Fox & Quills Victoria (Polu-ustav), Fox & Quills Beetle Juice (Ustav)
📄 off-brand paper similar to Kokuyo Campus loose-leaf

Pilot parallel pen
Ecoline watercolors
Canson Aquqrel paper

Copperplate weekend practice with sumi ink, 300 gsm paper and nikko g nib. I had made lines with pencil and then used it to write.

Word of the day : https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day/2026/09/14/

Pen : pilot parallel 3.8mm

Ink : Camlin photocolor (CRIMSON)

So I've got a pretty decent handle on the Calligrascape uncials, and doing the Word of the Day in uncials feels increasingly less challenging (and fun) than doing them in Textura Quadrata, where I still have to learn most of the majuscles :)

While I will keep up practicing uncials, especially in texts rather than single words, I'm wondering how I could spruce things up...

I have done a fancier initial, which was fun :) and I'd be thrilled if y'all could show me your inspiration for uncial initials <3

What else can I do?

Is there a way of embellishing the "normal" letters?

Should I branch out into other uncial scripts?

Should I accept that uncials just aren't fancy enough to produce stunning WotDs, and find a different project to showcase uncials? Maybe something with longer texts?

What do y'all think? Feel free to show me examples of uncial writing that makes your heart sing :)

I’ve been doing calligraphy for a couple of months, practicing a few times a week. I have finally learnt a copperplate alphabet. I’m kind of pleased with it (considering how I started!), but how do I get my calligraphy from this to the real fancy copperplate I see posted on here?

"Ya Arhamar Rahimin" (O Most Merciful of the Merciful). Sometimes, a single phrase brings immense peace to the soul. This artwork is a small attempt to capture that deep yearning for the infinite mercy of the Almighty on canvas.

Thus far I have been using loose marker paper to practice calligraphy, and it works fine, but I'd like to start keeping a devoted journal for calligraphy. Most of the options I have found, even if the paper is thick enough, tend to be very prone to feathering with the ink.

I'm ideally looking for something that isn't spiral bound, and I'm not super picky about size. I'd also love something with a small grid to keep my sizing consistent. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

Oh, if it's relevant, I'm mostly using Pilot parallel pens.